{"id":36535,"date":"2025-11-11T23:03:29","date_gmt":"2025-11-11T23:03:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/36535\/"},"modified":"2025-11-11T23:03:29","modified_gmt":"2025-11-11T23:03:29","slug":"barack-obama-surprises-honor-flight-veterans-by-boarding-their-plane","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/36535\/","title":{"rendered":"Barack Obama surprises Honor Flight veterans by boarding their plane"},"content":{"rendered":"

WASHINGTON \u2014 Former President Barack Obama<\/a> surprised Honor Flight veterans who were traveling to DC from Wisconsin over the weekend to pay tribute to their military service. <\/p>\n

Obama, 64, boarded the plane full of World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War veterans on Saturday and thanked them for their sacrifices before shaking some of the visibly awestruck vets\u2019 hands, a video he posted to his social media accounts on Veterans Day<\/a> showed.<\/p>\n

\u201cHello, everybody,\u201d\u00a0the 44th president began. \u201cAs we approach Veterans Day, I just wanted to stop by and say thank you for your extraordinary service.\u201d<\/p>\n

Some of the veterans onboard gasped, with one shouting, \u201cWhat?\u201d as the former president recognized them at Reagan National Airport, which is located just outside DC.<\/p>\n

Former President Barack Obama thanked veterans on an Honor Flight over the weekend for their service to the country. X\/@BarackObama<\/p>\n

Obama then shook their hands as they disembarked from the past and gave each of them a presidential challenge coin.<\/p>\n

Ahead of Veterans Day, I was honored to welcome a flight of veterans and their families as they arrived in DC.<\/p>\n

To all those who bravely served our country, thank you to you and your family for your extraordinary service. The sacrifices that all of you have made to protect our\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/bXF7DIN7ow<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Barack Obama (@BarackObama) November 11, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI was grateful to be able to greet veterans who served in Korea and Vietnam as they arrived in DC this weekend, and give them a personal token of my gratitude,\u201d Obama later wrote on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Since former President Bill Clinton, US presidents have designed their own challenge coin to recognize contributions to the country. <\/p>\n

Honor Flight, a nonprofit volunteer group that organizes free trips for veterans to see the DC memorials, arranged for the flight that Obama visited. <\/p>\n

Some of the veterans were visibly taken aback by former President Barack Obama\u2019s surprise greeting. X\/@BarackObama<\/p>\n

The group operates over 100 hubs across the country and has flown some 300,000 vets to DC since its inception, with its last planned flight to Reagan National Airport of 2025 taking place on Dec. 6<\/a> and coming from Austin, according to its website. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe last time I got to see a president, it was Gerald Ford,\u201d one veteran told Obama. <\/p>\n

After the surprise welcome from Obama, the veterans were warmly received with cheers and praise as they walked through the airport. <\/p>\n

Eventually, they were transported to the National Mall to see the memorials built in their honor.<\/p>\n

The veterans were given a free flight to DC and a tour of the national memorials built in their honor. X\/@BarackObama<\/p>\n

\u201cI had tears in my eyes,\u201d Army veteran Joe Parr said of the trip. \u201cI just couldn\u2019t believe that there were that many people around who remembered us and were there to greet us. It was just unbelievable.\u201d<\/p>\n

Capt. Mary Quigley, a retired Navy veteran who volunteers for Honor Flight, explained that \u201cWe just try to treat them with dignity that some of them didn\u2019t get when they came home from the war.\u201d<\/p>\n

She noted that not every veteran received a hero\u2019s welcome after returning home from the battlefield, alluding to the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m real happy that now, with current troops, they come back from deployments and they get welcomed back really nicely \u2014 because that\u2019s what should happen,\u201d Navy veteran Nels Swenson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s being recreated in this flight. It makes me feel good.\u201d<\/p>\n

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