Mayo commemoration of historic transatlantic flight
AN historic occasion has been remembered in Ballinrobe as the Lithuanian and Irish communities gathered to celebrate Felix Waitkus’ historic transatlantic flight in 1935.
At the time, Lithuanian pilot Felix Waitkus was only the sixth pilot ever to fly solo across the Atlantic and the world’s media focused on the story.
Felix Waitkus had initially hoped to fly as far as Kaunas, Lithuania, but due to adverse weather conditions he was forced to make an emergency landing in Cloongowla, Ballinrobe. He was the only pilot to fly solo across the Atlantic in 1935.
Ballinrobe began commemorating this event in 2006 with the inaugural Fly Mayo Festival.
This year was a significant milestone as it marked the 90th anniversary of the pilot’s emergency landing and the town of Ballinrobe marked the event in style.
Some of the main organisers of this year’s commemoration were Evelina Vainoriene, Frank Keane, chairperson, Ballinrobe Community Development Council, and David Hall.
Despite the wet and windy conditions, a large number of people attended the special commemoration at the Lithuania Flight Monument situated beside the Bowers Walk in the town, where the Lithuanian community performed music, read native poems from their homeland, with culinary delights also on offer.
The day began with a special morning climb of Croagh Patrick, and concluded with an evening of celebration in Flannery’s Bar and Restaurant.
One of the special guests at the event was the Lithuanian Ambassador to Ireland, Mr. Jonas Grinevicius.
Mr. Grinevicius said: “I am very pleased to be here for this joyous occasion and to celebrate a son of Lithuania. Indeed, this event is one of the beautiful things that connects our nations. As an ambassador, it is a pleasure and an honour for me to be here.
“This project helps our bilateral relationship flourish, and we appreciate the response by the local authorities, along with the local community. The Lithuanian community are well-integrated here. We cherish the memories of Lithuanians who all that time ago were able to connect our two countries, despite being geographically quite remote, and fate made this happen. It really is quite an amazing story.”
Ms. Evelina Vainoriene is a member of the Lithuanian Community in Ballinrobe and is hopeful that a festival can take place next year to mark the occasion.
“I would like to thank the Lithuanian community and people in Ballinrobe for contributing to this occasion. We hope that next year we will have a festival and a bigger event to celebrate the anniversary with our Irish friends.”
During the commemoration tributes were paid to the late Patsy Murphy, who passed away last December.
Patsy Murphy played a significant role in researching the Felix Waitkus story.