Americans marking Arrow Air disaster in Gander thank residents for compassion

quartet decades after the deadliest air power break apart on canadian river dirt, two Americans who lost loved ones in the Arrow Air disaster say they needed to visit Gander to share their gratitude with those who feel their grief.

Some 256 lives were lost in the plane crash on Dec. 12, 1985, including 248 American soldiers from the U.S. Army Airborne 101st division, headed home from Sinai, Egypt for Christmas.

An annual memorial service is scheduled for Friday in Gander, where the plane crashed.

Ronald Peck, a retired member of the army, lost friends in the crash. 

"It took them a couple hours before we actually found out what was wrong. We just thought it was a delay, originally," Peck said Thursday.

"I went home and cried like hell … [It's still] just about as hard."

Rose Marie Preddy lost her brother, Sgt. Abraham 'Abe' Karadsheh, in the crash. A linguist who served with the peacekeepers, he died at age 26.

"He had a lot of pride in [serving], and that's how I remember him," Preddy said.

Preddy wears a golden cross around her neck, a gift from Jerusalem she got from her brother.

The cross, along with a series of Christmas gifts from him to his family, was delivered to their home two hours after they found out about the crash, she said.

"We did not open them until Christmas. Unfortunately we didn't have closure, so they were still searching for him. So when Christmas came along, it was bittersweet," Preddy said.

Both Peck and Preddy are visiting Gander for the first time to pay their respects in person at the Silent Witnesses Memorial.

Peck called it a heartbreaking experience to see where the lives were lost, but was uplifted by the dedication the people of Gander have made to honour his fallen brothers.

"I'm proud of our guys that were there, and I'm proud of the people of Gander for memorializing them like they have. It's a great tribute to them, and I really appreciate all the effort they put into it," he said.

"This was the worst aviation crash in U.S. Army history, and most people [in the U.S.] don't realize that."

Preddy said she was inspired to travel to Newfoundland in recent years after meeting with first responders in the U.S. Who still carried the trauma of the crash.

It changed her view of the disaster, she said, and expanded the horizon of its impact.

"They don't even know [my brother], and I wanted to come and tell them 'Thank you,'" Preddy said of Gander residents.

"They didn't deserve the level of tragedy and carnage. These [are] sweet people, and instead of trying to brush it away and hide what happened. They wanted to honour it. They're taking something that was awful and they're making it just this peaceful, beautiful memorial. I had to come and thank them."

Journalist

---

---