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A US Army Air Corps B-24 Liberator, known as Lady Jane, crashed in Norwich, England on November 13, 1944. The aircraft was returning from a bombing mission when it encountered mechanical issues. Weather conditions that night were poor with clouds and low visibility reported near the airfield.
Lt. William Duffy piloted the plane back to its base at Hethel, Norfolk under deteriorating weather conditions. As they flew over Norwich at a low altitude, the crew failed to see St. Philip's Church steeple. The right wing and horizontal stabilizer struck the church and detached from the aircraft. Witnesses observed the plane flying about 1,000 yards before it banked sharply and crashed into the old Corporation Depot.
The crash resulted in the deaths of nine out of ten crew members and one civilian on the ground. Derek James from EDP24 described how "the aircraft struck houses and then exploded, creating a scene of devastation."
