Passenger makes shocking discovery on flight that leaves all airline crew suspended
The airline has publicly apologized and suspended its staff
A passenger has made a shocking discovery on a flight that has left all airline crew suspended.
The entire cabin crew were suspended from their roles after a passenger made an unbelievable discovery after his flight.
Michael Tjendara lost his phone while traveling from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Melbourne, Australia on Garuda Indonesia flight GA716 earlier this month.
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Tracking his device, Tjendara was stunned to find out that his missing iPhone was at a hotel where the airline staff were staying at.
Sharing details about the incident on his Instagram page, Tjendara also provided a series of screenshots from Find My iPhone.
The images showed that the device was initially taken to a location near the Southbank Promenade, placed close to the Mecure Hotel, which is where the cabin crew were believed to be staying.
However, the phone was later moved and Tjendara traced it towards the Evan Walker Bridge.
The final signal that the man got from his iPhone was at the Yarra River where a screenshot appears to show that the phone was dropped into the water.
In a post on social media, he wrote: “My phone was stolen onboard Garuda Indonesia GA716 (Jakarta-Melbourne, June 6, 2025).
“I was traveling with my wife and two young children when this happened. My phone was stored in the seat pocket, but by the time we landed - it was gone.
“This is not about the value of the phone. It’s about the safety and trust every passenger deverses on any flight, especially with a national airline.
“I’ve reported the case to the authorities in Australia and hope this post helps others stay more vigilant.”
In a statement, Garuda Indonesia’s Director of Commercial and Cargo, Ade R. Susardi said: “We are in continuous communication with the concerned passenger and remain committed to supporting him throughout the follow-up process.”
Susardi went on to confirm that all of the crew involved had been suspended and that Garuda Indonesia had sent a representative to assist Tjendara in Melbourne and to help him file a police report.
Susardi continued: “We can confirm that upon receiving the report, all cabin crew had followed standard operating and safety procedures, including promptly coordinating with airport authorities to initiate a search.”
Many people took to social media to react to the news, with one person writing on Reddit: “I read the original IG post earlier, if I'm not mistaken, the owner also said that during the employee check-up at the hotel, there were a few employees who hadn't been checked yet who were allowed to go out of the hotel.”
And another added: “Why don't planes have CCTV? Even though they're both public places. Nowadays, night buses already have a lot of CCTV installed, right?”