Munich air disaster
| Accident | |
|---|---|
| Date | 6 February 1958 |
| Summary | Runway overrun due to slush on the runway |
| Site | Munich-Riem Airport, Munich, West Germany 48°07′34″N 11°40′40″E / 48.12611°N 11.67778°E |
| Aircraft | |
 An Airspeed AS-57 Ambassador, similar to the one involved in the crash. | |
| Aircraft type | Airspeed AS-57 Ambassador |
| Aircraft name | Lord Burghley |
| Operator | British European Airways |
| IATA flight No. | BE609 |
| ICAO flight No. | BEA609 |
| Call sign | BEALINE 609 |
| Registration | G-ALZU |
| Flight origin | Belgrade Airport, Belgrade, SFR Yugoslavia |
| Stopover | Munich-Riem Airport, Munich, West Germany |
| Destination | Manchester Airport, Manchester, England, UK |
| Occupants | 44 |
| Passengers | 38 |
| Crew | 6 |
| Fatalities | 23 |
| Injuries | 19 |
| Survivors | 21 |
The Munich air disaster occurred on 6 February 1958 when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Riem Airport, Munich, Bavaria, West Germany.
On the plane was the Manchester United football team, nicknamed the "Busby Babes", along with supporters and journalists.[1] 20 of the 44 on the aircraft died at the scene. Three more died at a Munich hospital, resulting in 23 fatalities with 21 survivors.
An investigation said that the crash was caused by the slush on the runway, which slowed the plane too much to take off.
Deaths
[change | change source]Crew members
[change | change source]- Captain Kenneth "Ken" Rayment. Co-pilot. Died in hospital five weeks later as a result of brain damage.
Passengers
[change | change source]
Manchester United players
- Geoff Bent
- Roger Byrne
- Eddie Colman
- Duncan Edwards (survived the crash, but died in hospital 15 days later)
- Mark Jones
- David Pegg
- Tommy Taylor
- Billy Whelan
Manchester United staff
- Walter Crickmer, club secretary
- Tom Curry, trainer
- Bert Whalley, chief coach
Journalists
- Frank Swift, News of the World (also former England and Manchester City goalkeeper; died on his way to hospital)
- Donny Davies, Manchester Guardian
References
[change | change source]- ↑ Video: Britain Mourns. Soccer Champs Die In Plane Crash, 1958/02/10 (1958). Universal Newsreel. 1958. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
