--- title: "That time an Army Air Corps bomber crashed into the Empire State Building" description: "In 1945, an Air Corps bomber couldn't see the top of the Empire State building in a layer of dense fog and crashed, killing 14." date: "2022-05-29" modified: "2022-05-29" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/watch/that-time-an-army-air-corps-bomber-crashed-into-the-empire-state-building/" categories: - "Aircraft" - "History" - "Tactical" - "War History" - "World War II" --- # That time an Army Air Corps bomber crashed into the Empire State Building ![]() Decades before the terror attacks of 2001 struck New York City, another, very different plane crashed into the Empire State Building, arguably one of New York City's — America's —most iconic buildings. It was July 1945, and it wasn't terrorism or even an attack from the Japanese Empire (with which America was still at war). --- It was a [simple wrong turn from a U.S. military B-25 bomber](). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCK46GyDOq0 The aircraft flight plan indicated the plane was coming from Massachusetts and would land at La Guardia. Instead the pilot decided to land in Newark but got lost in the heavy fog while flying over Manhattan. Believing he was on the West Side of the island, he flew to the right instead of the left when he went around the Chrysler Building. That was his fatal error. [According to a 1995 story in the New York Times](), Lt. Col. William F. Smith Jr. heard from the tower at La Guardia airport that the top of the Empire State Building wasn't visible in the fog. Minutes later, he hit the iconic skyscraper between its 78th and 79th floors at 200 miles per hour. The crash blew an 18-by-20-foot hole 913 feet above 34th Street. It's [tail section was stuck]() in the hole in the building. ![empire state building]() *The aftermath of a B-25 Bomber that crashed into the Empire State Building in 1945.* Luckily, the bomber was an unarmed trainer aircraft with no bombs on board. The explosions that rocked the area came from the B-25's fuel tanks exploding. "It was as if a bomb went off," said harpsichordist Albert Fuller, who was shopping across from the Empire State Building that day. "The floor moved. I looked at the clerk and said, 'Isn't that strange?' And I thought it couldn't be an earthquake." ![empire state building]() Fourteen people died, all told; the three bomber crewmembers and 11 people working in the building that day. ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()