Lionel Richie National Guard helicopter brings supplies and smiles to Helene flood victims: report

It’s an uplifting tune.“Lionel Richie” is bringing more than smiles to flood victims in Western North Carolina.A sketch of the legendary “Stuck on You” singer adorns the tail of a National Guard helicopter tasked with delivering aid to those devastated by Hurricane Helene, according to a report in the Charlotte Observer.“Every time we’ve gotten out and have been able to talk to people … they laugh, and they all say something,” Bradley Johnson, a member of Bravo Company 1-171, a National Guard flight crew out of Iowa flying on a CH-47 U.S.Army Chinook, told the outlet on Thursday.

“Especially if they’re older.”This military crew has a thing for the four-time Grammy winner and former Commodores crooner, who launched a solo career in 1982, selling millions of albums while writing and recording hit singles.Richie’s notable face was initially sketched on the tail of the chopper with “Hello” underneath back in 2011, Johnson said.The aircraft’s call sign — “Night Long” — pays tribute to “All Night Long,” Johnson told the outlet.Back in 2011, previous members of the unit flew night missions in Iraq, using vision goggles to see.

They “never really saw the day,” Johnson said.“Then it was an easy transition from “Hello’ to ‘Night Long,’ and then it became a rallying cry and a morale thing,” according to the Charlotte Observer.Since the Chinook became famous for the singer’s image, it was only a matter of time before the “Ameican Idol” host caught wind of it.“This is incredible,” Richiesaid in a 2012 CBS story after seeing the aircraft in person.

“I keep waiting to be punked.” Johnson said when the crew met Richie, the artist said he was proud to be a symbol for them because his father was in the Army.The crew also has T-shirts with Richie’s face and call sign, and patches and stickers with his image.The guard company averages about 14,000 pounds of food and water each mission, said Capt.Karson Smi...