American woman living in Amsterdam issues desperate online plea for help reuniting with her dying dog - only to fall head over heels for pilot who swooped in to save her

It was love at first flight! Not only was this dog a woman's best friend, but also the ultimate wingman - introducing her to her pilot boyfriend in his dying days.

Adri Pendleton, 29, had been living in Amsterdam with her two dogs for six years when her relationship ended, making the decision to move back to the United States at the end of last year.

While the TikTok creator was ready to move back to Redding, California, she realized the difficult part was going to be getting her 15-year-old border collie Nelly back too.

Nelly, who has since passed away, had developed epilepsy and been diagnosed with a mild heart murmur. 

Because of Nelly's health problems, Adri was hesitant to put the dog in cargo for the plane trip home, and she couldn't find an airline that would allow a dog of her size to travel in the cabin with her on an international flight. 

Adri realized that the only option to get her beloved dog back was in a private plane - so she immediately started raising money to get her home, posting videos on the TikTok account of her other dog, Loki, which soon went viral.

'People like [Loki] a lot. He has a half-paralyzed face so he's a funny looking guy,' Adri told People.

Luckily, people looked kindly on Nelly and her plight too, with her videos amassing tens of thousands of views and her GoFundMe gaining attention worldwide.

Her videos were also noticed by German pilot Niklas Stoeterau, 26, who said he was 'touched' by her story and contacted her through TikTok with a proposal to bring the pair back to the U.S..

Niklas, who was living in Hamburg at the time, said he could bring Adri and her canine companion as far as New Jersey, as he was allowed to bring a guest for a heavily discounted price.

'I thought, maybe it's not California but at least it's on the right side of the Atlantic, and could bring Adri and Nelly closer to home,' Niklas pointed out. 

'I called it my plus one and a half.'

Despite it being a plan that would solve her transcontinental problems, Adri admitted she was unsure at first.

'I have had men take advantage of me in vulnerable situations before,' she explained, adding she and her family did background checks on Niklas.

The pair were in constant contact in the lead up to the flight, messaging for almost two months.

However, Niklas admitted he was  'little bit nervous' when the day rolled around, and he went to meet Adri and Nelly at an airport in Milan in January.

It turns out, he didn't have anything to be nervous about, with the pair talking non-stop for the duration of the 15-hour-flight - which included two stopovers. 

Niklas said he felt an instant connection with the dog owner, including similar interests like photography and country music.

'It was just something about her,' he gushed. 'We could talk about the most random stuff and it just feels easy.'

Another indication Niklas was someone special was Nelly's instant affection for him.

'You'd think she would be a bit shy or not too fond of strangers, but we got along very well through the whole flight,' the pilot said.

Although the travel buddies said their goodbyes in Newark, New Jersey, they couldn't stop thinking about each other.

'A couple of days after the flight, I said, "You're very impressive. If you keep this up, I'm going to invite you to California and take you on a date,"'  Adri recalled.

'I mean, it was clear that we were both interested in each other,' she added.

'I was happy she made that first step,' Niklas confirmed.

Sadly, Nelly passed away about a month after they returned to California, but Adri is grateful for any extra time she got to spend with Nelly.

'Definitely the ultimate wingman,' she said.

The dashing aviator came back to visit Adri in California in March and met her family, but they have no solid plans yet to move or get married - as much as their TikTok followers would love it.

For the moment, Niklas has accepted a new job in Switzerland while Adri is taking classes, hoping to become a dog behaviorist. 

'Neither of us actually really feel pressured. We think it's fun that TikTok is so supportive and excited for us, but we're just doing our thing,' Adri explained.

'We're happy. So that's what matters.'