DOVER — Many Delaware veterans have likely made the two-hour journey to visit the nation’s capital and its monuments dedicated to their service and sacrifice.
Now, 25 of them will be part of the first Honor Flight from Delaware to Washington, D.C., on Sept. 12.
Retired Lt. Gen. William Welser III, who served as commander of the 436th Airlift Wing at Dover Air Force Base in the early 1990s, is an organizer.
“Some of the veterans have been to some of the locations in D.C. but not in the environment of an Honor Flight, where it’s all about them for a day,” he said. “If your family takes you over, that’s one thing, but we took my dad to see the World War II Memorial, … and when he went on an Honor Flight, it was a whole different experience because he was with other veterans.
“It’s a day that, each time you get off the bus, there’s generally a group of people cheering you on, and that’s very emotional and exciting and makes the veterans feel very special.”
The voyage will consist of the 25 veterans and their guardians, who will assist them throughout the day.
“Some of (the guardians) are family members. Some of them are friends. Others are people they’ve never met before — and it’s a great camaraderie experience,” Mr. Welser said. “We will have one World War II veteran — Bob Beaver, who was a B-24 turret gunner — as well as three Korean War and 21 Vietnam vets on this trip.”
The group — at no expense to them — will visit the Air Force, Iwo Jima, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War and Navy memorials, as well as the changing of the guard at Arlington National Cemetery’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
In 2023, the Honor Flight Network took 22,244 soldiers from around the nation to Washington.
According to the program’s website, attendees are chosen by considering a variety of factors. For example, those with terminal illnesses are given top priority, followed by WWII, Korean War and Vietnam War veterans. Individuals who served during the same war era are prioritized by the date their applications are received. Then, veterans are chosen on a first-come, first-served basis.
Mr. Welser said he has attended dozens of the trips out of his current residence of Florida. Once he heard that Delaware would be offering an excursion, he knew he had to participate.
“My background is deep in Honor Flight,” said Mr. Welser, who was also instrumental in developing the Air Mobility Command Museum in Dover. “I ran a hub in Florida for 14 years and have been on 60 different honor flights flying out of Florida since 2011.
“So, when they talked about doing one here in Delaware for the first trip ever, I immediately got involved.”
While not a “flight” exactly — as the First State veterans will not be taking an aircraft — the journey will be on a bus wrapped in Honor Flight’s colors and logo.
“It’s not about us. It’s all about the vets,” Mr. Welser stressed. “We’re just excited about the fact that, on Sept. 11, we’re going to have dinner so that the guardians and veterans can meet, and we’re going to discuss the trip. We head off (Sept. 12) in the early morning, and there’s a bunch of memorials in Washington, D.C., … and we’ll come back that evening for a dinner at the American Legion post in Dover and then a surprise.”
Additionally, any individuals who would like to recognize the group are invited to attend the Honor Flight’s departure (6-7:30 a.m.) and its return (7:30-9 p.m.) at Bally’s Dover. Signs, flags and cheers are encouraged.
This inaugural event is being hosted by Capital Region Honor Flight, a consortium that hosts trips for Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania and Delaware.
And Mr. Welser certainly hopes it will not be the last.
“It would be great if Delaware, in the future, could have their own hub,” he said. “We’re being supported by Bally’s and by the Dover Air Mobility (Command) Museum.
“I do know one thing — it’s going to be a pretty emotional time for the veterans.”
Staff writer Mike Finney can be reached a t 302-741-8230 or mfinney@iniusa.org.
Follow @MikeFinneyDSN on X.
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