Delta Cargo Delivers Delight: Going the extra mile for Delta fan Ryan Vlazny

Aviation enthusiast Ryan Vlazny had the experience of a lifetime this March when he was escorted by Delta Capt. Mike Bennett through a tour of the Delta Flight Museum and General Offices in Atlanta. Ryan and Capt. Bennett met several months prior and the two immediately hit it off, sharing a mutual love for aviation, specifically DC-9 aircraft. Capt. Bennett was inspired by Ryan's unique appreciation for aviation - born deaf and diagnosed with Usher's Syndrome at age 8, Ryan fell in love with aviation after a cochlear implant improved his hearing. In 2018, Ryan lost his eyesight. In order to retain his Developer position at Vanguard in Philadelphia, he enrolled in the DeafBlind program at Helen Keller National Center to learn Braille and blind tech. He continues to travel on as many 717's as he can, just for fun.

Read more about Ryan's visit to the Delta Flight Museum and General Offices:

Much to his surprise, Ryan's Delta journey wasn't over after he visited the Delta Flight Museum. Delta Cargo recently helped orchestrate another remarkable surprise for Ryan, gifting him a unique treasure: a set of first-class seats from a Boeing 757 aircraft.

Dean Vanderkley (Manager - Data Protection Information Security) connected with Ryan's father, Dave Vlazny, shortly after Ryan's visit was orchestrated. Dave had mentioned that Ryan had an airline seat office chair in his home and dreamed of having a first-class seat for his living room. When Dean found himself wandering the Delta Surplus Sale shortly thereafter, he spotted a pair of Boeing 757 first-class seats and immediately thought of Ryan. He knew he had to work out a way to get them to him.

Dean connected with John Campbell (Director of Atlanta Cargo Operations) and Denise Long (Cargo Operations Service Manager) and no time was wasted in devising a plan to get the seats to Ryan in Philadelphia.

The Atlanta Cargo operations team stored the seats until they could be flown to New York's JFK and then transported via Delta Cargo's trucking network to Philadelphia. After careful planning and coordination, Eric Nehls and Enrique Toledo hand-delivered Ryan with the set of first-class Boeing 757 seats.

The seats, once occupied by passengers on countless journeys, now hold immense sentimental value for Ryan and serve as a tangible symbol of his lifelong love of aviation, but also Delta's devotion to Ryan. As John Campbell put it, "Ryan is family, and this is what we do for family."