On the morning of 26 February 1960, Flight 618 arrived at its first stopover at
Shannon Airport for refueling to continue its journey across the
Atlantic, while under the supervision of a
check pilot. The flight had been permitted to
take off from
runway 05 with a clear but still dark and partially overcast sky just 45 minutes after its initial arrival. Takeoff proceeded without issue and the crew retracted the gear before making a left turn when the aircraft had climbed to a height of with the landing lights still on. While turning, the aircraft's power was reduced slightly but the flaps were never fully retracted. Instead of climbing, the airliner only accelerated and lost
altitude very quickly. The pilots were unable to prevent the left wing tip from striking a stone wall near the
Clonloghan church followed by the left engines and the rest of the wing which also struck several
gravestones of the surrounding
cemetery. At this point, the aircraft's fate was sealed and after the propellers of the right engine also scraped past the wall, the out-of-control aircraft slammed into the ground in an open field beyond the cemetery and burst into flames. The post-crash fire quickly engulfed the aircraft and badly burned most of the survivors, as locals and
rescue workers arrived at the scene. The fire gutted the wreckage, leaving the tail section as the only recognizable part left of the aircraft. The crash also took its toll on the passengers and crew on board, with only a single crew member surviving the crash alongside 17 passengers, who were all seriously injured. ==Aircraft==