TRIBUTE TO A PLANE AND SIMPLE HERO
ONE thing you can’t fault the
late Duke of Edinburgh on was his straightforward manner. On arriving on some farflung state visit to somewhere in the Commonwealth, a local VIP greeted him on the airport tarmac with the question, ‘How was your flight, sir?’
The duke replied, ‘Have you ever flown?’
The somewhat surprised VIP replied, ‘Er... yes, sir.’ ‘Well it was just like that.’ Amelia Earhart was almost as succinct with her landing party. Ninety years ago, as her Lockheed Vega plane trundled to a halt on the rough pastureland of Co Derry, a somewhat surprised farmhand went to her aid and asked, ‘Did you come far?’ Earhart replied, ‘America.’ And so she had. Earhart had flown solo across the Atlantic from Newfoundland in just under 15 hours, before landing in pastureland just north of Derry city.
This weekend, officials from Earhart’s hometown in Atchison, Kansas, will join the Amelia Earhart Legacy Association in Derry for a weekend of 90th anniversary festivities. They will commemorate Earhart’s historic flight — one that changed aviation forever.
‘When Amelia landed, no one had ever seen a woman driving a car, let alone flying an aeroplane or wearing trousers,’ said Nicole McElhinney, co-founder of the Amelia Earhart Legacy Association.
‘Her fearless spirit was revolutionary, particularly for women.’
Derry has seen many commemorations in its long history, but this is one that definitely should be remembered. Pop along if you’re in the vicinity.