Medal of Honor recipients arrive in DFW on special flight ahead of National Medal of Honor Museum grand opening
grand opening of the National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington
. To prepare for the event, American Airlines partnered with the museum to give active duty military members a tour of its special plane, Flagship Valor.
It's hard not to notice American Airlines flight 9701 is slightly different from the routine flight.
The medals, the murals, and the cargo.
"They're incredible Americans. I am privileged to be in their company. Every time I'm with them, I'm in awe of them," said Britt Slabinski, one of the six Medal of Honor recipients aboard the Flagship Valor ahead of the grand opening of the National Medal of Honor Museum in Arlington.
"Just the first time I saw it, the first time I was on the exhibition deck, really I got a little emotional just remembering the 3,528 recipients of the medal," said Slabinski.
Those aboard the flight relished the opportunity to talk with these six American heroes.
"Having a fun conversation with those six gentlemen and their spouses was pretty surreal," said Chris Cassidy, the President and CEO of the National Medal of Honor Museum.
"When you break it on down, we're human just like everybody else that was faced with an incredibly challenging situation and did the best we could to make it right," said Slabinski.
But Flagship Valor isn't just a private plane for Medal of Honor recipients, it's part of America's fleet, and you could ride in it too.
"When it's not in use for special missions, it's flying all around and visits airports throughout the United States, and if you get on board the aircraft, there are QR codes you can learn about the medal of honor and what it really means," said David Seymour, the COO of American Airlines.
That education is why men like Slabinski want the museum built.
"I hope they walk out with just a little more sense of, I guess, responsibility of being a citizen of this country and what has been given for them," he said.
The Medal of Honor Museum opens to the public on Tuesday, March 25.
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