Travis Barker’s moving message on Australia flight ticket after overcoming fear of flying following deadly plane crash

Travis Barker attends Travis Barker's Run Travis Run: A Run & Wellness Experience at The Kia Forum on July 06, 2024 in California. Photo / Getty

Thirteen years ago Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker nearly lost his life in a horrific plane crash. He hadn’t flown again until recently for tour when his band also performed in New Zealand. Now he’s marked overcoming his fear of flying in a special way - and it’s for a good cause.

After surviving a deadly crash that led to a 13-year hiatus from soaring the skies on a plane, Travis Barker has celebrated conquering his fear of flying by selling his Qantas boarding pass and giving some of the proceeds to a charity.

The drummer performed in New Zealand with his pop-punk band Blink 182 in March after the group reunited for a world tour in 2022 - their first in a decade. A boarding pass from that tour, which also took the band to Australia, South America and Mexico, was sold for US$8000 ($13935) on the auction website Trophy.

The website stated that some of the money from the sale would go to the Californian non-profit Lost But Not Forgotten, which helps families experiencing hardship.

The gesture of the boarding pass symbolised a significant hurdle the 48-year-old overcame.

On September 19, 2008, Barker survived a fiery plane crash that killed four others. He hadn’t set foot on a plane until the band’s recent world tour.

He required multiple life-saving surgeries and skin grafts and was forced to go through much of it without relief.

His body was unable to process painkillers properly during the ordeal because of his past illicit drug use.

“Having not flown for over 13 years following his near fatal plane crash, he was finally able to tour again overseas recently,” said the description on the website.

It continued: “This extremely rare commercial boarding pass is not just a piece of music memorabilia, it’s a true piece of Travis himself”.

A photo of the ticket revealed the star travelled on February 7 from Sydney to Perth in business class and sat in row 7E. Handwritten on the ticket was the message, “I know I got angels watchin [sic] over me” along with a drawing of a cross underneath. It’s the same message the musician chose for his Instagram bio.

The Qantas boarding pass sold for $13,395. Photo / Trophy

Barker has spoken widely about struggling with trauma following the accident, and thanks his wife Kourtney Kardashian for aiding his recovery.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Barker spoke of the “power of love” helping him. “Kourt made it so I fly, my kids fly now. She healed us,” he said.