President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca laid a wreath an Pembroke Military Cemetery today to recall the anniversary of one of the biggest peacetime loss of life by Maltese servicemen.
Fifteen Maltese and two Britons died when a Royal Air Force Hasting transport aircraft broke in half and burst into flames as it was taking off from the El Adem in Libya on a flight to Malta on October 10, 1961.
22 soldiers survived, although several were badly injured.
The Maltese servicemen had been working with the Royal Engineers on a road-building project.
http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20111010/local/El-Adem-Fateful-toss-of-a-coin.388434