After the war, the machine gunner from the 75th Infantry Division went to college and became an engineer. While he made some trips to Washington for work, “All I ever saw was the airport and the hotel,” he said.
 
On Nov. 9, he and 85 other veterans will board an airliner for a one-day, all-expenses-paid trip to the nation’s capital see the National World War II Memorial, courtesy of the Honor Flight program.
 
“I always wanted to go, but I never had the time or opportunity,” said Schlaefflin, 86, of McCormick. “It’s going to be nice to spend it with other veterans.”
 
Since 2009, the Honor Flight programs in South Carolina have flown about 2,220 World War II veterans for free to Washington to see their memorial. The next flight from Columbia is Nov. 9, two days before Veterans Day.
 
The vets visit their memorial, as well as the Washington Monument and Korea memorial, the Iwo Jima and Air Force memorials, and Arlington National Cemetery, where they are special guests for the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
The flights have two physicians on board, in case of health problems, and the vets are given a heroes’ welcome in Washington, often met by such dignitaries as former Sen. Bob Dole and former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell.
 
Each flight costs about $60,000 to take about 100 vets on the trip. Much of the money is raised by “guardians” — individuals who pay $500 for the honor of assisting the vets.
 
Now, Bill Dukes, founder of the Columbia-based Honor Flight of South Carolina, is trying to raise $120,000 to fund two more flights in the spring, stressing urgency due to the advanced age of the veterans, many of whom are in their 90s.
 
“Some of these vets can make a flight next year, but probably not the year after that,” said Dukes, a Columbia restaurateur.
There are fewer than 3 million World War II veterans left across the nation, but they are dying at an estimated rate of 1,500 a day. Local Honor Flight organizers said they do not know how many World War II vets live in South Carolina, but they are passing rapidly.
 
In August, Col. Charles P. Murray Jr., an Honor Flight co-chairman and Medal of Honor recipient from World War II, passed away. As a fundraising event for the spring flights, a golf tournament will be held in his honor. First Citizens bank is a primary sponsor, but others interested in sponsoring, donating or participating can call Jerry Neely at (803) 932-9002.

The crew chiefs of the S.C. Air National Guard 169th Fighter Wing, the Swamp Fox, already have pitched in $2,500 from a golf tournament they sponsored this month, Dukes said.
 
Nationally, the Honor Flight Network has 73 hubs in 30 states, all dedicated to flying as many veterans as possible to the memorial.
Earl Morse, a physician’s assistant and retired U.S. Air Force captain from Springfield, Ohio, started Honor Flight in 2004 to honor veterans he had treated. On a whim, he flew one veteran to the memorial himself in a small plane, and then asked other pilots to donate flights for other veterans.
 
The program grew in the Midwest and then was picked up by Jeff Miller in Hendersonville, N.C. From there, it began spreading throughout the Southeast.
The town of Simpsonville organized the first Honor Flight in South Carolina in May 2008, flying 101 veterans from the Upstate after Mayor Dennis Waldrop and his wife, Betty, saw a feature on “CBS Sunday Morning.”
But the program really took wing in November 2008 when Dukes formed Honor Flight of South Carolina in the Midlands.
Now, Charleston and Myrtle Beach have Honor Flight chapters, and a flight was even organized by the tiny town of Kershaw in Lancaster County.
 
Dukes said the organization is still looking for World War II veterans — only about 25 are on the waiting list for the spring flight — but are now also including veterans from Korea, known as the Forgotten War.
He urged the public to contact the organization, even if they think a veteran may be too old to make the trip. “There are still lots of World War II vets out there,” he said. “It ain’t over yet.”


Read more: http://www.thestate.com/2011/10/24/2020833/honor-flights-still-soar.html#ixzz1bhy0Ue9X