Businessman made frantic phonecall to wife

BUSINESSMAN Brendan Mallon made a frantic phonecall to his wife after surviving the ill-fated flight NM 7100 crash which claimed the lives of six other passengers.

And he later contacted his office in Belfast to tell staff he was okay — but recalled that the carnage around him was terrible.

Mr Mallon, 36, who is commercial trade manager with Falcon Holidays, is recovering in Cork University Hospital (CUH) with internal injuries and broken bones, including a fractured pelvis.

The father of two young sons had been due at a late-morning business meeting in the city and was one of 12 people on board the turbo prop aircraft which had left Belfast City Airport shortly after 8am.

He is understood to have travelled to Cork in order to put the finishing touches to a franchise deal with another tour operator.

A frequent flyer, Mr Mallon was sitting towards the back of the plane when it crashed on landing in fog at Cork Airport, and had to be cut free of the wreckage.

He is believed to have remained conscious throughout the horrific ordeal and was able to contact his wife and family to confirm he was safe.

Mr Mallon was due to have been picked up by a driver, and when he didn’t show up at airport arrivals, the driver rang Falcon’s office in Belfast at 11.20am to ask where he was.

One of the injured man’s colleagues, writing on an internet message board, said: “We waited 25 minutes before he finally called.

“It’s unbelievable that he has survived this terrible accident. My thoughts are with the ones who have lost their lives in this tragedy.

“I can’t get my head around this at all. I can’t imagine how he is feeling after surviving this.”

Mr Mallon, a former pupil of Our Lady’s and St Patrick’s College, in east Belfast, has worked in various roles for Falcon Holidays, and was promoted to this role in September.