Volunteer Flight For Severely Wounded Iraq Vet
Many Twin Commander owners volunteer their airplane, time, and
piloting skills for humanitarian purposes such as Angel Flight
medical transport for deserving patients. Jerry Severson of
Bozeman, Montana, has done such volunteer flights, but he rates a
recent trip he provided to Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Matthew Ryan
Bradford and his mother, Debbie, as "the neatest thing I've ever
done."
(L-R) Jerry Severson, Matt Bradford Photo
Credit Tom O'Connor
The Bradfords are native Kentuckians and big fans of the
University of Kentucky Wildcats, and the flight that Severson made
on their behalf was from San Antonio to Lexington, Kentucky, to see
a Wildcats basketball game. What made the flight so special was
Bradford himself. On January 18, 2007 Bradford was on patrol with
the 2nd Battalion, 3rd Marine Division, near Haditha, Iraq, to
clear an area of roadside bombs. He stepped on a hidden improvised
incendiary device (IED), which exploded, severing his left leg and
so severely injuring his right leg that it later had to be
amputated. A piece of shrapnel destroyed his left eye and lodged in
his brain, and his right eye suffered retinal damage, leaving him
totally blind. He also suffered intestinal damage and a broken
right hand.
Three years later he was up in the cockpit of Severson's 690A,
enjoying the ride and even handling the controls.
Bradford's remarkable story revolves around his refusal to let
his injuries rule his life. Instead, after being in a medically
induced coma for 3 weeks and then recovering from his injuries for
the next 18 months, Bradford has focused on continuing his career
with the Marines-he hopes to work with injured soldiers returning
from combat-and living a normal life. For Bradford, who wears
prosthetic legs, "normal" means riding personal watercraft, water
skiing, rock climbing, surfing, scuba diving, and participating in
marathons using a hand cycle. He's also learned to fly fish, thanks
to the Bozeman-based Warriors & Quiet Waters Foundation, Inc.
The foundation invites wounded veterans from wars in Iraq, Iran,
and Afghanistan to Montana for a six-day program of fly fishing and
recreation to provide "a respite from the rigors and stresses of
war and from the treatment they have endured because of their
injuries."
Bradford was invited to participate in the program in 2009, and
became the first blind alumnus. During his visit his fondness for
the Kentucky Wildcats became known, and a WQWF director arranged
for Bradford and his mother to attend a game.
Severson offered to fly his 690A to San Antonio to pick them up
and take them to Lexington, home of UK, for the game. They would
stay the night so the Bradfords could see family and friends in
Kentucky, and then Severson would return them to San Antonio the
next day. Tom O'Connor, a retired navy captain from Bozeman and a
WQWF board member, and his wife, Celia, accompanied Severson on the
flight.
(L-R) Matt Bradford, Jerry
Severson, Photo Credit Tom O'Connor
Bradford wanted to fly copilot on the trip to Lexington, which
required removing his prosthetic legs to get into the right seat.
During the flight he took the controls for a time. "He liked that,"
Severson says.
Bradford has a keen sense of humor that his blindness and other
injuries have not diminished. Severson saw it firsthand when
Bradford said that his serving as copilot "gives new meaning to
flying blind." For the big game, he wore a prosthetic eye on the
left side that was emblazoned with the Wildcats logo. The trip to
Lexington went well, as did the game-the Bradfords had excellent
seats, Matt wore an ear set to listen to the play-by-play, mother
and son cheered wildly the entire game, and the Wildcats won in a
buzzer-beater.
The return trip was into headwinds and deteriorating conditions.
"It was crummy weather coming back into San Antonio," Severson
says. "I turned around and told Matt, 'I can't see a thing.' And he
said, 'I can't either.'"
"He is a remarkable young man," Severson says of Bradford. "He
doesn't feel sorry for himself at all. He's as positive as can be.
I'm very fortunate to be able to fly, and it's great to do
something like this."