UNDER CONSTRUCTION
On December 11, 1985, a Douglas DC-8 departed Cairo enroute to Campbell Air Force Base, Kentucky via Germany and Gander, Newfoundland. On board were eight crew and 248 passengers. The 248 passengers were members of the 101st Airborne Division, United States Army, who had been on peace keeping duties in the Sinai Desert.
As the plane departed Gander, it failed to gain altitude and crashed about a half mile beyond the end of the runway. The aircraft was destroyed by the impact and the fuel-fed fire. All 256 occupants on board lost their lives. The crash was the worst air disaster ever in Canada.
This memorial was designed by Lorne Rostotski of St. John's, Newfoundland and sculpted by Stephen Shields of Hopkinsville, Kentucky. It depicts an unarmed soldier standing atop a massive rock holding the hands of two civilian children. The children, a boy and a girl, each hold an olive branch, denoting the peace keeping mission of of the 101st Airborne Division "Screaming Eagles" in the Sinai Peninsula.
The trio, surrounded by trees, hills, and rocks of the crash site looks into the future, beyond Gander Lake and in the direction of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. These surroundings are witness to the moment when many young dreams ended and the hearts and imagination of grateful nations were captured.
Christopher Allen Sampson (viewers left) has served at places such as South Korea; Camp Victory, Baghdad, Iraq; and Fort Huachuca, Arizona
Jim Banister, USAF, Home: Lincoln, NE
Bennie Lee Wheat who served with the US Marine Corps during the Korean Conflict. He now lives in Kentucky.
Shewmaker, Prentice Derotha - USAF (1951-1955) Air Police - Forbes AFB, Topeka, Kansas and England - Hometown, Perryville, KY
Randall Windham, Home town, Andalusia, AL., M/Sgt US Army, Fort Bliss, TX. His many decorations include the Bronze Star and Purple Heart. His extensive foreign service includes duty in Desert Storm, Desert Shield, and Kosovo.
Curtis "Doak" Pfeister, USAF Security Services
Enlisted men are stupid, but very cunning, deceitful, and bear considerable watching (Officers Manual, 1894)
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Albert J. Wheat
9529 Parker St.
Omaha, NE 68114