Castlebar Airport - a landmark
CASTLEBAR Airport, now the site of Monaghan & Sons Motors on the Breaffy Road, was opened in 1966 by brothers Peter, Hugh, Jim and Joseph Ryan and their brother-in-law, Dermot McDermott, from Castlerea, writes Tom Gillespie.
According to author Joe Curtis in his publication Ireland In Old Photographs - Castlebar, Michael Heverin of Ellison Street joined the company in 1969.
The set-up costs included £4,500 for the site, £23,000 for the runway, and £7,500 for the terminal building.
The runway was 2,000ft long and 70ft foot wide, and the 13-acre site was originally part of the farm attached to St. Mary’s Psychiatric Hospital.
The planes using the facility varied from two- to 10-seaters, including the Beagle 206, the Aztec, the Beach Baron, and the Islander. A four-seater plane, chartered by Bobby Smith and Frank Gill of the Royal Blues Showband from Claremorris, was the first to land on the new airstrip.
Another group, Ireland West Airlines Ltd., operated a charter using a Piper Cherokee-Six from 1968.
The annual Castlebar Air Show was a popular attraction in August and I recall the 1980 event when RTÉ Radio’s Poparama was broadcast from the airport.
The airport bar proved hugely popular and the Ryans, particularly Jim, played a major role in establishing the venue as a must-visit location. On Friday nights he introduced a smoked salmon and oysters evening, which was quite novel back then.
In 1969 we were just married and resided at Number 7, Mons Terrace, just a short walking distance from the airport. Ironically, many years later, we bought the house next door and still reside there.
On Saturday evenings, after the oyster and smoked salmon night, we would visit the airport bar where we were presented, free of charge, with any of the ‘left-over’ oysters.
Jim, of course, also played a major role in the establishment of Knock airport and was a member of the board of directors up to the time of his death.
After the Ryans, Joe Bourke, son of Josie Bourke, the garage proprietor on Ellison Street, ran the airport for a couple of years and in 1976 Joe hosted a reception for Castlebar Song Contest when Terry Wogan and Acker Bilk flew in for the final of that year’s spectacular.
John Moran and his late wife, Ann, rented out the airport bar and ran it for several years, and they added their own personal touch to the business.
In later years Donal McEllin of Maryland, Castlebar, ran the airport. A highly qualified pilot, Donal soon put his own stamp on the business and attracted a huge clientele both as customers and aviation enthusiasts.
A perfectionist, Donal did things his way but he ran a highly successful business. He was a generous gentleman and often brought me or my children on flights over Castlebar.
On one St. Stephen’s Day, Donal discovered there had been a break-in at the airport and reported the incident to the local gardaí. Anxious not to disturb any evidence he waited in vain for a patrol car to arrive to investigate the matter. Eventually, with frustration, he rang the barracks again and was informed no squad car was available.
Not to be outdone, Donal took to the air and circled over the barracks to discover there was a patrol car parked outside.
Needless to say, when investigating officers eventually arrived at the airport later that evening they got a bellyful from Donal, as well as his displeasure at them coming to the bar when customers were present.
Donal opened the bar each day at 3 p.m., after he had done stocking up or cutting the lawns on the air-side of the terminal. Over August weekends he put on a party for his customers in the hanger attached to the terminal. Earlier, he would have saved and baled hay from the airport grounds, which he used as seating for his guests.
There was a television in the airport which was switched on solely for sports or news. Woe betide any customer who sought to view soaps or other such ‘trivial programmes’.
On summer evenings customers could sit out on the air-side lawn. On one such evening I was enjoying a pint outside and wanted another. Instead of going into the bar I rang the airport from my then new mobile.
Donal answered and was not impressed with the ruse. I was lucky I wasn't barred.
One Christmas Eve some customers arrived with young children, a no-no for Donal. He persevered with the youngsters but the following Christmas Eve had a large notice pinned on the front door that no children were allowed after six o’clock.
On other occasions I witnessed Donal telling parents of children who were ‘running about’ to remove them from the premises and put them in their car until they were ready to leave. Needless to say, many of these parents never returned.
A keen and lifelong supporter of Mayo GAA, Donal never missed a game and travelled all over the country to cheer them on.
The airport closed almost 17 years ago and many mourned the fact that the bar did not remain open. However, this was impossible as the bar operated under an airport licence.
Over the years it was a unique Castlebar landmark that held many happy memories for those who frequented it.
* Read Tom Gillespie's County Town column in our print edition every Tuesday.