A deal in which Éamon de Valera secretly relaxed Ireland's wartime neutrality so Allied aircraft could overfly the Republic on Atlantic convoy protection missions was commemorated yesterday in special twin cross-Border ceremonies.
Granite memorial plaques were erected in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal, and in Belleek, Co Fermanagh, to publicly acknowledge for the first time the passage of flying boats along the "Donegal corridor" to the Atlantic from their bases on Lough Erne.
The flights were introduced after top-secret discussions between taoiseach de Valera and Sir John Maffey, Britain's representative in Ireland.
In 1940, flying boats protected shipping convoys bringing essential supplies from America to Britain but their range was limited. Consequently, there was an unprotected section of ocean known as the "Black Gap" where U-boats could operate.
Following secret talks in January 1941 between de Valera and Sir John Maffey, flying boats were permitted to go from Lough Erne across the portion of the Free State (as the Republic was then known) between Belleek and Ballyshannon.
A total of 320 men died in 41 missions involving Erne-based flying boats.