C. A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger, 33°
U. S. Congressman, 2nd District of Maryland

The innovative Operation Hero Miles program allows troops stationed in Iraq or Afghanistan to fly home on leave for free.

C. A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger, 33°

T he program Operation Hero Miles is brilliant in its simplicity. Travelers donate their unused frequent flyer miles to the Pentagon, and troops use them to get free tickets. Also, family members of wounded servicemen and women can get complimentary plane tickets to visit their loved ones recovering at military hospitals across the country.
Here are just a few examples of Operation Hero Miles at work. A young Army Sergeant from Colorado was able to spend Christmas with his new bride thanks to the generous donations of travelers across the country. A Navy Petty Officer was able to fly home from Iraq to Arkansas to be with his wife and newborn daughter as the little girl underwent an important surgery. A mom in Wisconsin was able to fly to Walter Reed Medical Center in Washington, D.C., to be with her daughter, an Army Sergeant, who is recovering from injuries sustained from explosive shrapnel in Iraq.
I represent Maryland’s 2nd Congressional District that includes Baltimore Washington International (BWI) Airport. Last September, I visited the airport to greet the first planeloads of troops coming home for two well-deserved weeks of Rest and Relaxation (R&R). I met with young men and women in the USO Gateway Lounge at BWI and thanked them for their service to the nation. I told them that their country appreciated their sacrifices as well as the sacrifices of their families.

I was shocked and somewhat embarrassed to learn that these soldiers were flown to BWI Airport by the Department of Defense but then required to pay for their connecting flights to their hometowns across the country. Many, especially those heading home to the West Coast or small towns a long way from major airports, said they were shelling out close to a thousand dollars for a ticket. For many of these younger servicemen and women, the trip home cost them a half month’s pay or more.

After my visit, I went back to Capitol Hill and supported legislation that would have paid for R&R travel all the way to the soldier’s hometown. The measure failed. I got together with my staff, and together we came up with a creative solution that doesn’t cost the American taxpayer a dime. Operation Hero Miles was born.

We put together a Web site, www.heromiles.org and wrote to every airline serving BWI asking them to sign on to our plan. Delta Airlines was the first airline to join the program. Southwest Airlines and Alaska Airlines quickly followed. Now we have 11 major airlines participating in the program, more than 90% of the domestic airline market.

Soon I learned that troops on Emergency Leave who need to come home to attend the funeral of a loved one, be present for the birth of a child, or attend to a seriously ill parent are required to pay for their own airfare as well. As many as 100 soldiers a month are flown home from Iraq on Emergency Leave. We quickly expanded Operation Hero Miles to include these troops, too.

Although most of the troops so far are in the Army, the program has helped soldiers, marines, airmen and sailors, whether they have been helping promote democracy in Iraq or have been stationed offshore supporting the war against terrorism in Afghanistan.

We expanded Operation Hero Miles again to give free plane tickets to family members of wounded troops so they can travel to the military hospital where their loved one is recovering. Sometimes the love and support of family are the best medicines to help these servicemen and women recover.

As of February 2004, just four months into the project, 530 million miles have been donated and thousands of soldiers and their families have benefited from this program. I believe Americans are truly patriotic. They want to help our men and women in uniform fighting for our freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan. Operation Hero Miles gives ordinary citizens an opportunity to help our troops in a very direct way that makes a real difference in their lives. I know firsthand that many of the soldiers and their families would not be able to afford the trip if it were not for these donations.

We are pleased to report that this past January the Department of Defense began paying for all R&R troop travel. It was about time. But, there is still a huge need for Operation Hero Miles as we continue to help troops on Emergency Leave and reunite families of injured soldiers.

In fact, I would like to make the program permanent. The success of Operation Hero Miles has shown the Pentagon that Amer-icans care about our servicemen and women and want to help. I am working with military lawyers on legislation that will modernize our law and leave regulations so that every branch of service can use donated frequent flyer miles for any purpose that serves the general welfare and morale of our men and women in uniform.

I believe that the stress of serving your country for long tours of duty in foreign lands should be recognized even in places where not a single shot has been fired for years. If we can make a soldier’s life a little easier by quickly getting him or her home for free to deal with an urgent family situation, I believe it can only help us improve troop retention rates and make the most of our investment in training and experience.

On March 24, 2004, at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Pentagon City, Congressman C. A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger, 33°, received the 2004 USO Service Award from Dr. Paul Wolfowitz, Deputy Secretary of Defense, in recognition of Ill. Ruppersberger’s leadership in creating the innovative Operation Hero Miles program. Congressman Ruppersberger is pictured above at the award ceremony with Miss Connie Stevens, a former USO Merit Award Recipient.

The world has become a much smaller place in an era of the Internet, video cell phones, and instant worldwide news 24 hours a day. But, nothing can match that first hug, the taste of good home cooking, or waking up in the hospital to the loving faces of family. America has said we can afford this program, and it is time to give our military the flexibility to make use of these donated tickets year-round for all our servicemen and women and their families.
Please join me in supporting Operation Hero Miles. For more information and how to donate your frequent flyer miles, see the Operation Hero Miles Internet site at www.heromiles.org.
Thank you for your interest and your service to our country.