Munich Air Disaster

Munich Air Disaster - Introduction
Matt Busby had built a team from Manchester United legendary youth set-up, which were destined to take a stranglehold on English and European football for many years. At the time the Babes seemed invincible. The team that won the Championship in 1956 had an average age of just 22, which is the youngest ever to win an English title, the following year they achieved the same feat again, there was a sense of inevitability in the air that nothing was going to prevent the young starlets of Manchester United's form winning everything in sight.

In defiance of the football authorities Man Utd took their first strides into European football, and it was in lands afar that story came to a shuddering halt. The aeroplane carrying the team back from a fanatsttic victory in Yugolsavia (Now Serbia) crashed on an icy Munich runway and the Busby Babes ceased to be.

Munich Air Disaster - The Last Game
The young Manchester United team flew out to Belgrade with the buzz of a magnificant Division One Victory clear in their memories. Just five days before the Munich air crash United took on Arsenal at Highbury in front of a vivrant crwod of 65,000 fans and astonished al that were lucky enough to be there, with a blend of swashbuckling football, for which they were we renowned.

Such was the confidence that oozed through the Busby Babes' veins they though nothing of conceding four goals in an effort to score five and that's just what transpired, United's last game on English soil ended in a 5-4 victory for the Babes. With David Pegg, Jackie Blanchflower and Liam Whelan being rested by Busby the team that faced Arsenal that night read:

Harry Gregg, Bill Foulkes, Roger Byrne (Cap), Eddie Colman, Mark Jones, Ken Morgans, Bobby Charlton, Tommy Taylor, Dennis Viollet, Albert Scanlon.

With only 10 minutes of the game played the ball was fed to Duncan Edwards who unleashed a trademark thunderbolt from range that fizzed past Jack Kelsey in the Arsenal goal into the back of the net. Buoyed by the large crowd Arsenal went on the attack and produced a fantastic save out of United keeper Harry Gregg. Somehow not only saving what seemd like a certain goal he actually held onto the ball and with this hset United off on the attack. He threw the ball to Albert Scanlon on the wing who ran nearly the full length of it before putting in a superb cross which Bobby Charlton smashed past Kelsey.

By half time the scorline read Arsenal 0 Manchester United 3 when Albert Scanlon and Kenny Morgans combined to set up Tommy Taylor for his 20th goal if the season. United were in what seemed like an unassailable lead, but the deficit was reduced on 60 minutes by future United player David Herd who's powerful shot proved too hot for Harrry Gregg to handle. Just two minutes later the score was 3-3, sensationally Arsenal had scored three goals in two minutes, with their second coming through a scrambled effort by Jimmy Bloomfield and third from the same player via a magnificant diving header.

Ironically nobody in the stadium that day knew they were witnessing the last ever demonstartion of the flair, cutting edge and verve of a team,which had taken English and European football apart during the mid-fifties. The new style of football that the Busby Babes played was refreshing to say the least. Having been pegged back to 3-3 most teams would have crumbled or shut up shop and settled for a point, but a defiant United team went out-all-attack to score more goals.

Scanlon's wing wizardry and the guile of Bobby Charlton set up Dennis Viollet to make it 4-3. A few minutes later Manchester United had their fifth when superb inter-play between Eddie Colman and Kenny Morgans set up Tommy Taylor for his 132nd and last ever goal for United. There was time for one more goal which was scored by Derek Tapscott who cut through the exhausted United defence to complete the scoring in a 5-4 scoreline.

Munich Air Disaster - The European Cup Trip
After a game that epitomised what the Busby Babes were all about, the attention quickly switched to Europe and the question could United hang on to the slight 2-1 lead they were taking into the cauldron atmosphere of Red Star Belgrade's JNA Stadion?

The match had barely kicked off before United had the ball in the back of the net. Dennis Viollet cooly slotted the ball past Red Star goalkeeper Beara after capitalising on a goalmouth scramble. 15 minutes later Charlton had the ball in the net again, but this was disallowed for offside. However the indomitable Charlton would not the denied. On the the half an hour mark he robbed Bora Kostic in the middle of the park before smashing the ball past - whom was regarded at the time, the bets goalkeeper in Europe - Vladimir Beara in the Red Star Blegrade goal. Just two minutes later Charlton got his second of the game and United's third when a scuffed shot by Duncan Edwards fell to the feet of The Reds number nine (Charlton) who finished with style. With United leading 5-1 on aggregate the tie seemed as good as over, but a superb fight back by the home side through strikes by Bora Kostic (2) and Lazar Tasic set up thrilling finale, but the Busby Babes held on fo a famous victory to book a semi-final tie against A.C. Milan.

Munich Air Disaster - The Crash
The atmosphere on board the plane was relaxed as the players landed in Munich. They had been chatting, playing cards and catching up on news back in England. Although there was some trepedation about the flight the players passed the time the best they could.

AT 2pm the flight was ready to take-off for Manchester and the flight control tower was told that the plane was "rolling", however just forty seconds later the brakes were put on and the flight's initial take-off was abandoned, due to a loss of pressure.

Three minutes later at 2.34pm the flight control tower gave permission for a second take-off attempt to be undertaken, however the plane came to a grinding halt once more. After the second failed take-off attempt the players and other passengers disemabarked the doomed Elizbethan once more. After settling back in the departures lounge the passengers were asked to board again just fifteen minutes later.

Worried about the flight, some of the players moved to back of the plane citing that they thought it was the safest place to be Mark Jones, Duncan Edwards, Tommy Taylor, Eddie Colman, David Pegg and ex-Manchester City goalkeeper Frank Swift were all took up their seats there.

At 3.03 the plane was ready to 'roll' again, as the aircraft hurtled down the slush filled runway at a rate 135 mph it lost some accelration and failed to reach the necessary take-off speed. The Elizabethan left the runway, smashed through a fence, crossed a road before the wing left wing crashed into an unoccupied farmhouse. Part of the wing and the tail were torn clean off. The cockpit struck a tree and the right side of the fuselage hit a wooden garage containing a truck filled with tyres and fuel, which inevitably exploded. The plane was now lying in a snowy field split completely in two by the sheer ferocity of the crash.

After the crashed dazed and confused Bill Foulkes and Harry Gregg, who helped pull survivors from the wreakage. Not long after the realisation began to set in for those who had survived the carnage that the Busby Babes were no longer:

Roger Byrne, Geoff Bent, Mark Jones, Eddie Colman, Tommy Taylor, Liam Whelan, David Pegg were instantly killed along with club secretary Walter Crickmer and coaches Tom Curry and Burt Whalley (who was sitting next to Matt Busby).

The great Duncan Edwards, the gifted Johnny Berry and manager Matt Busby were critically injured and left fighting for their lives.

Of the nine sportswriters on board the doomed Elizabethan only one survived, the dead being Alf Clarke, Don Davies, George Follows, Tom Jackson, Archie Ledbrooke, Henry Rose, Frank Swift and Eric Thompson.

One flight attendant, the travel agent who arranged the trip and two other passenger also perished.

Out of the nine players who survived Jackie Blanchflower and Johhny Berry would never play the game again and Duncan Edwards sadly succombed to his injuries and died in his sleep two weeks after the Munich air disaster.

From the Munich air disaster, to the history of Manchester United
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