Kieran Fleming of the murder of Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) woman Linda Baggley in 1976 and imprisoned. On 23 September 1983, Fleming was involved in the Maze Prison escape, the largest break-out of prisoners in Europe since World War II and in British prison history. Fleming, along with 37 other republican prisoners, armed with 6 hand-guns, hijacked a prison meals lorry and smashed their way out of HMP Maze past 40 prison wardens and 28 alarm systems. During the escape Gerry Kelly shot and injured a prison warden as the officer attempted to foil the escape. Fleming, according to IRA sources quoted
Brixton Prison IRA escape 1991 remaining seven managed to cross the border into the Republic of Ireland and appeared at a press conference in Dublin. On 17 January 1972, seven internees escaped from the prison ship HMS "Maidstone" by swimming to freedom, resulting in them being dubbed the "Magnificent Seven". On 31 October 1973, three leading IRA members, including former Chief of Staff Seamus Twomey, escaped from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin when a hijacked helicopter landed in the exercise yard of the prison. Irish band The Wolfe Tones wrote a song celebrating the escape called "The Helicopter Song", which topped the Irish popular music charts.