It’s hard to imagine, as you fly from the US or Canada to Ireland that we’re only a few generations from the pioneers who achieved this feat. Just over one hundred years ago, June 15th 1919, the first Transatlantic flight landed in the West of Ireland (did you know our 6, 7 and 12 day tours cover the west of Ireland?)
It was a race which saw four aircraft and their crews competing for a prize of £10,000. This included a crew with an Irish connection – Norwegian Tryggve Gran, who had been a companion of Kerryman Tom Crean, on Scott’s famous Antarctic expedition. Another plane came from the manufacturer of the famous Sopwith Camel (preferred aircraft of comic and cartoon characters Biggles and Snoopy!). These enterprising aircrews explored every possible angle to give them a competitive advantage. One even stripped the paint from the wing bracing wires – calculating it would gain them an extra half mile per hour.
Ultimately, the names to become synonymous with the first successful flight from North America to Ireland, were John Alcock and his navigator Arthur Whitten Brown,
Both men had been prisoners of war during WWI. Alcock was shot down over Turkey and Brown captured in Germany.
Getting to Ireland from Canada as never before
Ireland wasn’t supposed to be the final destination. It was to be a simple overnight stop before flying onwards to England. But Alcock was confident that Brown’s navigational skills would take them to the Galway coast. He declared – “we shall hang our hats on the aerials of Clifden wireless station”.
Heading towards challenging and little known weather conditions, they lifted off from Lester’s Field, St. John’s Newfoundland, at 1.41pm on 14th June 1919. Their target – to fly the wild Atlantic in their open cockpit Vickers Vimy.
Within five hours they had climbed to 4,500 ft, but were continuously enveloped in heavy fog and cloud. Suddenly, they burst through the cloud – but it was shortlived excitement. It provied- just a ten minute window for Brown to get their bearings. He used just the sun, but no had visible horizon to enable sextant use.
How Brown navigated to Ireland
At the core of his equipment was a standard sextant – the engravings etched deeper to enable him view against the vibrations of the aircraft. He had ancillary equipment adapted to help him measure drift, ground speed and horizon. It was also more challenging with the speed and drift of the plane compared to shipping. However, the heavy fog which they encountered not long after take-off was to linger for some hours. And a faulty wireless meant they could only receive messages, but not transmit.
Guided to Ireland by the Stars
By 8pm they were in darkness and hoping for some glimpse of the stars to aid navigation. But they remained cocooned in the cloud. Eventually, after eight hours and gradually climbing to 6,000ft, Brown spotted the Pole star through a gap in the clouds. He calculated they were over halfway and close enough to their original planned course. Despite the navigation challenges, the following wind was stronger than anticipated. It seemed to be propelling them (excuse the pun) towards Ireland three to four hours sooner than expected.
Pilot Alcock must have envied Brown, who was able to move about his cockpit while tending to his instruments and checking gauges. Alcock was virtually welded to his seat, feeding constant manual inputs into the controls to keep them on course. Suddenly, they were struck by turbulence in the middle of thick fog. The plane went into a spin. With pilot and navigator unable to tell the dive angle, they prayed they would exit the fog before they hit the Ocean. Then, as quickly as the turbulence had hit, they were free of cloud.
But a new danger immediately presented itself. They were still descending, and the swell was at right angles to them, less than 100 feet below. Using all his skill and experience, Alcock managed to right the Vimy and ascend again. On checking the compass, the aviators discovered the spin had put them facing back in the direction from whence they had come.
Pushing on to the West Coast of Ireland
Estimating they had more than enough fuel, Alcock now had no compunction about burning it to again gain height. Yet, despite being at 7,000ft, there was still no dawn greeting them. Now flying for almost twelve hours, Brown estimated they were no more than 450 miles from the west of Ireland. But, more gauntlets were about to slap their faces. Heavy rain turned to sleet and snow. Brown, forced to kneel on his seat, steadied himself against the fuselage to clear snow off the petrol overflow gauge – a vital instrument.
Having nursed the engines for hours, Alcock now pushed them, reckoning on finding clearer weather somewhere above. He eventually got to 11,000ft – allowing Brown a glimpse of the sun and a reading to check their course. But the altitude that was now assisting them, was to throw up one final challenge – ice. Alcock began to descend again, until at about 500ft they caught sight of the seas below. Brown gave him a new reading and approached Ireland. After almost 16 hours of flying they crossed the west coast, zooming low over the town of Clifden. Despite all the challenges and travails, they found themselves just 20 miles north of Brown’s course original course.
Atlantic Fog to Irish Bog
It was time to land. They spied the massive aerials of Marconi’s wireless station at Derrygimla. Amongst the granite rocks and pools of Connemara’s ‘savage beauty’, Alcock spied what ‘… looked like a lovely field’. They touched down, Alcock killing the engines. To their horror they realised that the lovely field was moss-coated bog. The nose dug in and they tilted, as we might say in Ireland, ‘arse over head’! Uninjured, soldiers and workers from the nearby station rushed to their aid. The puzzled soldiers asked from whence they had come? Alcock uttered the immortal words that no man or woman had ever before spoken: “Yesterday we were in America“.
After the Ireland Adventure
Having made history by becoming the first to fly across the Atlantic, both were knighted shortly afterwards. But Captain Sir John Alcock would not live to reflect on his achievements. Just six months later, he was doing a routine delivery of an airplane to the Paris air show. He was tragically killed when he crashed into a field near Rouen, France.
Arthur Brown died in 1948, at the age of 62. He was said never to have recovered from the death of his RAF pilot son, who was shot down over Holland in 1944. In 1939, he had objected to a proposed monument in Clifden. He believed it was too soon after the event, and that in any case, monuments should be presevered for the dead.
And of the venerable Vickers Vimy? Well, officials managed to prevent the locals totally scavenging the canvas to cover their cocks of hay. She was restored shortly and presented to the British Science Museum.
It was to be another twenty years before transatlantic flights became a commercial reality. And it was to be on water, rather than land. Foynes, Co. Limerick on the Shannon Estuary became the regular landing spot for flying boats. But these were the preserve of the rich and famous.
Maureen O’Hara’s husband, Charles Blair flew the first Foynes to New York direct flight. And, the first Irish Coffee was made at Foynes. Ireland also claims the first east-west flight. Capt. James Fitzmaurice of the fledgling Irish Air Corps being amongst the crew who flew from Baldonnel military airfield in Dublin. This was also where the famous ‘wrong-way around Corrigan’ landed.
An Ireland Escorted Small Group Tour for you
Hear this story and more on our small group escorted (max 13) tours. With a choice of tours from 6 to 12 days we have an Ireland package for you. We also love collaborating with clients to build private customised tours for family and friends. Check out our 5 star TripAdvisor and Google Reviews to read out guests experiences.
When researching this story, we naturally visited Derrygimla and used information gleaned from many sources over the years. But we found the book ‘Yesterday we were in America’, by Brendan Lynch, (Haynes Publishing 2012), an especially good read.