Honor Flight Central Coast’s next Tour of Honor slated for Oct. 2-4
Record-size travel group hosts nearly 100 veterans
– Honor Flight Central Coast California will depart for Washington DC on Monday, Oct. 2 with nearly 100 veterans onboard an Allegiant Airlines charter flight, a new trip size record.
Honor Flight Central Coast California is a local non-profit organization that takes veterans from Southern Monterey County through Ventura County on all-expense paid trips to visit the Washington, DC memorials honoring veterans’ military service.
According to Honor Flight President Bear McGill, the group first flew on a charter flight last spring, traveling with 75 veterans. That trip was a success, leading Honor Flight organizers to opt for a maximum-size veteran group for the upcoming October flight. The flight contingent of trip volunteers, veterans, and their guardians will fill the plane to its 178-passenger capacity.
McGill said the biggest-ever trip fulfills a longtime dream of Honor Flight to accommodate the many veterans who have been on trip waiting lists. “We have taken nearly 500 veterans to Washington since we first started ten years ago, and now we can travel with 100 in a single trip. We are moving quickly through our waiting list,” he said.
The October Tour of Honor will host Korea and Vietnam-era veterans, with Korea veterans representing 10 percent of the group and the remaining 90 percent from the Vietnam era. The group will depart from Santa Maria Airport on an Allegiant Airlines charter flight on Monday, Oct. 2 at 9 a.m. Return is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 4 at 7:40 p.m. Welcome Home Military Heroes is coordinating a spirited return celebration to herald the veterans as they re-enter the airport and invites anyone who is interested in being part of the crowd to join in. Flight return time updates will be available Wednesday afternoon by calling the Welcome Home Military Heroes message line at (805) 242-0536 or checking Honor Flight’s Facebook page or Instagram.
General information about Honor Flight can be found at www.HonorFlightccc.org.
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