My friend lost his cash and bank cards while traveling in France. Now he wants to come home, and I am going to buy him a plane ticket. I have seen questions like this one, that say that he might not be able to board the plane if he doesn't have the original form of payment.
Given that, what is the best way for me to help him with a plane ticket? Should I send him cash, or is there a prepaid debit card in France that he can get quickly that I can then load from the United States? Or is there some other way that I can buy him a ticket? Ideally, we would like to find a solution that doesn't require him to wait in France until Wells Fargo provides replacement cards.
Another related question asks whether flying from Singapore on a ticket someone else has purchased will be a problem. I am asking about France, and inviting suggestions other than using a card in my name.
EDIT: I appreciate everyone's concern about this being a scam. I didn't provide sufficient detail for the reader to rule that out. There is quite a bit of backstory to my friend's predicament which is mostly irrelevant, except that I have been in regular phone communication with him, and I know that this is NOT a scam.
Anyone who comes across this question while looking to rescue a stranded friend should be aware that email accounts get hacked and loved ones get fooled by extremely convincing, detail-rich false pleas for money every day. Here's an example of someone falling for it even after speaking with the "stranded traveler" on the phone.
But that isn't my situation.