The Denver-based charity The Greatest Generations Foundation arranged for the trip that coincided with the 65th anniversary of the Iwo Jima battle.
The vets made it to the U.S. military base on Okinawa. But the charter flight that was to take them the final 800 miles fell through. The charity couldn't afford to pay for a flight and, initially, the U.S. military declined to help.
"On the surface, you want to say let's cut through the red tape. Some of them have had health problems on this trip. This clearly will be their final goodbye," said 850 AM KOA radio personality Steffan Tubbs, a spokesman traveling with the group. "This trip which is so well planned has crumbled."
At one point, the Japanese government, which controls the small island, refused to let the veterans land.
"If they don't get there, there will be a sense of disappointment," Nathan Matlock told us. Matlock has interviewed many of the veterans for Regis University's Center for the Study of War Experience. "For these guys, this was the singular event in their livesÂ…and I think for them there is a sense of closure, (to) see it without being under fire," he said.
After almost two weeks of negotiations, Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colorado) arranged for the Marines to let the veterans onto a cargo plane. They took off late Tuesday night for Iwo Jima, where they will get to say their final farewells.
The veterans are due back in Colorado March 9th.
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