SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — The 90 veterans on board the 33rd annual Honor Flight returned home to San Diego after spending the weekend in Washington, D.C.

Every branch of the military was represented on the trip, hosting veterans who served in combat on ships and on land in conflicts including World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

The purpose of the annual trip is to bring veterans to the nation’s capital to see the various memorials built in honor of their sacrifices.

It also provides a special community homecoming for some veterans who may not have received the same kind of welcome when they returned home from war.

Peter Rolfe Ohnstad is a Vietnam veteran who was on the 33rd Honor Flight. He said the welcome home he received from friends, family and community members at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday brought him to tears.

“Coming home is something you can’t duplicate — we never had that, and we got it today,” he said. “I’m going to remember this forever.”

Ohnstad said that when he returned home from fighting in the Vietnam War, there was no one at Travis Air Force Base to welcome them.

“There was a huge airplane with 250 guys, World Airways or whatever it was, all flying back from Vietnam,” he said. “There was nobody there. It was crazy, but we were all veterans, and we had each other’s back.”

Another veteran who was on the trip, Leroy Bannach, said that his favorite part of the experience was visiting the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Bannach said his brother died in Vietnam in 1966 and his name is inscribed on the wall.

“He’s in section 11 and the eighth name from the top,” said Bannach. “It brought tears.”

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

Ninety veterans received an emotional homecoming at the San Diego International Airport on Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026, after going to Washington, D.C. on the 33rd Honor Flight (FOX 5/KUSI).

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