Honor Flight Network that flies veterans to Washington, D.C., from throughout the nation to tour monuments and memorials in the nation's capital was chosen for the Milton Caniff "Spirit of Aviation" award, the Aviation Hall of Fame has announced.
Honor Flight first took wing in 2005 when six planes flew a dozen World War II veterans out of the Springfield-Buckley Municipal Airport to Washington, D.C., to see the memorial to the war they served.
-Honor Flight website image by R.A. Makely-
Since then, the program based in Springfield has expanded exponentially. Honor Flight has flown about 100,000 veterans from nearly 120 "hubs" to Washington, D.C., since the first flight lifted off from the Miami Valley.
Honor Flight will receive the award Dec. 17 at an Aviation Trail Inc. ceremony honoring the 109th anniversary of the Wright brothers first flight at Kitty Hawk in North Carolina. The Hall of Fame has given the award every year since 1981.
The National Aviation Hall of Fame, inside the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force, is set to announce its 2013 inductees the same day. The gathering also will recognize Bill McNabb, an Aviation Trail president who was a pilot for Honor Flight, among other roles.
The awards will be given at a ceremony at the Presidential Banquet Center, 4548 Presidential Drive, Kettering. To make a reservation to the dinner by Dec. 11, send a check to Aviation Trail, Inc., P.O. Box 633, Wright Brothers Branch, Dayton, Ohio 45409. State a preference for a chicken, prime rib or vegetarian meal. FMI: http://www.honorflight.org/, http://www.aviationtrailinc.org/events.html