Dungannon land mine attack

Dungannon land mine attack
Part of the Troubles and Operation Banner
Date 16 December 1979 Location Near Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland 54.50°N 6.77°W / 54.50; -6.77 Result IRA victory
Belligerents
Provisional IRA	British Army
Strength
Unknown	1 mobile patrol
Casualties and losses
None	4 killed, 1 vehicle destroyed
class=notpageimage| Location within Northern Ireland

In the Dungannon land mine attack of 16 December 1979, the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) ambushed two British Army Land Rovers with an improvised land mine outside Dungannon, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. Four British soldiers were killed in the attack.

Background

Since the beginning of its campaign in 1970, the Provisional IRA had carried out many improvised landmine and roadside bomb attacks on British forces in the region. In September 1972, three British soldiers were killed when their armoured vehicle was blown up by an IRA land mine at Sanaghanroe, near Dungannon. In March 1974, two IRA members were killed on the Aughnacloy Road near Dungannon when the landmine they were planting exploded prematurely.

On 27 August 1979, the IRA killed 18 British soldiers with roadside bombs in the Warrenpoint ambush in south County Down; the deadliest attack on British troops during the conflict.

Attack

On 16 December 1979, two armoured British Army Land Rovers were driving along Ballygawley Road, about two miles outside Dungannon. A unit of the IRA had planted a 600–1,000-pound (270–450 kg) improvised landmine in a culvert under the road at Glenadush. When the second vehicle reached the culvert, the landmine was detonated by remote control. It blew the vehicle into the air and killed four soldiers outright: William Beck (23), Keith Richards (22), Simon Evans (19) and Allan Ayrton (23).

See also

• Chronology of Provisional Irish Republican Army actions (1970–79)
• Ballygawley bus bombing
• Ballygawley land mine attack
• Altnaveigh landmine attack
• 1990 Downpatrick roadside bomb