BWI Honor Flight Volunteers & Greeters
Welcome
Thank you for your interest in Honor Flight. We would LOVE to have you come join us at Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport.
The Honor Flight Network flys veterans from hubs all over the country to visit THEIR memorials in Washington, D.C. and Virginia. There is no charge at all to the veterans for their Day of Honor in D.C.
Our greatest need is to have greeters at the airport. Many of us assume that our veterans had a warm welcome when they arrived home from the battle front. That may have been the case for returning GIs from World War II. It certainly was not the case for Vietnam veterans. Many have told us that they didn’t receive ANY welcome home and thus thought that they have been forgotten and were not appreciated.
Our basic role is to meet, greet, and thank them with as much patriotic spirit as we can muster. We decorate, play patriotic music, and thank them for their service to our country. The more smiling faces in the crowd to let them know — WE HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN YOUR SACRIFICE — the better!
Honor Flights Mission & Goals
GOAL: Helping every single veteran in America, willing and able to board a plane or a bus, to visit THEIR memorials.
PRIORITY: Top priority is given to America’s most senior heroes — World War II era veterans, and any veteran with a terminal illness who wishes to visit THEIR memorial. The program has transitioned to Korean War, Vietnam War and all other veterans who served, on a chronological basis.
ELIGIBILITY: All men and women serving stateside or overseas.
PHILOSOPHY: Since America felt it was important to build a memorial to the various armed services to honor the ultimate sacrifice of her veterans, the Honor Flight Network believes it’s equally important that these Veterans actually get to visit and experience THEIR memorials.
MOTTO: “We can’t all be heroes. Some of us have to stand on the curb and clap as they go by.” – Will Rogers
Greeter General Instructions
Greeters at the airport is a fulfilling opportunity for those living in the greater BWI area. Many of us assume that our veterans had a warm welcome when they arrived home from the battle front. That may have been the case for returning GIs from World War II. It certainly was not the case for Vietnam veterans. Many have told us that they didn’t receive ANY welcome home and thus thought that they have been forgotten and were not appreciated.
After a fulfilling and tiring day, greeting the Veterans as they come back to the airport is also appreciated and rewarding.
Greeters’ basic role is to meet, greet, and thank our Veterans. The more smiling faces in the crowd to let them know — WE HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN YOUR SACRIFICE — the better! With over 130+ scheduled trips arriving at BWI this year, there are plenty of opportunities to be a greeter. The time commitment for a greeting can vary from 2-4 hours; as some days there are multiple flights arriving during the same time period. Greeters are asked to wear patriotic clothing, and are welcome to bring banners, flags, and smiles.
Depending on the date, there may be multiple options for greeting a flight.
Greetings outside security – greeters are always welcome to greet our Heroes outside security as the arrive or depart BWI. Please note these times can be influenced by unexpected travel delays or early arrivals. Please take this into consideration when planning your trip to BWI. The schedule of arrival times into BWI, and the time the hubs are due back at the airport, are on our scheduling page.
If you park in the Hourly Lot and require validation of your parking ticket, bring your parking ticket in with you for validation. <click here for more information on parking>. BWI Ground Crew volunteers (look for the neon-yellow Ground Crew t-shirts) will be staged around Door 13 and will validate your parking ticket up to 60 minutes prior to the flight arrival (or return time for departures). They will provide additional information on the exact meeting location so that you will be in the best location to greet our Heroes as they exit security enroute to their buses.
If you do not need validation, it is suggested you arrive about 30 minutes prior to the listed arrival time. Listed below is more detailed information on the best greeting locations, and greeters can proceed directly to these greeting locations. There are five terminals at BWI. To find out which terminal you need to go to, check the flight information is listed on the scheduling page (especially the airline and flight #) – then check the airport overhead monitors to determine which Terminal the flight will arrive at.
Active Flight Schedule
Join us in welcoming Honor Flights to Washington DC! We coordinate greeting our WWII, Korean, and Vietnam veterans at Baltimore/Washington Thurgood Marshall International Airport (BWI).
*** This group is 100% volunteer ***
The flight schedule below will auto load after the page loads.
