Basle air crash: The mothers who never came home

[viking9]

Forty years on and the depth of emotion is still apparent in the Somerset communities devastated by an air crash in Switzerland. On April 10 1973 nearly 140 people, mainly mothers, boarded Invicta Airlines Flight 435 at Bristol Airport happily looking forward to a day's shopping and sightseeing in Basle. It was the third annual outing for members of Axbridge Ladies Guild, joined on this occasion by women from Cheddar Mums' Night Out group, skittles players from Wrington and Congresbury, plus friends and relatives.

A total of 108 people were killed when the plane struck the tops of trees and crashed into a hillside on its second attempt to land at the Swiss airport during a snowstorm. Dozens of men lost their wives and more than 40 children lost their mothers in the tragedy. The deaths also included 17 men on the trip, the two pilots and two other members of crew.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-somerset-22077051