Airport pays tribute to victims of the 2011 Manx2 plane crash that killed six, acknowledging those injured in the tragic event.
The accident occurred on February 10, 2011. The victims’ names were released the next day: Brendan McAleese, Pat Cullinan, and Michael Evans, along with Richard Noble, Andrew John Cantle, and Jordi Sola Lopez. The co-pilot was Andrew Cantle, and Jordi Lopez was the pilot.
The Manx2 flight carried twelve people, including the two crew members. The plane approached Cork in foggy conditions, nearly 10 AM. The aircraft tried landing twice but failed, and a third attempt ended in a crash where the crew lost control.
The plane’s right wing hit the runway, and the aircraft flipped upside down. It slid along the runway for 189 meters. The Airfield Fire Service quickly responded and stopped fires in both engines. Survivors were taken to Cork University Hospital.
A 2014 inquest heard the victims died fast from instant fatal injuries. Survivors feared being burned alive, worrying the fire would reach them. They praised the Gardai and fire crews, who set up a makeshift morgue.
A final report in 2014 cited pilot fatigue and a sensor fault as factors in the crash. Oliver Lee, another pilot who flew the same route often and knew Captain Jordi Sola Lopez, died by suicide months after the 2011 crash.
Martin McGuinness had planned on taking the Manx2 flight to visit Cork for an election but altered his travel plans. An investigation began into a near miss, where two planes nearly collided at Cork Airport last July.