An entire aircraft cabin crew has been suspended following the discovery of a passenger’s lost iPhone which was tracked to their accommodation by the ‘Find My iPhone’ feature.
Michael Tjendara was traveling from Jakarta to Melbourne on June 6 when he noticed his mobile phone had gone missing during the Garuda Indonesia flight. He suspects he left it in the seat-back pocket before switching seats mid-flight, only to return and find the device was no longer there. The phone’s disappearance, initially thought to be a simple case of misplacement, soon took a troubling turn.
Using Apple’s tracking feature, Tjendara traced the phone to Southbank Promenade, just steps away from the Mercure Hotel where the flight crew was staying. The signal then led him toward the Evan Walker Bridge before disappearing altogether, suggesting the device may have been deliberately disposed of. “This isn’t just about a phone – it’s about the safety of all passengers in the future,” Tjendara said, calling on the public to share his experience.
The revelation sparked an immediate response from Garuda Indonesia. On June 9, Commercial and Cargo Director Ade R. Susardi confirmed that the entire crew assigned to that flight had been suspended pending an internal investigation into the possible theft. A company representative was also sent to Melbourne to support Tjendara and help facilitate a police report.
While the airline expressed regret for the incident and stated that safety protocols were initially followed, it emphasized that such reports are taken seriously. “We remain in active communication with the passenger and are committed to upholding passenger safety and trust,” said the airline’s spokesperson. Investigations are ongoing to determine whether the lost iPhone was indeed stolen and by whom.
