DAYTON — There are many flying acts ready to take center stage at the CenterPoint Energy Dayton Air Show this weekend and News Center 7 had the honor of going up in one of those planes today.
News Center 7′s Mike Campbell got the chance to fly in a Boeing Stearman PT-17 with Dream Flights, an organization that honors veterans.
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Dream Flights has several World War II-era, single-engine planes that take veterans up on flights for free. The idea is to spread smiles and improve lives.
“I’ve personally flown lots of veterans who did training in these 80 years ago,” Hunter Stuckey, Dream Flights pilot, said.
As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, Stuckey is a Fed-Ex pilot for his real job but said taking veterans on these Dream Flights aboard this plan has given his life purpose.
He told News Center 7 that there have been veterans who have rolled out to the plane in wheelchairs only to stand up and walk around for several minutes upon landing because of the joy and adrenaline rush.
“The best part about being able to volunteer for this is to have such a positive impact on these incredible people that have given us the freedoms that we have today,” he said.
After his flight, Stuckey showed Campbell the signatures on the tail rudder.
“Our World War II veterans get to sign the rudder of the aircraft,” he explained.
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