The Van Wert County Courthouse

Thursday, Mar. 28, 2024

Honor Flight provider cancels 2021 season

Independent staff and submitted information

FINDLAY — Flag City Honor Flight (FCHF) has postponed its flight season for 2021 due to increasing COVID-19 cases. The Findlay-based hub of the National Honor Flight Network was scheduled to fly September 14 and November 3 out of the Grand Aire hangar at Toledo’s airport. Both of those flights, as well as the September and October bus trips in partnership with 50 North, are postponed. 

Flag City Honor Flight was eager to resume flying this year, after the pandemic grounded the hub for all of 2020. The organization mandated COVID-19 vaccination proof for all Veterans and Guardians making the trips and planned to strictly follow all COVID-19 restrictions in place at the time of travel. 

“We had all the health and safety protocols in place, but with the recent increase in cases of the highly contagious Delta variant, we really had no choice. We had to postpone to protect the health and safety of our veterans,” says FCHF President Bob Weinberg. “In addition, many of our veterans were concerned about current conditions and requested postponing to an Honor Flight in 2022.” 

The Flag City Honor Flight board worked together to arrive at the decision to postpone the 2021 flight season. 

“This decision was not made easily,” says Veteran Coordinator and Medical Coordinator Kim Rice-Turley. “We have explored all our options for maintaining our 2021 schedule. However, for the health and safety of our Veterans — our number one priority — this decision is in everyone’s best interest.”

Flag City Honor Flight officials will wait to see how the pandemic unfolds before making any announcements about the 2022 flight season. Watch for future updates at https://flagcityflight.org, through local media outlets, and social media.

Flag City Honor Flight is a local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and has organized and operated a trip each June beginning in 2011 and added a second annual trip in 2017. Flag City Honor Flight welcomes veterans from across northwestern Ohio and southeastern Michigan, but will take any U.S. veteran and coordinates with other Honor Flight hubs to provide that opportunity.

POSTED: 08/31/21 at 12:22 am. FILED UNDER: News