Citizens of Hopkinsville and Christian County once again gathered together Thursday at Gander Memorial Park to honor and remember the 248 Fort Campbell soldiers and eight crew members that were killed in a plane crash in 1985 in Gander, Newfoundland.
Second Brigade Combat Team Colonel Michael Kovacevic says the community as whole was shaken when, 34 years ago, the news came that flight 1285 had gone down while returning from a peacekeeping mission.
He says a lot has changed since then, but what hasn’t changed is the strong relationship that Hopkinsville and other surround communities has with Fort Campbell.
He says that the local memorial is a solemn reminder of both the loss of those men and women, but also of the importance of the peacekeepers.
A wreath was set at the feet of the soldier statue by Mayor Carter Hendricks and Judge-Executive Steve Tribble. There was a playing of TAPS and a gun salute, and the family members of those who were lost laid roses by their loved ones’ names on the memorial.
