George H.W. Bush sent off with 21-gun salute in Texas
Family, friends and the public gather at Ellington Field Joint Reserve Base as the former president's casket departs Houston for Washington, D.C.
Former President George H.W. Bush was honored with a 21-gun salute before his casket departed Texas for Washington, D.C. Monday morning.
At 94 years old, Bush died at his Houston home on Nov. 30. The nation’s 41st president is coming back to Washington, D.C., where he will lie in state at the Capitol rotunda and be honored with a service at the Washington National Cathedral.
Before boarding Air Force One, Bush was honored with a ceremony that included a 21-gun salute and a military band that played "Hail to the Chief." More than 100 people gathered to see the former president off from Houston’s Ellington Field.
An American flag and one with the presidential seal flew nearby.
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President Trump said he tasked the Air Force One crew to carry out “Special Air Mission 41” in transporting Bush’s body back to Washington.
Former president George W. Bush, his son, traveled on the plane with his father, as did Sully, the service dog who stood by Bush’s side the past few months.
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Bush will be brought back to Texas on Thursday and buried at the George Bush Presidential Library at Texas A&M University alongside Barbara Bush, his wife of 73 years, and Robin Bush, the daughter they lost to leukemia in 1953 at the age of 3.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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