SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Ninety U.S. Naval Special Warfare Operators, veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars, were welcomed home at San Diego International Airport on Sunday.
Returning from an honor flight trip, the combat veterans were met by hundreds of supporters waving American flags, expressing gratitude for their service decades ago.
The roundtrip to Washington D.C. was funded by Honor Flight San Diego, an organization that takes veterans to the nation's capital to honor their service.
"There was a lot of unrest, political unrest, social unrest," Vietnam veteran Wayne Hampton said of his initial return home, decades ago. "I was concerned about the job that I was doing and I kept my focus on that."
However, on Sunday, Hampton's wife, children, and grandchildren eagerly awaited his arrival in Terminal 2, ready to celebrate his homecoming.
His family was at the escalator to the baggage claim as he arrived. Hampton, a former Navy SEAL, began to cry.
"I've never seen a tear come out of his eyes in 45 years," his wife Dianne said. "I appreciate him so much and just to see all of these people here, appreciating him too and his service, it's a wonderful feeling."
