Another possibility...the US Embassy/Consulate could have issued him an emergency passport (there really is such a thing) and they could have delivered it to the airport.
Sounds really,really stupid to me!
My first thought as well.
I wondered that as well. Lost (or stolen) passports happen, even in flight. I was once seated next to a guy who couldn’t find his passport when we landed, though obviously he had had it to board. I don’t recall where he thought he had put it, but perhaps somewhere other than on his person. Women put passports in purses and bags all the time. The flight attendants helped him ransack his seat, the adjoining seats, his luggage, etc. to no avail. I don’t know how it was resolved, but this has to be a common enough problem.
I once lost a prescription that I kinda, sorta needed. It had gone AWOL from a pocket in my jacket somewhere in flight. I was grimly prepping myself for a trip to the nearest hospital or U.S. consulate to run a prescription refill marathon with an English speaking intermediary who could do the necessaries with the prescribing physician back home, but different countries, different customs. The hotel concierge called a local pharmacy, and 20 minutes later, a gal from the pharmacy chugged up the drive on her motorbike with the refill.
The point being that even stuff you think you have secured gets lost in flight. Gremlins are everywhere.
I had it happen to a flight attendant. The simple solution is to stay on the plane and return to the US. But, nooooooo.
They made her deplane, took her to a secure area and kept her there until the airline paid an $8000 fine. It is not a quick process.
You need to understand the Chinese mentality. They are given a job to do. There is no deviation from the procedure. Thought and common sense will get them sent to the Mongolian border.
EC
I totally agree!