At around 7:00 pm on Wednesday 21 December 1988, HM Coastguard’s Sector Manager for Dumfries and Galloway, Tony Wood, received confusing reports from Maritime Rescue Coordination Sub-Centre (MRSC) Ramsey on the Isle of Man.

Coastguard operators had received 999 calls variously mentioning “flashes in the sky”, “flares”, and “fireworks”, which indicated a possible crash or fire involving a light aircraft, or possibly fast jet, in the Upper Solway. It was entirely feasible given military low flying exercises often occurring in the area.

“As soon as I got the call, I liaised with Dumfries Police Control,”  Tony said. “I advised our MRSC at Ramsey to scramble a rescue helicopter, 177 from HMS Gannett (Royal Naval Air Station) at Prestwick, and I told them I’d be mobile into the area for communications.”

Tony instructed Kirkcudbright Auxiliary Coastguards Roger Docherty and John Johnson, who were already on patrol that evening and who had stopped off at his home to check on a minor radio problem detected earlier in the day, to collect their Station Officer Peter Hunter, and proceed together to the scene.

Tony drove approximately 100 yards ahead of the HM Coastguard Land Rover in a marked HM Coastguard Car whose aerial height was not as efficient as the higher Land Rover behind.

Due to the terrain, inland communications with the MRSC were intermittent. Not long after reaching Castle Douglas, Coastguards received a concerning update from Liverpool Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC). The incident involved a Boeing 747.

Tony wasn't sure that he'd heard the transmission correctly and asked his colleagues in the Land Rover to confirm. At that point, the cause of the disaster was not known, but it rapidly became clear that the plane had crashed in the vicinity of Lockerbie.

Approaching the town from the West, Tony’s team found that traffic was at a standstill. Two or three miles of people had left their vehicles and were staring in shock at the extent of the damage. 

Once Coastguards made their way through and reached the town, they were met with a scene of utter devastation.  

“As we came over the top of the hill by Dryfesdale Cemetery, we could see around a mile or so ahead.… It looked like a war film of London during the Blitz. It was an inferno that was just horrific to look at. Just fire, flames, and smoke,” said Tony. 

Reporting to Lockerbie Police Station around 8:00 pm, Tony liaised with Inspector George Stobbs and, later, Chief Inspector Douglas Latimer about finding an area suitable for establishing an emergency helicopter landing pad. This was not an easy task, as Lockerbie was a town which sat outside of Tony’s usual area of operational responsibility. 

“It wasn’t so much a discussion due to all hell going on,” Tony said. “I informed them that Rescue 177 was just behind me with other SAR HELOS en route and checked they were happy for me to locate and establish an Emergency Helicopter Landing Site, close too but in a safe area.”

Tony is sure that he passed much of the devastation in the town. However, it was very dark. Unlike the police, he was not looking for anything specific other than a decent landing site; so, he did not remember seeing much. 

Air support felt essential; and as the only emergency service with the capability to liaise directly with rescue helicopters, the Coastguards set up their landing site at a local primary school playground’s oblique sports field. This area was clear of any major devastation and did not have smoke blowing in its direction from the burning crater at Sherwood Crescent where the plane’s central fuselage and wings had impacted.

Tony’s intuition was later proven correct, as nine rescue helicopters were variously called to the scene that night. 

Tony recalls large numbers of police arriving in the town at that time, and he was joined by a unit from Strathclyde Police. They asked him if they could team up and brought with them a quantity of lighting equipment. With this, they were able to establish the playing fields as an effective location for the helicopters by around 8:30 pm.

“That's what my three auxiliaries were doing with me: working alongside the Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary and Strathclyde Traffic Police to put up boundaries and lighting all around the area.”

“From the outset, it had been a search and rescue operation. But about an hour or so in, a Wessex helicopter from RAF Valley landed. The winchman indicated deceased persons onboard and handed me two black body bags – he passed me the bodies of a young girl and a baby. They were put into the care of my team, then the ambulance service and police. The Wessex then took off again to continue its search”. 

“From that moment, everything stopped. The whole of Lockerbie had effectively become a crime scene. Body recovery was terminated and no more were brought by helicopter to my location. From that point, the passengers, crew members and any residents who had died were left in situ to be recovered once daylight broke and in full compliance with police procedure.”

After working throughout the night, Tony and his team were relieved of duties by the RAF at around 7:00 am the next morning. 

The Auxiliary Coastguards would return to their stations to maintain an operational readiness on the coast. The Coastguards involved received no trauma counseling or official debriefs. 

On the evening of the 22 December, following a call with the Chief Coast Guard, Tony went out for a meal with his wife to celebrate their anniversary. Two or three days after the bombing, he provided a full report about his work. Nearly six months later, on 16 June 1989, The Department of Transport and HM Coastguard recognized Tony and his team’s work at Lockerbie by conferring on him a Commendation for Meritorious Service.

In 1995, Tony heard about responding organizations from 1988 being invited to attend the dedication of the Lockerbie Memorial Cairn at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. After making enquiries within HM Coastguard and finding that no one seemed to be aware of the dedication, Tony was asked to attend. He eventually travelled to the US with his wife Jen and eldest son Ben for the ceremony. Their youngest son Frazer was attending RAF Cranwell at the start of his RAF career and was unable to be there.

Following the dedication of the Lockerbie Memorial Cairn, attended by President Bill Clinton and other dignitaries, there were many dinners and receptions held in hotels close to Arlington National Cemetery. At one of these, Tony was introduced to a relative of one of the two children that he had been handed by the helicopter winchman on 21 December 1988. 

Following this, Tony was introduced to the family of Captain Joseph Patrick Curry, a member of US Special Forces who was killed on Pan Am flight 103.

Joseph’s brother, Jim Curry, was a U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) pilot flying the C130 out of Kodiak, Alaska. Just before Joseph was killed, Jim had gone to work for USAir, flying out of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Due to Jim having flown with the USCG until only a couple of months before Joseph’s death, he and Tony got on particularly well. Tony and his family were introduced to Jim’s wife, Nancy, and their seven children. 

When the Curry family all came over for a visit to Kirkcudbright in 1999, Tony arranged for them to visit Lockerbie, Dryfesdale Cemetery, and Tundergarth, as well as to take them to the exact location where Joseph’s body was located.

Retiring in 2007 after a storied Coastguard career of more than 30 years, Tony Wood MBE still remembers his years of service fondly. He says: “I look back now with pride. I'm glad I was there. I'm glad I was able to serve.”