‘Everyone who died was a hero’
40 years after 273 died in Flight 191 crash, there is no forgetting for some
The memorial to America’s deadliest airline accident can be found at a busy street corner in Des Plaines, just down the road from where American Airlines Flight 191 plunged to earth moments after takeoff from O’Hare International Airport on May 25, 1979.
It’s a subtle tribute — a small bronze plaque and a knee-high garden wall whose bricks hold the names of the 273 people who died. The memorial blends into Lake Park so seamlessly you might not even know it’s there.
Forty years after the crash, some who lost loved ones wonder if Flight 191 itself has also faded into the background.
“I hope they remember this crash for all these people who died,” said Michael Adduci, whose 23-year-old sister Kathleen was on board the Los Angeles-bound plane. “It seems as time goes on, people don’t even know what you’re talking about if you mention it to them.”
For the families, there is no forgetting. On the 40th anniversary, many are expected to gather at the memorial — located at the corner of Touhy Avenue and Lee Street — for a 2 p.m. service.
There, they’ll get the chance to recall those who perished, and to nurture a community among those who know what it’s like to have a happy life broken with a phone call, and what it takes to rebuild.
Here, edited for space and clarity, are some of their stories.
Ellen Gemme
Ellen Gemme is the daughter of Francis Gemme, a Winnetka publishing executive who boarded Flight 191 to attend the American Booksellers Association convention in Los Angeles. She had just turned 8, and remembers seeing her mother collapse upon learning that Francis had been on the plane. She is now a nurse who lives near Philadelphia.
As a child, it’s a very confusing thing. One of the girls who was supposed to come to my birthday party, her mom came to the house and got me and took me and all of my friends and gave me a party. So I was not home for the official confirmation (of his death), for the reporters showing up at the house, for the relatives all arriving.
Even though I had seen my mother fall to the ground, I knew but I didn’t know. How could you even fathom this? It was shocking. It was like having your entire world disappear in a moment.