The Honor Flight program charters a plane to fly local veterans to the nation's capital, where they visit the many war memorials before flying back home that evening. Their last flight was in October 2019, before pausing due to the pandemic.
Steve Garrington, the Hub Director for Honor Flight of the Quad Cities, says he excited to bring back Honor Flights, but he's still wary of potential changes in the situation.
"We understand there is a possibility between now and then of postponement. But for the veterans that are so eager to get to DC to see their memorials, we're willing to give it a try. Because our motto is: 'it's all about the veteran.'"
Exactly fifty flights have departed from the Quad Cities since the program's founding in 2008, and November's flight will include the 5,000th veteran flown from the area. The flight will require masks and vaccinations for all passengers, who are mostly veterans of the Korean and Vietnam Wars.
The Honor Flight Board plans to do four flights each year now that pandemic restrictions have lessened.
November's flight will be called the Bob Morrison Memorial Flight, named after the founder of Honor Flight Quad Cities who passed away in 2019.
