WASHINGTON (WDRB) -- The red, white and blue waved high on Wednesday morning as Honor Flight Bluegrass prepared to give dozens of veterans the flight of a lifetime.
Eighty-two World War II, Vietnam and Korean war veterans lined a hallway at Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport preparing to board a flight to Washington, D.C., where they would get the chance to visit the war memorials.
The eight World War II veterans on the flight was the most for Honor Flight this year.
Very excited to bring you along @HonorFlightBG today! We are getting ready to board the plane to DC where 82 WWII, Vietnam, and Korean veterans will have the chance to visit the various war memorials. Follow along with @WDRBNews all day! pic.twitter.com/0EKS4W8tD2
— Katrina Nickell WDRB (@knickelltv) September 7, 2022
As they waited, members of The Ladies of Liberty, an all-female singing group, sang "God Bless America." Many of them sang along in the hallway, decorated in red, white and blue.
The veterans, many of whom were elderly and in wheelchairs, were escorted to the boarding gate beneath a canopy of American flags held up by Honor Flight Bluegrass volunteers.
Patriotism draped from the interior of the aircraft, with American flags and red, white and blue stars hanging from the ceiling and the baggage compartments.
The flight was packed with veterans and volunteers.
They arrived in Washington around 9:30 a.m. to cheers of onlookers and a drumroll.
The first stop was at the World War II memorial where the eight World War II veterans on the flight spent time remembering those they fought alongside.
Eight World War II veterans from Louisville and southern Indiana visit the World War II memorial on Sept. 7, 2022. They arrived in Washington, D.C. as part of an Honor Flight Bluegrass flight. (Image by: Katrina Nickell)
Mike Braun and Todd Young, U.S. Senators from Indiana, met the veterans there, along with Kentucky U.S. Sen. Rand Paul.
The veterans are also scheduled to visit the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, as well as the Vietnam and Korean War memorials.
WDRB's Katrina Nickell is accompanying the veterans on their trip and will be reporting throughout the day.
It was an emotional experience for veterans visiting the Vietnam Memorial on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2022. Stephen Sanford let us follow along as he searched for two of his friends names on the memorial, one of whom was a former classmate from Jeffersontown. Sanford was there as part of an Honor Flight Bluegrass trip. (Image by: Katrina Nickell)
The nearly 100 veterans returned to Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport around 10:30 p.m. Wednesday.
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