Foynes, Co Limerick. Main Street in Foynes during the flying boat days. Originally developed as a port, Foynes was developed as a refuelling point for transatlantic flying boats during the late 1930s and early 1940s.

Foynes Airport. The terminal building at Foynes Airport 1939-1945. Formerly the Monteagle Arms Hotel, it presently houses the Flying Boat and Maratime Museum and is the headquarters for the Foynes Port Company. Built in the 1860s on lands leased from the Monteagle Estate, it was Foynes' first public bar and hotel, and later the first headquarters for aviation in Ireland. In 1938 when the Department of Transport failed to buy the building, they acquired it by means of a Compulsory Purchase Order. In 1954, after the airport closed, the Department sold the building and an Irish College was founded. It was at this time the building was named 'Aras Ide'. In 1980 Foynes Harbour Trustees purchased the building and in 1988 the Flying Boat Museum leased a portion of the building to establish the museum.

BOAC Marine Service. These are the local men who served with BOAC at Foynes operating the marine service. From left to to right, back row: Gerry Guiltenane, Jack Dundon, Joe Enright, Mike McCarthy, Con Taylor, Frank McCarthy, Peter Cusack, Jimmy Ryan, Jim Fitzsimons, Mike Lane, Ben Corcoran, Willie Ebzery, Jack O'Connor, Mat Lane. From Left to right, third row: Jim Liston, Mick Leahy, Donie Danagher, Jim Wall, Paddy Walsh, Mick Kennelly, Ned Dundon, Michael Guiltenane, Dan Moran, Jack Liston, Jack Madigan, Steve Dundon, Gerry Barron. From left to right, second row: Joe Scanlon, Tim Conway, Eddie Enright, Paddy Condon, Charlie Wright, Jackie Landford, Johnny Enright, Willie Kirwan, Danny Lane, Frank Buckley, Joe Cahill. From left to right: Willie Enright, John Buckley, Jack Fitzgerald, Tom Finucane, Jimmy Counihan, Paddy Walsh.

Met Office. The first Met Office personnel to arrive in Foynes - (L-R) Sidney P. Peters, Stan Proud and John Harding - on 16th February 1937 to establish the forecasting services at the new airport. In front of them is a Stevenson Screen: this equipment is still used today to house thermometers. Inset: Sean McWilliams, Met Staff, Foynes, with a Dobson Ozone Spectrophotometer, taken opposite the Airport Terminal Building.

DeValera Greets Gray. Eamon DeValera, President of the Executive Council, shaking hands with Captain Harold E. Gray, Commander of the Pan Americal 'Clipper III', 6th July, 1937. Sean Lemass, Minister for Industry and Commerce and Sean Leydon, Secretary at the Department of Industry and Commerce, are on the right of DeValera. Lemass and Leydon had responsibility for all the ports in Ireland, of which Foynes was one of the most important and under the new Civil Aviation Section, the Department also had responsibility for the flying boat base at Foynes. DeValera thoughout his life showed a keen interest in aviation and, in 1936, was taken on a flight by Colonel Charles Lindbergh from Baldonnell.

DeValera and Gray. Eamon DeValera (centre, with glasses), President of the Executive Council, at Foynes Airport with Captain Harold E. Gray (to DeValera's left), Commander of the Pan Americal 'Clipper III', 6th July, 1937.

Captain Harold Gray. Captain Harold E Gray was the pilot of the first Pan Am proving flight to Foynes on 6th July, 1937, the Sikorsky S-42B 'Clipper III'. Gray also piloted the first Boeing 314 Flying boat 'Yankee Clipper' to Foynes on the 11st April, 1939. On the 28th June, 1939 Captain Gray piloted the 'Yankee Clipper', again into Foynes, for the first transatlantic mail service from the USA. Captain Gray was a frequent visitor to Foynes and later went on to become Vice-President of Pan American Airlines in 1949.

Captain Charles Blair. Captain Charles Blair (1909-1978). Chief pilot, American Export Airlines, later pilot with Pan American Airways. Born in Buffalo, New York, he studied aeronautics at the University of Michigan and mechanical engineering at the Universith of Vermont. In 1931 and joined the Navy in Florida, later beginning a remarkable airline career. In 1951, he flew his Mustang, 'Excalibur III' nonstop form New York to London setting a transatlantic record crossing by a piston-engined plane - that still stands. In 1951, again in his 'Excalibur III' , he did the first solo flight over the Arctic and North Pole. In 1944 he flew the five fastest crossings on the Atlantic (best time: 14 hrs 17 mins). He was awarded the Harmon International Trophy, the Thurlow Award and the Distinguished Flying Cross. Blair is pictired here with his fourth wife, the actress Maureen O'Hara whom he had first met on a flight to Ireland in 1947.

VIPs at Foynes. Passengers in transit to and from America frequently had long stopovers at Foynes for operational reasons, weather or mechanical breakdown. For such long transits it was policy to book the passengers into a local hotel - first choice always being the Dunraven Arms Hotel in Adare, about 10 miles from Foynes. Shown here walking up street from their flight (L-R): Lord Headford, station manager, BOAC, Lady Ashley and her husband Douglas Fairbanks Snr. Other VIPs who transitted at Foynes during the flying boat days included: Ernest Hemingway, Anthony Eden, John F. Kennedy, Lord Louis Mountbatten, Yehudi Menuhin, Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt, Bob Hope, Gracie Fields, Humphrey Bogart.

Boeing Dining Room and Galley. The Dining Room and Galley of the Boeing 314. Passengers had formal table settings for meals. A typical dinner comprised shrimp cocktail, turtle soup, steak, mashed potatoes, asparagus salad, peach melba and petits fours - accompanied by a choice of drinks. About 300 lbs. of food would be loaded for a transatlantic flight. Two stewards prepared all food from scratch. Passengers shoes would be polished overnight. Lavish tipping was then the rule. Comfort was essential, as westbound sectors would stretch to 17 hours.

Boeing Flight Deck. The flight deck on a Boeing 314 - a flying boat. The Boeing 314 Clipper's design broke new ground - it's flight deck took new steps to address the problem of crew fatigue on non-stop ocean flights. Boeing's solution lay in a commodious flight deck/rest area - a fully-carpeted, 9 by 21 foot expanse that not only had walking around room for a six to eleven man crew, but quarters for a complete off-duty crew as well. Every flight on a Boeing 314 had a minimum of 11 crew but more often than not it would also have a training crew on board. Crew on a Boeing 314 were as follows: 4 Pilots, 2 Engineers, 2 Radio operators, 1 Navigator, 2 Cabin Attendants.

'Caledonia'. Imperial Airways Short S.23 Empire Boat G-ADHM 'Caledonia' moored at Foynes. The 'Caledonia' arrived at Foynes on the first proving flights under the command of Captain A.S. Wilcockson on 4th July, 1937. The 'Caledonia', which made the westward crossing, travelled 1,900 miles at an average speed of 132 miles per hour, in 15 hours and 3 minutes. Captain Wilcockson, commander of the 'Caledonia' said, "It was a great trip. It shows that a regular transatlantic mail and passenger service is quite feasible."

'Caledonia'. Imperial Airways Short S.23 Empire Boat G-ADHM, 'Caledonia' arrives in Foynes on the 4th July, 1937 for the first proving flight on the North Atlantic, under the command of Captain A. S. Wilkcockson, being serviced by Irish Shell. First man standing on left of photograph with hands on hips is Paddy Walsh, next man standing with hands on hips, is Mick Walsh, man on extreme right standing in boat is Michael Hanley. The 'Caledonia' made many trips to Foynes. She was eventually scrapped in 1947.

'Lieutenant de Vaisseau Paris'. Air France Transatlantique's Latecoere 521 F-Nord, 'Lieutenant de Vaisseau Paris' arrived at Foynes at 4.37 p.m. 15th July, 1938 after a 10 hour flight under Captain Henri Leclaire, crew and two passengers (both staff of the French Air Ministry) from l'Etang de Berre Marseille, France. Routing over Bordeaux, the Latecoere flew up the Bay of Biscay making its landfall at Cork. The purpose of its flight was to look at available airfields in Ireland and for a proposed transatlantic flight by a four engined Farman landplane. The crew visited the airport under construction at Rineanna and the radio station at Ballygirreen. They then trvelled by car to Dublin where they inspected Collinstown airfield - also under construction at the time. The Latecoere 521 was a 40 ton flying boat. It spanned 162 feet and could carry up to 30 passengers on the Atlantic route.

'Atlantic Clipper'. Pan Am's Boeing 314 'Atlantic Clipper' NC 18604 on take off. The Clipper first flew through Foynes on 28th August, 1939.

'Yankee Clipper'. Pam Am's Boeing 314 NC18603 'Yankee Clipper' moored at Foynes, with service crew standing on the sponson and boats just coming on-side. This was the first B314 allocated to the Atlantic division and was christened by Mrs. Franklin D. Roosevelt on 3rd March, 1939. Its first visit to Foynes was on the 11th April, 1939 under the command of Captain Harold Gray.

'Caribou'. Imperial Airways Short S.30 Empire Boat, G-AFCV, 'Caribou' moored at Foynes on 5th August, 1939. She landed at Foynes under command of Capt. J.C. Kelly Rogers, who was greeted by his mother. Kelly Rogers and the crew were also welcomed by Eamon deValera, Taoiseach, and other members of the government. Visitors came to Foynes from all over the southern counties and roads in the vicinity of the airport were lined with motor cars. A special train brought hundreds of spectators from Limerick. The 'Caribou' was commandeered by the RAF in October 1939 as V3138. It was destroyed in Bodo in May 1940.

'Clare'. BOAC'S Short S.30 Empire Boat 'Clare' G-AFCZ moored at Foynes with Mexshell II beside it. 'Clare' flew through Foynes on the 3rd August, 1940 under the command of Captain J.C. Kelly Rogers. This was the first passenger and mail flight, designated NA W9 by BOAC. One of its three passengers was Colonel 'Wild' Bill Donovan, advisor to President Roosevelt. On 'Clare's' return journey through Foynes on 10th August, 1940 four of the six passengers were the first American civilian pilots to be recruited for the ferrying of military aircraft to Britain. 'Clare' was previously known as 'Australia'. 'Clare' crashed off Bathurst in September 1942.

'Hungerford'. Local priest, Fr Ignatuis Rice, wishes 'Bon Voyage' to the Aquila Airways Short Sunderland G-AGKY 'Hungerford' leaving Foynes for Lisbon under the command of Captain Pearson. It left Foynes with 50 passengers, 12 English and Scottish and 38 Irish for a pligrimage to Fatima. Aquila Airways was one of the more interesting British independent airlines of the post war period. Formed in May 1948 they flew passengers and freight charters and also operated a scheduled passenger service from Southampton to the Island of Madeira, off the North African coast. The 'Hungerford' was damaged in a take-off accident at Southampton on 28th January 1953 and was subsequently scrapped. Aquila Airways ceased operations in September 1958.

Danny Ryall. Danny Ryall servicing an Air Corps Anson Aircraft at Rineanna.

Chef Andre Fernon. Chef Andre Fernon and colleagues working in Shannon Airport's Sales & Catering kitchen in the early days of the airport.

Brendan O'Regan. Brendan O'Regan, appointed Catering Comptroller at Foynes flying boat base in 1943. In 1945, he was transferred to the airbase at Rineanna (now Shannon Airport) where he continued as Catering Comptroller and later the First Chief Executive and Chairman of Shannon Free Airport Development Company.