Mesquite WWII Vets Get Flight In Vintage Biplane

By BOBBIE GREEN

The Progress

Mesquite veteran Ricard Bowers, 97, gets ready for take off with Ageless Aviation Dream pilot, Mollie Flanagan, who gave him a ride in the Stearman Biplane on Sunday morning.

Ageless Aviation Dream Foundation honored two local WWII veterans with flights in an old Boeing Stearman biplane on Sunday morning, Sept. 26. The flights took off from the St George Airport.

Richard Bowers, a 97-year-old Army veteran and Bud Lade a 92-year old Air Force Veteran each reported that there had been no hesitation on their parts to take advantage of this impressive program.

The flights were about 15-to 20 minutes long.
“We flew to 1300 feet,” said Lade. “I have never been in a plane with an open cockpit before. It was a lot of fun.”

“The flight was awesome!” said Bowers. “We flew over St George. The view from the biplane was awesome. We had a lady pilot, and she was awesome.”

The Dream flights were originally scheduled to take place from the Mesquite Airport. But the runways in Mesquite are currently being repaved. So it was necessary to move the event to St George.

Liz Beliaj, program coordinator for the Mesquite area said, “They both looked like they had a day to remember. It was extremely exciting to be there.”

Daryl and Carol Fisher founded The Ageless Aviation Dream Foundation in 2011. It is a non-profit organization established to honor seniors and military veterans.

The stearman biplanes used are the same aircraft used to train military aviators in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Their four Stearman planes are extremely well maintained and cared for.
“It is amazing how the pilots and their helpers can get almost anyone into the plane, no matter how infirmed they may be,” said Beliaj.

The pilot for the day was Mollie Flanagan. She has been a pilot since she was 19-years old. Her father was a WWII flight instructor.

Flanagan hired on as a pilot for United Airlines at age 24. She and her spouse Keith both own planes.
“I have a special place in my heart for veterans,” Flanagan said. “As my father and Keith’s father were both pilots in WWII. I have given many veterans flights and look forward to seeing the magic of flight on the faces of our veterans.”

The Dream Foundation will continue with the program and will be seeking more WWII Veterans for next year. Contact 775-291-2835 for more information.