US actor John Travolta was struck with a bout of Saturday night fever last weekend when he met up with Limerick author and model airplane enthusiast Mike Kelly in Shannon Airport.
A keen aviator, Travolta spent a few hours at Mike Kelly’s aviation gallery in the airport last Saturday after flying his Falcon 900 private jet to Shannon from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia.
And he found plenty to occupy his stopover time in the world’s largest collection of model aircraft which Mike lovingly assembled in the sixty years since his fascination with aircraft began as a young boy in Shannon.
The collection, which the retired fitter/plumber from Farranshone spent €25,000 a year on at its peak, outgrew his old farmhouse home just 400m from the River Shannon but has found a new one at the airport.
Housed in display units in a dedicated gallery area just off the departures lounge, the collection includes every popular aircraft to have flown as well as many lesser well known, right up to modern day versions.
All the models are 1:200 in scale and among the better known ones are a range of Concordes that perfected take-off ability at Shannon; the Sunderland aircraft owned by Al Capone from the 1930s; the world’s largest aircraft to fly commercially, the Antonov, which has also transited Shannon; the largest aircraft never to fly, the Spruce Goose of the Hughes Aircraft Company owned by ‘the Aviator’, Howard Hughes; the first Ryanair Boeing 737 aircraft; as well as the full Aer Lingus collection.
And they drew admiring comments from Travolta who was familiar with many of the aircraft represented in the collection.
Mike presented the Hollywood star with a copy of his biography ‘Pulling Back the Clouds’ and a CD of songs based on the book which is still available from local bookshops or on-line at www.limerickwriterscentre.com
The ‘Pulp Fiction’ actor had flown to Shannon from his home in Florida the previous Wednesday when he stayed in Dromoland Castle Hotel en route to Riyhad. He posted an instagram video of his flight to Shannon and his arrival in Dromoland which was viewed by more than 500,000 followers.
The 67-year-old actor is a frequent visitor to Shannon and has spoken of his Irish heritage.
“I’m half-Irish. My mother’s people came from Kenmare in County Kerry and I’ve been down there to research where they lived. We’re related to Burkes and Murphys on her side, and I researched all the connections that there were,” Travolta said in 2007.
