Norfolk Airport employee receives $5K award for heroic act on Delta flight

NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Most airline passengers are focused on finding their seat or settling in for a quiet flight, but for one Virginia man, a recent trip home turned into a life-changing moment, one that’s now being recognized by his community.

Randall Johnson, an employee at Norfolk International Airport and an assistant women’s basketball coach at Virginia Union University, was surprised Thursday with a $5,000 award from his employer, Unifi Aviation.

The recognition came during what Johnson believed would be a routine day at work. Instead, he was greeted by family members, including his mother, sister, aunt and grandmother, along with coworkers who gathered to celebrate him.

“We just knew to come that day,” said his mother, Kim Johnson. “They told us about half an hour before there was going to be a ceremony with a big surprise.”

The award honors Johnson’s actions aboard a Delta flight from Houston on Feb. 18, where he intervened when a passenger became aggressive and attempted to rush the cockpit.

“He jumped over a lady in the middle seat and started choking a man by the window,” Johnson said. “That’s when someone screamed for help, and that’s when it clicked.”

Johnson, who was not in uniform at the time, stepped in to help restrain the man, preventing the situation from escalating and protecting fellow passengers.

He credits his quick response to the mindset he’s developed through his work.

“This job is dangerous,” Johnson said. “You can get comfortable, and that’s when mistakes happen.”

Despite the recognition, “I didn’t see myself as a hero,” he said. “I was just trying to make it home.”

His family sees it differently.

“I think he was put on that plane that day because he saved a lot of lives,” his mother said.

For those who know him, the recognition is about more than a single act, it reflects the character he shows every day.

Johnson’s journey to stability has not been easy. He said there was a time when he rode a bicycle to work for six months. Eventually, he was able to save enough to buy a car and move into a townhouse, milestones he credits to his job at the airport.

“This job changed my life for the better,” he said.

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