Memorial Park: 61 victims of 1968 air crash remembered

The pilots of an Aer Lingus aircraft that crashed off the Co Wexford coast in 1968 and claimed the lives of 61 people kept the aircraft airborne for almost 20 minutes before descent, according to the president of the Irish Airline Pilots' Association.

Capt Evan Cullen was one of an estimated 600 people at the opening of a memorial park in Rosslare on Saturday. The Rosslare Harbour/Kilrane Environment Group created the €90,000 park.

The Viscount St Phelim, operating as Flight 712 from Cork to London, crashed into the Irish Sea near the Tuskar Rock on March 24th, 1968. All those on board were killed. Capt Cullen said a number of accredited investigators found that Capt Barney O'Beirne and co-pilot Paul Heffernan "maintained the aircraft airborne [ for 17 minutes] while it had suffered severe damage to the tail-plane".

The park features a centrepiece of stone set in water with three panels symbolising the portholes of the aircraft in descent, along with a 61-link chain.

The landscaped area also commemorates 10 men who lost their lives in a storm on October 12th, 1812, during the construction of Tuskar Rock Lighthouse, which claimed the lives of four other workers.

Lighthouse keeper Paddy Scanlon - grandfather of author Patricia Scanlon - who was killed in 1941 when a drifting mine struck Tuskar Rock during the second World War, and deceased members of the local RNLI are also included in the memorial.

Six wreaths were laid, the first by Irish Coast Guard operations officer Éamon Torpay, assisted by Tuskar sea scout Aoife McNamara. Ms Scanlon, along with the attendant at the Tuskar Rock Lighthouse and Irish Lights representative, Oliver Hickey, laid the second wreath.

The RNLI wreath was laid by 2nd Coxswain of the Rosslare Harbour lifeboat crew Éamon O'Rourke, escorted by Tuskar scout member, Shane Carroll.

David O'Beirne, son of the St Phelim pilot, along with Capt Cullen, laid the next wreath. Mr O'Beirne said: "There is a great difficulty in accepting what happened, but each time a letter, a book, a memorial park or any recognition helps people with closure on this."

The fifth wreath was laid by Aer Lingus chief pilot, Capt Henry Donohue. The sixth wreath was laid by representatives of the Relatives of the Viscount Victims' Group.