That in itself is fairly unusual. Most honor flights originate from Dayton International Airport or other public airports.
“It sounds like it could be a fairly large event, with the base utilizing two C-17s to take folks,” Gebhart said. “It could really turn out to be something big.”
Some 3,000 people may be allowed on base for the event, he added.
Honor flights fly veterans to Washington, D.C. for a chance to take in memorials dedicated to remembering their service. Since 2005, the Honor Flight Network has flown more than 200,000 veterans from all services to visit the nation’s capital and other memorial sites, often on weekend outings, according to the Department of Defense.
The trips are free and are typically funded by donations.
The flights often draw crowds to greet veterans at airports as they depart and as they return.
“We’d love to see a lot of folks out there along with the veterans to welcome the veterans home,” Gebhart said.
The date at work right now is Sept. 21, which is the same weekend as the U.S. Air Force Marathon, also at and around Wright-Patterson and Fairborn, on Sept. 20.
Right now, attendance for the Honor Flight event is capped at 3,000, the Fairborn city manager said.
He also said there have been regular planning meetings with officers of the 445th.
Al Bailey, the volunteer president of Honor Flight Dayton, said the mission has been to take World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War veterans via about two charter flights a year to these memorials. “Who better to see them,” he said.
Overall, about 7,000 veterans from the Dayton area over the years have been flown to Washington, D.C. for these trips.
“It’s an extremely emotional event, and sometimes a life-changing event,” Bailey said.
Air Force officials approached Bailey on this latest idea, with the notion of taking closer to 150 veterans this time instead of the typical 100 veterans. The flights will take off from and return to Wright-Patterson, instead of Dayton International.
“We said, ‘Let’s do it,’” said Bailey, who is a veteran of the Vietnam conflict himself.
He expects most of this trip’s participants will be Vietnam-era veterans. If a veteran wants to get on the Honor Flight waiting list, he or she must complete a application, which can be found at HonorFlightDayton.org. (But Bailey cautioned that being on the list will not guarantee a seat on the September flights. “We take the vets in the order of applications received,” he said. )
Honor Flight Dayton is one nearly 150 hubs in the national Honor Flight Network.
A message was left for Col. Matthew Muha, deputy commander of the 445th.
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