Seventy People Were Fatally Injured When A Military Airplane Went Down In The Crowd

It was arguably one of the worst accidents ever in the history of air shows. On August 28th, 1988, three Italian military aircraft performing with the Frecce Tricolori precision demonstration team collided in mid-air during a performance at Germany's Ramstein Air Base. One of the jets went down in the crowd of 300,000, resulting in the fatal injury of 67 people on the ground. The three pilots also lost their lives. More than 500 were injured, many seriously.

Last Wednesday, on the 25th anniversary of the accident, about 100 people gathered at a memorial erected at Ramstein to remember the event, and those who lost their lives, according to a report appearing in Stars and Stripes.

The accident led to the suspension of all air shows in Germany for a time. While air shows have resumed, military aircraft are prohibited from participating to this day. Pilot error was given as the official cause of the accident.

Those who gathered at the memorial stone engraved with the names of those who were fatally injured reflected on the people they had lost or the events of the day. Military officials, including a small contingent from Italy, attended the ceremony. The only speaker was U.S. Air Force chaplain Maj. Michael Curtis, who was a 17-year-old selling ice cream at the air show when the accident occurred.

A survivors group visits the memorial site every year.

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FMI: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Flugtag88