The 21st December 2023 will mark 35 years since the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie. At 7.03pm, the bomb exploded and killed all 259 passengers and crew on-board the aircraft, alongside 11 residents on the ground in Lockerbie.
The marking of the 35th anniversary will be a quiet, considered and low-key event, following discussions with the Lockerbie community, Dumfries and Galloway Council, school representatives and local authorities.
Lockerbie Academy will host their annual remembrance assembly with rose laying and readings from pupils on the morning of Thursday 21st December. A small number of pupils will then take part in a rose laying ceremony at Dryfesdale Cemetery at 11.30am. They will be accompanied by a Remembrance Scholar from Syracuse University who will be representing the 35 students from Syracuse who were killed in the disaster.
Any members of the public wishing to lay a wreath or flowers can do so at any point throughout the day. In addition to this, people are welcome to join in with communal wreath laying at the following times and locations:-
10.00am Tundergarth Church; 11.45am Dryfesdale Cemetery; 12.15pm Sherwood Crescent;12.45pm Rosebank Crescent
A “Blue Service” will be held at Tundergarth Church following the wreath laying at 10am, led by Jeff Brown. The remembrance service will be open to all who may find comfort in attending, and refreshments will follow. At 7pm a Mass will take place at Holy Trinity R.C. Church in Lockerbie town centre, and all are welcome to attend. A virtual Service will also take place at Hendricks Chapel at Syracuse University at 7pm. This can be accessed via http://cc.syr.edu/memorialservice2023
Lockerbie Town Hall will be open from 10am until 8pm, where light refreshments will be available, for those wishing to come together in a warm and welcoming environment. Soup will be served between 1pm and 2.30pm. The Remembrance Room at Tundergarth Church and the Dryfesdale Lodge Visitors Centre will both be open throughout the day, and offer a wealth of information surrounding the disaster.
Any members of the media wishing to film/photograph the anniversary commemorations would be encouraged to attend the 10am service at Tundergarth Church and the 11.30am ceremony at Dryfesdale Cemetery, where some interviewees will be available- following the wreath laying.
