Gone but not forgotten – Wexford remembers the Tuskar air crash
VISITORS FROM across Europe and the United States gathered in Rosslare on Saturday to mark the 50th anniversary of the Tuskar Rock air crash, which resulted in the death of 61 people.
On March 24, 1968, Aer Lingus flight 712, the St Phelim, crashed en route from Cork to London, killing 57 passengers and four crew. The cause of the crash has never been determined and only 14 bodies were ever recovered.
On Saturday, up to 100 relatives of those lost in the disaster had the oportunity to visit the crash site on board the L.E. Eithne and laid wreaths in the water. Later in the day, they attended a ceremony at Rosslare Harbour Memorial Park.
Speaking at the ceremony, Mayor of Wexford, Cllr Jim Moore told those gathered that they were among friends who offered support during a time of remembrance, saying that the local community grieved and continued to feel the heartbreak of the Tuskar tragedy. He said: ‘ The shadow of the tragedy stretched well beyond the local community to the wider areas.’
He added that, to this day, that solidarity had continued with Wexford’s rich maritime heritage and coastal communities establishing permanent memorials, in Crosstown, Kilmore and Rosslare Harbour. He paid tribute to the local organising committee and also the Defence Forces and Naval Service for their assistance in visiting the site of the crash earlier that day.
He spoke of the monument that was subseuqently unveiled, saying it incorporated 61 chain-links representing those lost 50 years ago.
‘It should also inspire us to consider how we are linked together as a community - in solidarity.’
The ribbon on the memorial was cut by Cllr Moore and Bega O’Beirne, the wife of pilot Barney Beirne, who perished in the crash.
A flyover was performed by pilots from the Air Crops, flying a Casa Maritime Patrol aircraft. The plane, which took off from Baldonnel, flew over the Memorial Garden before completing a symbolic flight out to Tuskar, flying over the 1968 crash site.
Minister with Responsibility for Defence, Paul Kehoe acknowledged the ‘many questions’ that were still unanswered about the tragedy, saying that, being from Wexford, he was well aware of the effect it had had on the local community.
He paid tribute to pilots Barney O’Beirne and Paul Heffernan for their ‘ heroic efforts’ on the day.
He also acknowledged the role played by the Emergency Services, An Garda Siochana, the Coast Guard, local trawlermen and the local community, and the Defence Forces, all of whom played their parts in the rescue efforts in 1968.
To the relatives, he remarked: ‘On board the St Phelim were your mothers and fathers, your brothers and sisters, those that will live on in your hearts and minds forever. They are gone but they are not forgotten.’