Originally Posted by
economyplusfan
During this whole ordeal a friend of mine mentioned that one would think that with all of the social media outlets we have it should be possible to simply post an alert that help is needed at a given location. For example, were an FTer available in Terminal E at IAH on the morning of August 16 I could have directed them to my phone's location as determined by the Find My iPhone APP and set off the lost phone alarm so that they could hear it, find it and return it to me. I am wondering if there is scope to set up such an "Immediate Boots on the Ground Help Needed" thread on FT. Note that the thread would not be tied to a specific airline, as this one is, since what we need are FT bodies at a specified location. I have noted calls for help on FT such as mine from time to time, but I stumble upon them rather than see them as a directed outcome from FT. One could even set up notifications, like an Amber Alert, when an FTer needs help. FTers could opt in or out of the notifications, as they wish. Thoughts?
It's a good idea, but I have serious doubts on whether it would work or not. The last thing we need are people who are self-proclaimed 'authorities' demanding a passenger hand over a phone that they heard ring (or thought they heard ring) with escalations occurring. If a phone was left in a 'private' environment like a lounge, club, or something, then maybe the device would sit there for some time being. But, with a majority of devices not simply sitting around and someone picking them up (Exhibit A is the OP's story), we're going to end up with much more "I heard it ring, give it to me" kind of stories.
Plus, how would we know if the person demanding the phone is authentic or not. Anyone could easily pretend to be in touch with you and say it's their device when it's not. This is why UA and other establishments demand a positive ID check of you, the device owner.