More than 100 military veterans will depart from Bismarck Airport on Sunday morning on a trip to Washington, D.C., to visit war memorials and other notable sites thanks to a nonprofit organization.
Western North Dakota Honor Flight made its first trip to the nation’s capital in April 2022 after the COVID-19 pandemic delayed an inaugural flight that was planned for October 2020. A second trip was made earlier this year. The group is part of a larger network of 124 active Honor Flight chapters that have given more than 260,000 veterans a chance to visit Washington and see the memorials commemorating the wars they fought in.
Planned stops on the two-day trip include the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, World War II Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and the U.S. Capitol. The visit to Arlington will include a wreath-laying ceremony featuring four North Dakota veterans.
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Western North Dakota Honor Flight President Dennis Burdolski said the region’s waiting list for honor flight slots grew as a result of the pandemic, but the community has rallied behind the initiative and wait times have now been cut significantly. Now, interested veterans won’t have to wait years to participate in an honor flight if they’re interested.
“Originally, we were only going to do one flight this year, but our list grew after the last flight, so we were able to, through the community’s support, do a second flight even though our time frame was crunched,” Burdolski said. “We’re taking extra veterans — more than we normally take — this is going to be a really good flight.”
The return flight will land at the Bismarck Airport at 7 p.m. on Monday, where veterans will be greeted with a welcome party.