An Aussie woman’s TikTok has gone viral after she wrote a love note to a fellow plane passenger in a bid to land a date.
Isabella Duric, 23, was on a Virgin Australia flight from Sydney to Melbourne on January 13, when she spotted a “cute guy” in the row behind, opposite her and her friends.
While she confessed it was a dare, she said she was genuinely interested in the young man.
“My friend said, ‘I found your airport crush’ and he pointed to the guy behind us,” Isabelle, from Melbourne, told news.com.au.
“I told the girls about it in a Snapchat and said ‘imagine I send a note to the guy’ and they dared me to do it.”
In the clip, which has garnered 1.3 million views, Isabella shares a photo of the note she wrote for the young man, which reads: ‘Hey, add my number,’ along with her Instagram handle and Snapchat.
She signed off with her name and, in brackets, put ‘blonde’ to help identify her.
One of the two friends she is travelling with is seen scrunching up the note and pegging it at her crush who is wearing a white cap and sitting next to a window.
“It bounced off the window and landed near his seat. But he thought it was for someone else and didn’t read it,” Isabella explained.
In the caption, the 23-year-old expressed the “embarrassment” she felt when he didn’t read the note.
“I thought it was the perfect opportunity to shoot my shot. I decided to go all in and create a letter that would catch his eye. However, the execution turned into a comically embarrassing moment,” she wrote.
“After crafting the note, we managed to toss it in his direction. But moments later, the looming second-hand embarrassment washed over me when he didn’t even glance at the letter we had thrown his way. It was one of those cringe moments where you just wish you could disappear from the situation.”
Isabella told news.com.au when the mission failed, the trio decided to alert him with a message on their phone that read ‘OPEN THE NOTE’ in a bright yellow font.
The clip then goes straight to a text message from her crush, implying their mission was (eventually) a success.
It read: “Hey Isabella, I’m Lachie the dude you threw a note at haha how are you (sic). Didn’t have internet on the plane to add you unfortunately.”
Many jumped in the comments section begging for an update – including Virgin Australia who commented: “We’re on the edge of our seats.”
Isabella revealed to news.com.au that following Lachie’s message, she responded and apologized for “being annoying” to which Lachie replied, “nah, you’re fine.”
The pair kept the messages going for a few days, talking about what each other does for work, and at uni – but Isabella said it didn’t eventuate into anything further.
“Everything is meant to happen for a reason and it was also a bit of a running joke (about my airport crushes) – and I am seeing someone else now,” she said.
In the caption, Isabella said it’s all a “lighthearted reminder of the risks we take in the name of love or attraction, especially in close quarters like an airplane.”
“I think it’s the mystery behind who they are, where they are going. And holiday romances are such a big thing now too,” she said.
It triggered plenty of discussion in the comments section about “airport crushes” and spontaneous plane acts in the name of love.
Virgin Australia, chief marketing and customer operations officer, Libby Minogue, said they often hear stories about people finding love on Virgin flights.
“Whether it’s a conversation sparked at the gate or a connection with the person in the next seat,” Minogue said.
“There’s something about flying that makes people more open to the unexpected. From mid-air proposals and weddings, we’ve played cupid more than once. It turns out love really is in the air.”
According to Sydney-based clinical psychologist and relationship expert, Shahn Baker Sorekli, there’s been a cultural shift in how people seek connection.
“For years, dating apps dominated, offering efficiency but also creating what I like to call ‘connection emptiness,’” Sorekli, owner of Drummoyne Psychology, said.
“From a psychological perspective, this reflects a broader tension between convenience stimulation and authenticity – people crave meaningful interaction, but the digital format often promotes superficial engagement which eventually turns people off the experience.”
He said he is seeing two patterns emerge – “some individuals are becoming more socially avoidant due to reduced in-person interaction and skills, while others are consciously pushing back.”
The co-author of ‘The 8 Love Links’ explained people are tired of transactional online exchanges and want to experience that sense of excitement and aliveness that comes from genuine, face-to-face encounters.
“Gestures like leaving a note on a plane capture that impulse perfectly. It’s not just about romance, it is also about a human need to reconnect in real time with vulnerability and excitement, without technology mediating the moment.”
Sydney-based dating and relationship coach Nicole Colantoni added that when you’re travelling, you’re often less guarded and more open to adventure, viewing everything around you as a possibility.
“Research supports this, describing airports as ‘liminal spaces’ – transitional environments where normal roles and everyday routines fade and people become more curious and receptive to new experiences and interactions,” she told news.com.au.
“You’re also sharing a moment of anticipation with strangers, which makes sparks feel more possible. That’s why airport crushes are so common: the mix of novelty, proximity, and the sense of ‘what if’ can amplify attraction.”
She said the fact that Isabella’s video has attracted over a million views suggests this is an experience many people relate to and find desirable.
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