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At around 9:40 am on Saturday 28th July 1945, a USAF B-25 Mitchell bomber flew directly into the 79th floor of the Empire State Building. 1/11 #History
The pilot, Lieutenant Colonel William F. Smith Jr., was transporting personnel to Newark Metropolitan Airport in New Jersey in thick fog. 2/11 #History
Asking for clearance to land, he was told of zero visibility. Pressing on regardless, Smith - using heavily obscured landmarks for navigation - mistakenly turned right at the Chrysler Building when he should have manouevred the plane left. 3/11 #History
In a maze of unfamiliar rooftops, the B-25 crashed through the offices of the National Catholic Welfare Council and the War Relief Society. 4/11 #History
The impact was so powerful that one of the engines, after tearing through office workers and an elevator shaft, shot out of the south side of the building and ended up a block away on the - now burning - roof of 10 West and 33rd St. 5/11 #History
From the Empire State Building's observation deck, Army Lt. Allen Aiman watched in shock as the plane barrelled towards him:
"I saw this plane, and it looked like it was coming right at me, and the ceiling was zero... I couldn't believe my eyes." (Jamieson) 6/11
"I saw this plane, and it looked like it was coming right at me, and the ceiling was zero... I couldn't believe my eyes." (Jamieson) 6/11
Fourteen people died, including eleven office workers - many of whom were instantly mummified in place due to the high-intensity engine fuel that incinerated the crash site. 7/11 #History
Bett Lou Oliver was blown out of an elevator. She was treated by first aid workers who placed her in another elevator to take her to the ground floor and safety... 8/11 #History
...but the elevator's cables had been damaged in the crash and snapped. She fell, along with the elevator, 75 floors. Despite broken bones, Betty Lou holds the record for surviving the highest elevator fall. 9/11 #History
The pilot, Lieutenant Colonel William F. Smith Jr, was blamed for the crash. Pilot error was the verdict. 'Luckily' the Empire State Building was "...largely unoccupied and considered a boondoggle of Depression-era optimism..." (Jamieson). 10/11 #History
