GLASGOW Airport terror attack hero John Smeaton has confirmed that he and his American wife Christy MacPhedran have split.
The couple got together after a whirlwind romance following the June 2007 failed suicide bomb attack and married two years later at Balgonie Castle in Fife.
The former baggage handler – nicknamed "Smeato" – shot to global fame for tackling British-born Iraqi junior doctor Bilal Abdullah and Kafeel Ahmed after the pair drove a Jeep packed with gas cylinders, nails and petrol into the main terminal building.
Mr Smeaton's bravery and bold catchphrase "This is Glasgow – we'll just set aboot ye" saw him become a household name around the world.
A fan site set-up in his honour declared him a "modern-day William Wallace", while some 1400 well-wishers expressed their gratitude by buying him a pint.
In September 2007, Mr Smeaton met Ms MacPhedran, a data analyst, at an event for the Scottish Society in New York.
They married six years ago and Mr Smeaton, 39, moved to the US with his wife. He confirmed the pair had been separated for some time.
"It is just one of those things, we grew apart," he said. "It has been a very difficult time for me personally, and I still love Christy to bits.
"I'm not going to lie, it has been a tough period, but bit-by-bit things are getting back on track. Life moves on and you just have to try your best to deal with it.
"I've certainly no regrets, but there's nothing else for it."
Mr Smeaton, originally from Erskine, Renfrewshire, added that he has no plans to return to Scotland and would remain in Queens, New York, where he is training as a carpenter.
"These days I don't really talk about what happened at the airport," he said. "I just try to keep my head down and get on with it."
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