International Tenerife Memorial - Monument Airport Disaster March 27 1977

11/05/2026

"Mesa Mota (La Laguna): un monumento que nadie sabe explicar y un mantenimiento que da vergüenza."

-Jonathan Helenio
Hernández Torres-

Mesa Mota no es solamente un mirador natural.
Es un lugar de memoria internacional.

Aquí se encuentra el Memorial Internacional Tenerife, dedicado a las 583 víctimas del accidente aéreo del 27 de marzo de 1977, la mayor tragedia de la aviación civil mundial.

Miles de familiares, supervivientes y visitantes de diferentes países consideran este lugar un espacio de recuerdo, reflexión y respeto humano.

Sin embargo, todavía hoy:
muchas personas no encuentran información histórica suficiente;

la señalización hacia el memorial es limitada;
el acceso y el mantenimiento siguen siendo motivo de preocupación;

y numerosos visitantes desconocen el profundo significado internacional de este monumento.

De cara al 50º aniversario en 2027, sería importante impulsar: • mejor señalización vial y turística;

• paneles informativos multilingües;
• accesibilidad digna al memorial;
• conservación y mantenimiento permanentes;
• presencia en mapas y rutas turísticas oficiales;
• reconocimiento institucional e internacional.

International Tenerife-Memorial CABILDO DE TENERIFE Turismo de Tenerife Gobierno de Canarias Ayuntamiento de San Cristóbal de La Laguna Reuters News Agency Agencia EFE Europa Press El País El Mundo ABC News La Vanguardia Diario de Avisos
Canarias7 La Opinión El Día Embajada del Reino de los Países Bajos en España TVE Radio Televisión Canaria

10/05/2026

With great respect and gratitude in memory of the late Don Ricardo Melchior Navarro

With deep sadness I learned today of the passing of Don Ricardo Melchior Navarro on 31 January 2026, at the age of 78.

As former President of the Cabildo Insular de Tenerife from 1999 until 2013, Don Ricardo dedicated many years of his life to the development and future of Tenerife. He was widely respected for his vision, leadership and commitment to the island, particularly in the fields of infrastructure, public transport, sustainability and international cooperation.

For me personally, and for all those involved in the realization of the International Tenerife Memorial at Mesa Mota, Don Ricardo was far more than a distinguished public administrator. He was a man of dignity, humanity and sincere personal engagement.

Over the years, we had the privilege of meeting him personally on several occasions. What I especially remember with warmth were our conversations in German — a language he spoke fluently due to his years of study in Germany. Those moments reflected his openness, intelligence and genuine interest in people.

Don Ricardo understood the profound emotional importance of creating a permanent place of remembrance on Tenerife for all victims and relatives affected by the tragedy of 27 March 1977. His support, commitment and personal cooperation were of great significance in making the International Tenerife Memorial a reality.

For that, I will remain deeply grateful.

The monument at Mesa Mota stands not only as a place of remembrance, but also as a lasting symbol of international respect, humanity and connection — values Don Ricardo Melchior carried with conviction throughout his life and public service.

I would like to express my heartfelt condolences to his family, loved ones and all who were close to him. I wish them much strength and comfort during this difficult time.

Thank you, Don Ricardo.

Jan Groenewoud

Cabildo de Tenerife Monumento Conmemorativo Internacional 27 de marzo de 1977 Pan Am Museum Foundation Presidencia del Gobierno de Canarias MonumentMaart27 Nederlandse Ambassade in Spanje Pan American Airlines Ayuntamiento de Santa Cruz de Tenerife Aeropuerto Tenerife Norte, Los Rodeos - TFN

Photo (2007): Don Ricardo Melchior Navarro

10/05/2026

Please share this message as widely as possible

A possible idea for future road signage on Tenerife leading to the monument at Mesa Mota.

The International Tenerife Memorial / Memorial Conmemorativo Internacional is a place of remembrance and reflection for relatives, survivors and visitors from around the world. Yet today, many people still find it difficult to locate the memorial.

Perhaps respectful and clearly visible road signage, as shown in this visual impression, could help improve the visibility and accessibility of this important memorial site as we approach 2027 — 50 years after the tragedy of March 27, 1977.

Of course, any realization of such signage would require the cooperation and support of the local authorities, including the Ayuntamiento de San Cristóbal de La Laguna, the Cabildo de Tenerife and the Gobierno de Canarias.

It would be deeply meaningful if visitors, relatives and those wishing to pay their respects could more easily find and reach the memorial in the future.

Possibly including the official designation:

“International Tenerife Memorial”

Or

“Memorial Conmemorativo Internacional”


#19772027

23/04/2026

A survivor’s story — and why Mesa Mota still matters
50 years after the Tenerife disaster (1977–2027)

On March 27, 1977, I was working as Purser a Chief Flight Attendant on Pan Am Flight 1736, after boarding in New York (JFK), waiting on the runway at Los Rodeos Airport.

What should have been a routine delay became the defining moment of my life — and the darkest day in aviation history.

In 2007, Sheila Collis captured this powerful testimony in an interview with Dorothy Kelly for Island Connections, recorded at the Grand Hotel Mencey.

Her words are more than a memory.
They are a reminder of why the memorial at Mesa Mota exists—
and why it must remain accessible, respected, and alive for future generations.

Pan American Airlines Pan Am Legacy Coalition Pan Am Museum Foundation
Ayuntamiento La Laguna Aeropuerto Tenerife Norte, Los Rodeos - TFN Ayuntamiento de Santa Cruz de Tenerife Cabildo de Tenerife Presidencia del Gobierno de Canarias US Embassy Madrid Monumento Conmemorativo Internacional 27 de marzo de 1977

https://www.islandconnections.eu/1000003/1000005/0/31437/interview.html?fbclid=IwdGRjcARXWsRjbGNrBFdavmV4dG4DYWVtAjExAHNydGMGYXBwX2lkDDM1MDY4NTUzMTcyOAABHlXLEUDQywkhJt1xZVeoCsD-MDPwaY4VoQje143-CtiTjKlt4FqUkOMVfuFf_aem_nfcfyLwyjFwlMJ_EmrGDrg

Dorothy Kelly was a purser on the PanAm flight which was involved in the tragic accident with the KLM 747 thirty years ago. 09.04.2007 –  We caught up with her at the inauguration of the monument to the 583 people who died as a result of the crash and were privileged to hear her extraordinary st...

21/04/2026

(Sheila Collis - In Memoriam)

Vandaag, 17 april, wil ik stilstaan bij Sheila Collis, op wat haar geboortedag zou zijn geweest.

Sheila, die helaas op 3 augustus 2021 is overleden, was jarenlang nauw verbonden met het werk van de Stichting Nabestaanden Slachtoffers Tenerife en The Tenerife-family. Als deputy editor van de Engelstalige krant: Island Connections op Tenerife toonde zij een bijzondere en zeer gewaardeerde betrokkenheid.

Ieder jaar, op 27 maart, reisde zij vanuit het zuiden van Tenerife naar het monument op de Mesa Mota het Tenerife Memorial om het bloemstuk van de stichting vast te leggen. Deze foto’s deelde zij vervolgens met ons—waardoor de herinnering levend bleef en zichtbaar werd gemaakt.

Haar toewijding, betrouwbaarheid en oprechte respect voor de nagedachtenis aan de slachtoffers hebben veel voor ons betekend—en doen dat nog altijd.

Sheila’s bijdrage zal niet worden vergeten.

Met dankbaarheid en respect gedenken wij haar vandaag.

KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Pan Am Museum Foundation Pan Am Legacy Coalition Pan American Airlines Aeropuerto Tenerife Norte, Los Rodeos - TFN Ayuntamiento La Laguna
Cabildo de Tenerife Presidencia del Gobierno de Canarias Island Connections International Tenerife Memorial - Monument Airport Disaster March 27 1977 Tenerife Connect Info


foto gemaakt door Sheila Collis - 27 Maart 2015 op de Mesa Mota - Tenerife Memorial

28/03/2026

“I am glad for that I went yesterday to give her (Christine Ekelund, Pan Am Flight Attendant) a Flower in the Tenerife Memorial, at Mesa Mota on La Laguna at 17:00 pm exactly at the time that the accident happened. The memorial was created by Rudi Van De Wint, Dutch artist and it represents the stairs to heaven. Every step is a life from both aircraft and they head to the sky,” states Ezequiel Luis
Hernández. He continued his message to Pan Am Museum, “I created this poem for the honour and respect for the victims. In the 49th anniversary.”

28/03/2026

March 27, 2026 – 49 years of remembrance
On this day in 1977, the deadliest disaster in civil aviation history took place at Los Rodeos Airport, Tenerife.
Our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and all those affected — including first responders and witnesses.
As we remember, we also look ahead.
Next year marks the 50th anniversary — a moment of reflection that deserves to be shared and honored worldwide.
Never forgotten.

27 maart 2026
vandaag herdenken wij dat 49 jaar geleden het dodelijkste ongeval uit de burgerluchtvaart op de landingsbaan van Los Rodeos (TFN Tenerife Norte), waarbij twee Boeings 747 van respectievelijk KLM en Pan-Am op elkaar botste. Hierbij kwamen 583 mensen om het leven en overleefde 61 mensen uit het Pan-Am toestel dit ongeluk. Bij deze tragedie hebben vele hulpverleners op Tenerife, in Nederland en de Verenigde Staten zich ingezet.
Hiervoor betuigen wij eeuwige dankbaarheid.

(Foto en tekst: Jan Groenewoud)
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines Pan Am Museum Foundation Pan Am Legacy Coalition
Tenerife Herdenkingspark Westgaarde Amsterdam 27 maart 2026

03/12/2025

The deep-sea search for missing wreckage of the aircraft will resume this month.

➡️ Flight MH370 mysteriously disappeared from air traffic radar on Mar. 8, 2014.

➡️ The plane was carrying 12 crew members and 227 passengers en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

Click here to read more: cnb.cx/4pR6Vep

03/12/2025

The search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 will resume at the end of December, more than a decade after the Beijing-bound flight disappeared.

18/11/2025

Did you know?

On Sunday, March 27, 1977, at 5:06 p.m., two Boeing 747s—one operated by KLM and the other by Pan Am—collided on the fog-covered runway of Los Rodeos Airport on Tenerife. Both aircraft had diverted there due to a bomb threat at Las Palmas. In near-zero visibility, the Pan Am aircraft was still taxiing on the runway when the KLM aircraft began its takeoff roll.

At the time, the airport suffered from major technical limitations, including the absence of ground radar, meaning air traffic control could not monitor the precise positions of aircraft on the runway.

Subsequent investigations concluded that multiple factors and errors contributed to the accident — involving both flight crews and air traffic control — amplified by poor visibility, radio interference, and inadequate technology.

The crash became the deadliest accident in commercial aviation, with 583 fatalities and 61 survivors.

Only thirty years later, on March 27, 2007, two long-awaited milestones finally took place:

(1) the first international memorial ceremony, and
(2) the inauguration of the Mesa Mota Monument.

The decades of silence deeply affected the grieving process of families, survivors, and later generations. The tragedy also left lasting emotional scars on the people of Tenerife and on the responders in Spain, the Netherlands, and the United States who worked under extreme and traumatic conditions. For all of them, remembrance is essential for acknowledgment and healing.

This tragedy must never be forgotten.