At 03:40am on 15 August 1949 Valentia Radio received a report from the British trawler Stalberg which had been fishing off the Aran Islands in the West of Ireland;
“Airplane down in Galway Bay, am searching your area” The subsequent co-ordination of air, sea and land assets resulted in the miraculous rescue of almost all crew and passengers of a Transocean Air lines flight from Rome to Shannon. The drama that unfolded was one of bravery, outstanding skill by the pilots and dogged persistence by the rescuers both at helm and in cockpit.
Category: Stories
The Man in the Tank (Fear an Tanc)
A mystery, a rail tank wagon was washed ashore during the war. The tank contained a corpse
Where are the Barges
Midsummer’s Day 1961 saw the last commercial passage of a Guinness barge on the River Liffey. According to Al Byrne in his most entertaining book “Guinness Times – My Days in the World’s Most Famous Brewery” it was 6 p.m. when the 80-foot long by 17-foot-one inch-wide barge, Castleknock, sailed from the Custom House with a load of empties and slowly made its funereal way up river to the jetty at St. James’s Gate.
Smuggling in the eighteenth and early nineteenth Century
The eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries are described as the golden age of smuggling.
Coastguard Lifesaving Carts
The Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners Royal Benevolent Society A rope thrown from the shore was a useful tool, and a pulley system – later known as a ‘breeches buoy’ – could be set up to ferry people to safety. However, a person could only throw a rope a short distance, usually against the wind. By… Continue reading Coastguard Lifesaving Carts
Pirates at Muglins
Original newspaper report of the crime and execution of pirates, who were left hanging, one at Muglins and another at the Pigeon House. They had seized the ship “Earl of Sandwich”, murdered Captain Glass, his wife and daughter and most of the crew.
Legends of the Lusitania
LEGENDS OF THE LUSITANIA The sinking of the Lusitania by a torpedo from U20 off the Old Head of Kinsale on Friday 7 May 1915 was the single greatest shipwreck tragedy in Irish waters. Some 1200 men, women and children died. A warning to intending passengers had been placed beside the sailing notice in the… Continue reading Legends of the Lusitania
Saint-Malo
by Eric Duhan Once you touch ground in Saint-Malo you are entering a place steeped in history from the very first time when man set foot in Western Europe. In the earlier centuries the visitors first view of the city was from out to sea as the city was surrounded by salt marches. It must… Continue reading Saint-Malo
U-35 in Dingle during WW2
at Ballymore, three miles west of Dingle, 4 October 1939, U-35 landed 28 Greek sailors
The wanderer at Kingstown and John Masefield
The Poet Laureate John Masefield was essentially a sea poet; the sea was what he knew and wrote about best. He we discuss his relationship with the Wander and that ships connection with Kingstown (now Dún Laoghaire)