Anniversary of plane crash at Cork Airport that killed NI passengers remembered

Cork Airport has paid tribute to the six people who were killed in 2011 when a plane crashed on the runway.

Posting online this morning the Airport said: "Today, on the 14th anniversary, we remember the six people that tragically lost their lives and those who were injured onboard the Manx2 flight from Belfast City Airport on February 10, 2011."

The next day, February 11, the names of the dead were released:

The Manx2 flight was carrying 12 occupants - including a crew of two - when it descended towards Cork in foggy conditions shortly before 10am. The 19-seat aircraft made two failed attempts at landing before coming around for a third - at which point the crew lost control of the flight.

The right wing scraped along the runway before the plane rolled over and crashed on the tarmac upside-down. The inverted plane ploughed along the runway for a further 189 metres before coming to a stop.

Fast-acting members of the Airfield Fire Service managed to extinguish blazes in both of the engines before flames could consume the fuselage. Six people were fatally wounded and survivors were rushed to Cork University Hospital (CUH).

An inquest in Cork in 2014 would later hear that all six of the dead were killed instantly or within moments of the crash.

Survivors at the inquest said they were terrified that the fire would reach the fuselage before it could be put out, and that they would burn alive. One survivor also praised the efforts of Gardai and fire crews who attended the scene. The first officers to arrive quickly erected a tent for use as a makeshift morgue.

A final report on the crash in 2014 found several factors contributed towards the crash, including fatigue of the pilots and a sensor fault in one of the aircraft's engines.

Martin McGuinness - then deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland - later said that he had intended to be on the Manx2 flight to visit Cork for the 2011 general election campaign, but altered his travel plans.

Earlier this month it was reported that an investigation was underway into a 'near-miss' that occurred between two aircraft at Cork Airport last July.

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