Every now and then, we receive a message that reminds us exactly why we do what we do. At the heart of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation’s mission is a deep commitment to not only preserving aviation history but also creating unforgettable, personal experiences that inspire awe and connection. Recently, we were honored to meet a young aviation enthusiast named Grant and his father, Ben, during the Dayton Airshow in Ohio.

Grant, a passionate fan of helicopters and all things airborne, had an experience with our team that left a lasting impact on everyone involved. Below is a touching letter from Ben, sharing their story of how a chance encounter with our crew—and a very special ride in a Cobra—turned an ordinary weekend into something truly extraordinary.

To whom it may concern,

My name is Ben Howell and call the great state of Colorado home. My 18 year old son’s name is Grant and he is Autistic, but at the same time, he is a helicopter SUPER fan! He lives and breaths helicopters with a pretty serious side interest in Monster Trucks. Sadly for us, Colorado isn’t a “hot spot” for airshows, so once or twice a year, we hop on airplane and go to an airshow somewhere in the USA and make a fun weekend out of it. On top of that, Grant is fairly well connected with the Red Bull Air Force guys and loves to hang out with them, so I love giving him that opportunity to do that whenever I can.

This year’s airshow selection for us was Dayton, Ohio. It was recommended to us by the Red Bull guys and there was A LOT of things to see at that show that we have not seen previously, so it seemed like a good choice. What we did NOT count on, was your organization being there with the Hueys and Cobras. When we arrived on Saturday morning, you already had two Hueys and one Cobra in operation and Grant took off on foot to watch your machines come and go (not sure what I’ll do if he’s ever able to run faster than me). That put us right next to your trailer and while Grant had no idea that you were giving rides, I did and I’m a HUGE sucker for seeing Grant smile. So, I started my inquiry about what the possibilities would be for giving a kid with special needs a ride. The Huey was out because there was no way he was going to tolerate the door-open ride, so Cobra was the only realistic option.

That brings us to our experience with Army Aviation Heritage Foundation. It would be really easy to say that everything and everybody was 100% professional, but “Professional” can mean all kinds of things, in all kinds of situations and that doesn’t really give justice to our AAHF experience. Make no mistake, it _was_ professional, but at the same time it was also very personal. I’m 99% sure that everyone, from the gentleman I was talking to in the trailer to everyone out on the field noticed Grant was _not_ going to be the usual passenger. They were all very interested in making sure that Grant had a great experience, while at the same time, just interested in Grant as a person.

At ANY given time during the process, ANY single person could have said “no, this isn’t going to work” and I wouldn’t have blamed them or had any hard feelings. The safety of everyone involved is critical and believe me when I tell you, I get it. One single ‘No’ and we would have walked away with a firm handshake and a ‘thank you’ from me, no questions asked……but nobody did. We had several conversations and there were several back-and-forths with the AAHF personnel, but at the end of it, your team made Grant a VERY happy kid that day….and you didn’t have to, but you did! Grant is no Stranger to the cockpit of aircraft (both fixed wing and rotary wing), but this one was special, and we are forever grateful for that.

I don’t remember (or never knew) the names of the all the AAHF ground crew personnel that I talked to that day, but I wish I could shake their hands and say ‘Thank You’ one more time.