Manchester's Finest: How the Munich air disaster broke the heart of a great city

How the Munich air disaster broke the heart of a great city

On 6 February 1958, British European Airways flight 609 crashed in a blizzard on its third attempt to take off from an icy runaway in Munich. On board were the Manchester United football team, returning from their 3-3 draw against Red Star Belgrade, as well as a number of journalists and other passengers. Twenty-three of the forty-four passengers and crew aboard died. News of the disaster sent shockwaves around the world. For people who lived in Manchester at the time and for football fans throughout Britain it was one of those moments, like Kennedy's assassination, when everybody remembers exactly where they were and how they heard the terrible news.

Manchester United, nicknamed the Busby Babes after their manager, Matt Busby, who had created the world-beating side, were the leading team of the day. Seven of their players were killed instantly in the crash - Geoff Bent, Roger Byrne, Eddie Colman, Mark Jones,...