Memorial at last for the ‘forgotten’ air disaster
TEESSIDE GRAN ONE OF 66 WHO DIED AFTER SUSPECTED PLANE BOMBING
A MEMORIAL service will be held to commemorate 66 people – including a Teesside mum and gran – who lost their lives when the plane they were travelling in exploded over the Mediterranean.
Lily Marlborough, from Thornaby, was on board the BEA/ Cyprus Airways Flight 284 on her very first flight to meet her daughter Christine who was living in Cyprus.
However, the Comet aircraft never made its destination. It broke up as it was nearing the island after an explosive device detonated in the cabin and the plane crashed into the sea with the loss of all passengers and crew on board.
The disaster happened on October 12, 1967 and since then, Lily’s daughter Christine and the families of those who died have campaigned for answers and a memorial to all those who lost their lives.
British Airways gave permission for a plaque to be erected in the Garden of Remembrance at St George’s Chapel at Heathrow Airport and this October, a service of commemoration for those lost and a plaque dedication ceremony will be held on the 55th anniversary of the tragedy.
Christine, 75, who now lives in Australia, is hoping as many families as possible will be able to gather for the service.
“This is a forgotten tragedy which really deserves some coverage as there was never justice for the families,” she says.
Lily was born in Thornaby and lived in the area all her life, many of her family members remain on
Teesside. She was on her first ever flight to visit Christine, her husband Bob and their 17-monthold son in Cyprus where Army man Bob had been posted for three years.
Christine’s dad had died in 1966 and she was concerned at leaving her mum when the posting came through but Lily was always supportive of them going. They wrote twice a week and Christine often invited her to visit but Lily had a great fear of flying.
That October she received a letter from Lily, who was just 54, to say she had booked a flight and would be due in to Nicosia at 5am on October 12 and that she was looking forward to seeing them all.
Sadly, the aircraft came down in the Mediterranean Sea about 20 minutes flying time from Cyprus.
The family found out later a military grade bomb had been taken on to the flight most likely in Athens, where it had stopped briefly.
Christine says an official report was published in 1968 and it was decided no further action would be taken. She has asked to look at the records but the papers relating to the issue have been sealed until 2066.
She started to campaign for a memorial to honour and remember the 66 people who lost their lives on the flight, contacting various government departments and sharing each family story on social media.
According to Christine, another family from the North east were also on board. The McCombs came from Osmotherley but had family in the Saltburn area, she says.
The memorial service will be held on October 12, the 55th anniversary of the disaster at St George’s Chapel, Heathrow.