Continuing an occasional series of people in their 90s who I’d want on my side in a fight, I talked to a pilot who was flying over the English Channel on D-Day.

To mark the 75th anniversary, a non-profit was working with American Airlines and flew seven veterans from DFW and Miami to France. One of those veterans was Jim Frolking.

Frolking was, I swear, Frolking was 20 years old and D-Day was his first mission as a pilot. He was flying over the English Channel.

Frolking and I share some things in common. We’re both from Ohio. And that’s where we diverge. When I was 20, I was afraid of heights and one of my hobbies was going to Taco Bell at 2 a.m.

I’ve conquered that fear, though [and I’ve mostly outgrown Taco Bell. Not completely, mind you, but mostly], and flew in a B17 “Flying Fortress” a few years ago.

I stuck my head out the top when a World War II veteran called me a pansy because I said I was afraid of heights. He was right to do it.

The Commemorative Air Force has done flights in the B17 and B29, inviting World War II veterans to join them. In one case, a man who could barely walk got angry when he was offered a ladder to get in the plane.

In another case, a veteran with Alzheimer’s started talking for the first time in two years.

To mark the anniversary of D-Day, Frolking’s youngest son went with him this week. He didn’t know any of the others, but he says they all got to know each other quickly because of their shared experience.

They’ll be in Europe for a few more days. He says the toughest stop for him will be the Normandy American Cemetery, where more than 9,000 people are buried.

Frolking didn’t stop with D-Day, though.

A few months later, in October, he was shot down over the Netherlands. Then, I swear, several Dutch farmers hid him from the Germans.

My generation, meanwhile, argues over pronouns.