On August 23, 1944, an American B-24 test flight crashed into Holy Trinity School in Freckleton, Lancashire, killing 61 people, including 38 children aged 4 to 6. Contemporary accounts and historical summaries identify it as the worst civilian aviation accident associated with the Second World War.
True
In 1944, an American airplane crashed into an English school, killing almost all of the village’s youngest children in what was the worst civilian aviation accident of World War II.
Aviation Personnel Fatalities in World War II
Source: history.navy.mil
At a glance
Verified August 21, 2026Key Evidence
The crash killed 61 people, including 38 schoolchildren between the ages of 4 and 6, along with teachers and other civilians and service personnel.
The reporting
What the Evidence Shows
The incident described was the Freckleton air disaster in Lancashire, northwest England. On August 23, 1944, an American B-24 Liberator on a test flight crashed into the village during a severe storm. The impact destroyed part of Holy Trinity School and nearby houses.smithsonianmag.comsmithsonianmag.comWhen an American Airplane Crashed Into a School in 1944, an English Village Lost...
controltowers.co.ukcontroltowers.co.ukFreckleton Air Disaster: The Devastation of a Lancashire Village+2 more
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