Contributed
Grant Fuller (left) and Tom Pankonin stand at the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C. during the Vietnam Veterans Flight on May 1.
Vietnam Veterans experience honor flight
By Brooke Pankonin
Grant Tribune Sentinel
Tom Pankonin of Grant, Grant Fuller of Madrid, and Bernard Heinemann of Wallace were among 650 Vietnam War Veterans who received a warm welcome after returning from a trip to the nation’s capital on Monday, May 1.
The three area veterans participated in the 2017 Vietnam Veterans Flight, which included veterans from 175 Nebraska communities. It was the largest group of Vietnam Veterans from a single state to visit the Vietnam Wall since last year’s flight.
The flight was preceded by an early evening dinner on Sunday at Embassy Suites Convention Center in La Vista, with a 2 a.m. wake-up call on Monday to board the buses for the airport.
The four charter jets flew them from Eppley Airfield in Omaha to Reagan National in Washington, D.C., where they were greeted by a large group to welcome and thank them for their service.
Upon arrival, they were honored with a water salute which involved two fire trucks spraying arcs of water over the planes. The water salute is a sign of respect, honor and gratitude.
The day included visits to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, Lincoln Memorial, Korean War Memorial, World War II Memorial, Air Force Memorial, Iwo Jima Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery for the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns.