ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (BLOOM) — A patriotic welcome is planned at St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport (PIE) on Tuesday, April 15, as 77 veterans return home from a day-long Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., visiting war memorials built in their honor.
The community is invited to gather at PIE around 8 p.m. to greet the veterans—part of the West Central Florida Honor Flight’s 52nd mission and PIE’s 50th hosted flight—after their return from the nation’s capital on an Allegiant Air charter.
Originally established in 2011 for WWII veterans, the Honor Flight program continues to serve military heroes from various conflicts. PIE itself has historic ties to the military. Before becoming a civilian airport in 1946, it served as Pinellas Army Airfield, a training base for WWII fighter pilots…