95-year-old Harrogate war veteran's dreams come true with early Christmas gift

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Having always held a strong passion for aviation, Eddie Morrison, from Harrogate had a lifelong dream to see inside an aircraft.

After hearing about Eddie’s wish, Jet2.com made his dreams come true, by giving him the gift he has always wanted and treating him to a tour of Leeds Bradford Airport.

He was then invited to step onboard a Boeing 737-800 NG aircraft for the very first time and be shown around it by a Jet2.com Captain, before being able to sit in the flight deck.

As well as receiving a tour of the airport and aircraft, Eddie posed for pictures with the Captain, Martin Beaton, and took home a bag of Jet2.com souvenirs for memorable keepsakes.

Eddie said: “I couldn’t believe it when my daughter told me that she was taking me to Leeds Bradford Airport to step onboard an aircraft. I was in complete shock, as I didn’t believe I would ever see inside one.

"Being shown around the airport, taken on onboard an aircraft, meeting a Captain and sitting in the flight deck was more than I could have ever wished for. It is the best Christmas present I have ever received, and I’d like to say thank you.”

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Eddie’s daughter, Edwina Barwick, who originally contacted the airline to make the special request and accompanied her dad on the tour, added: “It has been wonderful to see my dad make a dream a reality.

"He has always been absolutely fascinated by aviation, watching programmes about aircraft and looking to the sky to spot them. All his life he has wanted to see the inside of an aircraft and I have tried to describe what it looks like, but he was unable to visualise this.

“We cannot thank Jet2.com enough for arranging this special visit and for making his Christmas wish come true. My dad turned 95 just a few weeks ago, so not only is it an early Christmas present for him it is also a belated birthday gift. To see the smile on my dad’s face was magical and it was a day both of us will never forget.”

Steve Heapy, CEO of Jet2.com and Jet2holidays, said: “Tis the season to spread joy, so when we were contacted by Eddie’s daughter to see if we could help him to see inside an aircraft, we were keen to get involved and play Santa.

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“We wanted to make Christmas extra special this year for Eddie and what better way to do that than by granting this very deserving gentleman his wish. We were honoured to welcome Eddie onboard our award-winning airline and would like to wish him and his family a very merry Christmas."