MVV Operation Honor

Honor Flight Event

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Jeff Stevens here, and I welcome you to another edition
of Miami Valley View. And I have a very special
guest with me this time. He's become a great friend
over the summer. Colonel Matt Mooha is with us this morning,
and we're going to talk about a very very cool
event that is coming to Dayton. Operation Honor is going
to be here in just a few weeks. Good morning,

(00:20):
Good morning, Jeff.

Speaker 2 (00:21):
How are you doing.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
I'm great, I'm great. So first of all, tell me
about this. This is a very special When you first
told me about it, I was like, Oh, that's cool.
And then we kept talking more, and then you kept
telling me more about what is happening. And this is
an ultra special event.

Speaker 2 (00:36):
Well, what might be familiar with Honor Flights. It's an
organization actually started back in two thousand and five with
Captain Earl Morse. He was a retired captain from the
Air Force and was a physician assistant at the Springfield
VA and the World War iiO Memorrale and DC had
just opened up the year prior. He started asking around
to some of his patients if they'd been out to him,
and none of them had been there. So he actually

(00:58):
wrangled up about half a dozen a small aircraft and
they flew twelve veterans out to DC that day, walked
around the Memorial, took them to Arlington, and flew him back.
That summer. They did a couple more the next summer
they did that that grew into it. Now it's called
Honor Flight. Honor Flight. There's one hundred and twenty eight
what they call hubs or chapters throughout the nation. Just

(01:18):
in Ohio there's four chapters. There's one up in Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Cincinnati.
So the Dayton one is considered the very first one,
obviously because it started here at right Pat I was
actually signed up my father in law, who was a
tour Vietnam VET, quite a few years ago for Honor Flight,
and then in September of twenty three, him and I
were just to go on it, and for the first

(01:39):
time ever, the flight got canceled. The night before they
had high winds in DC. They decided, I guess they
called the airlines. They said, well, we can get you in,
we don't know if we can get you out, So
they actually canceled. It was the first time they had
ever canceled. One fast forward a couple months that winter,
I had been assigned. I was at the Pentagon at
the time on my reserve job, and I got assigned
to the four forty. If they're lift winging it right, pat.

(02:01):
So a couple months later, that spring of twenty four,
I was talking to Kelly Cox down her flight and
she was asking me, Matt, when do you want to
go again? Because you know we needed to get rescheduled,
I said. I told her, I said, well, I know
you try to, you know, adjust the list based on
people's health. You want to get people in because you know,
these gentlemen are getting pretty old. You're young as Vietnam
vet is sixty eight years old.

Speaker 1 (02:22):
Wow.

Speaker 2 (02:23):
So they it's been. They said, they don't see where
wear two vets her career in vets as much anymore
that they did have one in April. So, and we
do have a one hundred and four year old World
War two vets signed up for this particular wow. So
so that spring we're talking. I said, you know, hey, Kelly,
has anybody ever done this on a military plane? And
she said that that some people looked into it and
never worked out. I said, okay, Well, we're going to

(02:45):
see if we can make this happen. So it took
about a year to work through. As you can imagine
anything in the government and military, a lot of paperwork
had to be generated make sure that we didn't you know,
completely how it to be done. I guess we have
referenced the closest other mission had done. I guess about
twenty five years ago, the Air Force lifted ay whale
actually was the killer Whale from the movie Free Willy.

(03:07):
It was back in nineteen ninety eight. They had flown
him directly from Iceland to Oregon.

Speaker 1 (03:12):
Really the actual Free Willy Whale.

Speaker 2 (03:14):
Yes, sir, And that was the most closest other type
of mission that we had to kind of emulate. As
we were going through the process again, we got it authorized,
we started putting this together. It grew from just that
day event to what we call Operation Honor, which it
starts off on the nineteenth of September. We're going to
be unveiling one of our C seventeen's as of Hanoi

(03:36):
Taxi with respect to the Nei Taxi that now sits
in the National Museum in the US Air Force. That
was the first aircraft to liberate POW's out of the
Hanoi Hilton and Vietnam. So that plane actually was in
the four forty fifth, so we have that connection. It
was retired about fifteen years ago and actually sits in
the Air Force Museum.

Speaker 1 (03:54):
I saw it. We went over Memorial Day weekend and
I saw it, Yes, sir, Yeah, there fantastic.

Speaker 2 (03:59):
Pretty neat to see that taxi going to be so
on Friday the nineteenth, which happens to be National POW
and m I Recognition Day. I actually chose that on
that and I've dropped on that weekend because of the
Air Force Marathon if that is our big weekend for
the Air Force at right, pat, So I thought it
was very synergistic to have it together. So that will
be unveiled. We're going to have the right B flyer

(04:20):
out there in the hangar for that ceremony. General Ed mcnbyer.
He actually flew the aircraft back in two thousand and
five to Hanoi to bring back some remains and actually
flew on the aircraft when he was released from the
Noi Hilton.

Speaker 1 (04:34):
Wow.

Speaker 2 (04:35):
So the next morning that the Spirit of Annoy taxi
will fly over the opening ceremonies with a CASEY one
thirty five out of Columbus Rickenbacker. We'll be doing the
opening ceremony flyover, and then later that morning some of
the veterans and General mcabiy are going to help hand
out medals at the marathon.

Speaker 1 (04:53):
So this is a whole weekend thing, like you said,
starting Friday. The marathon is Saturday, yes sir, and then
we've got this event on Sunday as.

Speaker 2 (05:05):
Well, Yes sir. There'll be a dinner at the National
Museum the US Air Force on Saturday night. All the
veterans are invited to that. That's going to be hosted
by Daton Devell, mccalition and Jobs Ohio. And then the
next morning, the two C seventeens will fly out of
right Pat. We're going to have about one hundred and
fifty veterans total, about three hundred total between the two
aircraft no fly into Andrew's Air Force Base. So the

(05:27):
first time ever done on a military aircraft. So this
is primarily, you know, to show the recognition and to
thank these veterans for what they've done. You know, especially
at Vietnam. You know veterans because you know when they
came back. They just they didn't get the bank that
they deserved. You know, it was a very difficult time.
My father, who was in Vietnam, he never spoke about

(05:50):
the details of it, other than the day that he returned.
He flew into Cleveland and went into the bathroom and
changed out of his uniform before he took a cab home.
And he said, and I remember him telling me he
told the cab driver that he had just gotten back
from Vietnam, and the cab driver said, so, what like?
And he remembers that. And my aunt aunt tells me

(06:12):
about how she was looking out the window when the
cab pulled up, and how my father just got out
of the car, started crying and kissed the ground when
he got there. So, so I just really want to
make sure that these veterans, you know, when they come
off that plane that evening and see the crowd just
thanking them, it's very similar to coming back from like
a deployment. Oh, yes, having all the thanks.

Speaker 1 (06:33):
So but so they'll leave early Sunday morning, yes sir,
and then be there for a couple hours. What kind
of things will they do when they're when they'll.

Speaker 2 (06:42):
Fly out, we'll be flying into Andrews Air Force Base,
going over to d C H. The onnor flight has
as you can imagine, they've been doing it for twenty years.
They have a very orchestrated event that they do. They
go to all the memorials, obviously based on especially based
on the veterans they have. This one would be, you know,
vast majority of these veterans will be a Vietnam veterans,
so they will be at the Vietnam Memorial, to go

(07:05):
to the War two and the Koreean Memorial. They'll also
spend time at the Arlington Cemetery. They actually have scheduled
to go there and actually see the changing of the
guard at that point. And then they also also hit
some of the service memorials, the Marine Corps and the
Air Force Memorial.

Speaker 1 (07:20):
So wow, and then you're gonna they're gonna come back in,
they're going to land and there's gonna be maybe a
few people waiting for them, which yes.

Speaker 2 (07:29):
So while they're in d C you know, doing their
their thing there back here at the base at right
Patish And Force Base where the operation out or what
we've deemed the Welcome Home Celibratory Concert, We're going to
have four bands there yourself stranger.

Speaker 1 (07:47):
Yes, we're very honored to be asked to be out there.
That's going to be awesome, yes sir.

Speaker 2 (07:51):
And then that we'll have Ricky Lee and then it
will be the big one is Lee Greenwood will be
there to sing his famous song. Because Al Bailey, who's
the president of Honor Flay Dayton, he always tells me,
you know, hey, hey Matt, the last thing we always
do at the end of the night is you know,
we all sing Lee song.

Speaker 1 (08:09):
Oh and uh So this.

Speaker 2 (08:11):
Time when I when I was able to get him,
I went to Al, I said, hey, how how would
you think if if Lee green would sing that? He's like,
oh yeah, that would be prettly neat you know, I'd
be really we think you're doing that sometime. I said, okay,
we got Lee Green when he's going to come on
and sing it.

Speaker 1 (08:24):
Wow.

Speaker 2 (08:25):
I talked to his manager and he's really excited about
coming up. So he's actually squeezing it into the schedule
because he has a concert on Saturday night and he's
gonna his bus is going to drive through the night
to be up here on Sunday for the concerts.

Speaker 1 (08:36):
Wow. That is well, that that's that's extra special. You
hear that song played at so many you know, so
many great events and things like that. It's it's next
level to have him actually singing it at the event.
That is going to be quite a moment. Yes, that
is going to be quite a moment.

Speaker 2 (08:53):
It's uh, when you meet Al. When you see Al
next time, ask about how he called the gentleman that
that usually sings it. He had a call him and say, hey,
I'm gonna have somebody else think at this time. And
I guess he's like, oh gosh, how what did I
do wrong. It's like, well, we're gonna have Lee Greenwood
Saya and so it's like I understand.

Speaker 1 (09:10):
Yeah, problem, Yeah, that's that's not that's a compliment.

Speaker 2 (09:14):
Actually.

Speaker 1 (09:15):
So you know we're having the real guy, the original guy,
sing it. That's pretty awesome. Well, we've got about five
minutes or so left here, and you know, obviously the
great thing is this is something that is open to
the public. There are some limitations just because the amount
of tickets that are out there, but folks can come
to this event.

Speaker 2 (09:35):
Yes, sir, it's being at the base. As you can imagine,
there's a certain security protocol and everything, just like if
you have an air show or anything, and that's probably
been one of the longest polls that you know, work
through on getting that worked out. So we're gonna have tickets.
You go to eventsprout dot com. You can go in
there and then just just search for Operation Honor and
you can bring up that, or you can just google

(09:55):
event sprout Operation Honor. It'll take you straight to taking website.
Another way, you can go to Honor Flight Dayton's Facebook
page and their website that is listed on there. Right now,
I would recommend you as soon as possible. The tickets
are going very quickly. We are going to so anybody
of the general public that gets those tickets and it's
free of charge. It'll give you a QR code that

(10:17):
you bring to the event. They'll be It takes you
to the Skyway Plaza and Fairborne. The city Fairborne has
been fantastic out there. Dan Kirkpatrick, the mayor there, has
been just has had a very what do we need
to do attitude the whole time and I really appreciate
his help. Him and Brian Jarvis, the president of Mine
Value Military Fairs Association, has I mean, I don't know

(10:38):
what I would do without the two of them and
Al Bailey. I mean, they have really done so much
of the work, and you know, people out at the base,
people off base have been extremely healthful and yourself so
at our heart Radio.

Speaker 1 (10:50):
Well and we're glad and honored to be included. When
when we took a when we went out, I guess
at this point a couple of months ago and kind
of we're walking around me and several of the others
were like, wow, these these guys are very buttoned up.
They've got an incredible team putting this and that was
a couple months ago. So now we're you know, we're
just really just a few weeks away. I do want

(11:11):
to reiterate as we have you know, still a few
minutes here. Event sprout dot com is the website where
you go to which is you know basically that's it's
a general ticket place where you can get for different events.
So event sprout dot com and you'll want to look
for Operation Honor when you talk about and the tickets

(11:32):
are free, that's the great thing, but you have to
have one to get in.

Speaker 2 (11:35):
Yeseah. Absolutely everybody needs a ticket to go in because
we do have a cap on how many we can
have out there, so and again you'll you'll go to
the Skyway Plaza. We're gonna have bussing there. People will
be screening, they'll be checking your tickets to that point,
and then everybody will be bussed over on base. So
it'll start at three o'clock in the afternoon on the
twenty Sunday, the twenty first, three pm, the buses will

(11:55):
start and screening will start, and then the music will started.
We're talking four pm.

Speaker 1 (12:01):
Last call will be at four pm, which is funny
because they're first their names last call, but they're going first.

Speaker 2 (12:07):
Yes, sir, So we got a mix of yacht rock, eighties,
nineties country where there's going to be thirteen food trucks
out there, so a lot of food for everybody. I
have some military vehicles on display there that are going
to kind of be stationed around the hangar. And then also,
like I said, the right B flyer is going to
be out there, so it's to be it's going to
be a fun event. So I'm really excited about it.

Speaker 1 (12:28):
Well, again, if you're just tuning in, this is the
this is going to be a twentieth anniversary celebration of
the Honor Flight Dayton. It's coming up the weekend of
September nineteenth, twentieth and twenty first. The event that we're
talking about specifically is on Sunday the twenty first, and
how great of Lee Greenwood. It's it's sometimes hard you

(12:48):
see a lot less, especially artists through who are a
little more a little on the older side, usually put
a day or two in between their shows. So obviously
he's doing something special if he's playing Saturday to get
here on Sunday and do that song. But that's gonna
be quite a moment with with the veterans coming in
and him singing that song, and you guys, you guys

(13:10):
listening right now definitely want to be there for that.
That's gonna be a very very special thing.

Speaker 2 (13:14):
My biggest thing I've kind of visioned the whole time
is when you have, you know, four thousand people staying
outside the concert in these two c seventeen's, you know,
passing over the crowd landing coming around, We're gonna have
fire trucks out there with water arches. These planes will
taxiing and they'll and they're gonna park tail to tail
about one hundred feet off the hangar and then all
the veterans coming off the back of it. It's gonna
meet an amazing moment.

Speaker 1 (13:35):
Wow, you just painted quite a picture there. And that's
that's literally as we were talking about, you know, meeting
a couple months ago. That's that's the kind of coordination.
There is a lot of stuff to put together for this.
As you said, you've been working on it for over
a year and now we're just weeks away from it
coming up on that weekend. So any information as we
wrap up here in the next sixty seconds, any information

(13:58):
folks can get an event sprout dot com. Should they
also check out maybe the Facebook page.

Speaker 2 (14:03):
Yes, check out Honor Flight Dayton their Facebook page, and
then ventsprout dot com and then and then I just
asked everybody, if you know any veterans you know, take
the time to thank them that what they did in
the sacrifice they did when they went. We all have
to remind ourselves of what they what they gave up.

Speaker 1 (14:20):
Yeah, that's for sure, And thank you for sharing your
very personal story too. So and guys, this is going
to be an event that you will not forget. And
we're very, very blessed to have this coming to our area,
so once again, go to eventsprout dot com, search for
Operation Honor, or check their Facebook page and Colonel Matt
Mooha so great working with you. Can't wait to see

(14:42):
you that weekend.

Speaker 2 (14:43):
Yes, sir, Thanks Jef,