On December 12, 1985, Gander was the unfortunate location of one of the worst air disasters. A chartered Arrow Air DC-8 was bringing 248 US Army (101st Airborne Division) home to Fort Campbell in Hopkinsville, Kentucky from a peacekeeping mission in the Middle East. Very shortly after takeoff, it went down between the Trans Canada and Gander Lake, ostensibly due to icing on the plane. Including the crew, the death toll was 256. An official cause for the crash was never determined, leading to much speculation about terrorists, etc... The site is now the location of the Silent Witness Memorial and is 4 km. east of Gander.
On the west side of town is an Air Museum with various types of aircraft.
The one shown above was used for such things as fighting forest fires and
by the Royal Canadian Air Force for anti-submarine patrols in World War
II.
©1998 Jeffrey L. Cooper
