“Everything was like clockwork,” Cash said. “It was very well run.”
Honor Flight Network is a non-profit organization created to honor America’s veterans. The organization transports veterans to D.C. to visit and reflect at the memorials created in memory of the action in which they took part. Top priority is given to the senior veterans – World War II survivors – along with other veterans who may be terminally ill. The guardians selected for the trip pay their own expenses, but the veterans’ experience is free.
“Joe didn’t need a helper – he did great,” Cash said. “Everyone did. There was so much energy in the group of vets, it was amazing.”
It was Williamson’s first time visiting the memorials, and he said it was the experience of a lifetime. He said it brought back memories about his service, which included flying the Hump. The Hump was the eastern end of the Himalayan Mountains, over which the Allies flew military transport aircraft from India to China to resupply the Chinese war effort of Chiang Kai-shek and the units of the United States Army Air Forces based in China.
“That was quite an experience,” Williamson said. “They called it the aluminum trail because of all the planes lost in the area. They’re still finding pieces.”
He also recalled leaving San Francisco on the President Johnson, headed for the Phillipines, two days before Pearl Harbor.
“We had barely left when Pearl Harbor happened and we were sent back to San Francisco,” Williamson said. “We were then sent to India instead.”
One of the most impressive aspects of the Honor Flight, Williamson and Cash both said, was how polite and respectful everyone was. The pilot came out and shook everyone’s hands, Cash said.
“It was one of the biggest honors of my life to be able to accompany this group,” Cash said. “If you know a World War II veteran, I encourage you to take the time to go with them on an Honor Flight if you have the opportunity.”