BALTIMORE, Md – On 18 September 2010 nine members of the Fort McHenry Composite Squadron commemorated the 63rd anniversary of the United States Air Force by lending a hero’s welcome to 220 World War II veterans arriving from Ohio, New York and Florida. The event, held at the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, was the sixth Honor Flight event supported by the Fort McHenry Composite Squadron in 2010 and marked over 740 veterans greeted by the squadron so far this year.

The day began when each member received a gate access pass into the terminal areas and, along with members of the Army, Navy, Air Force and the Fort Meade Enlisted Spouses Club, lined up at the veterans’ arriving gate for a surprise welcome on a scale not seen since these heroes returned to the United States following the end of World War II in 1945. BWI staff announced the arrival of the veterans as hundreds of awaiting passengers in the terminal joined in the joyous and emotional celebration.

On September 7, 2010 the United States Air Force awarded Captain Donald Ells, Commander of the Fort McHenry Composite Squadron, with the Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal. Captain Ells, who serves as an active duty Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force, is a Space Systems Analyst with the 7th Intelligence Squadron located at Fort George G. Meade, Maryland.