Екінші дүниежүзілік соғыста жоғалған «Lady Be Good» ұшағының құлаған жері Ливияда табылғанда

Aircraft that disappeared during WWII, wreckage later found in the Libyan desert

Lady Be Good is a B 24D Liberator bomber that disappeared without a trace on its first combat mission during World War II. The plane, which was from 376th Bomb Group of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF), was believed to have been lost—with its nine man crew—in the Mediterranean Sea while returning to its base in Libya following a bombing raid on Naples on April 4, 1943. However, the wreck was accidentally discovered inland in the Libyan Desert by an oil exploration team from British Petroleum on November 9, 1958. A ground party in March 1959 later identified the aircraft as a B 24D. Investigations concluded that the first time (all new) crew failed to realize they had overflown their air base in a sandstorm. After continuing to fly south into the desert for many hours, the crew bailed out when the plane's fuel was exhausted. The survivors then died in the desert trying to walk to safety. All but one of the crew's remains were recovered between February and August 1960. Parts from Lady Be Good were salvaged for use in other aircraft following its rediscovery, while the majority of the wreckage of the aircraft was taken to a Libyan Air Force base for safekeeping after being removed from the crash site in August 1994.

In 1943, Lady Be Good was a new B 24D Liberator bomber that had just been assigned to the 514th Bomb Squadron of the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) on March 25. The squadron was part of the 376th Bombardment Group (Heavy) based at Soluch Field in Soluch in Libya. The plane, which had the AAF serial number 41 24301, had the group identification number 64 stencil painted on its nose. Its given name, Lady Be Good, was hand painted on the starboard, front side of the forward fuselage. Lady Be Goods crew were also new, as they had only arrived in Libya a week before on March 18. On April 4 they flew their first mission together, one of twenty five B 24s assigned to bomb the harbor of Naples in a two part late afternoon attack. The first wave of twelve B 24s was followed by a second wave of thirteen planes, including Lady Be Good. After the attack, all planes were expected to return to their bases in North Africa.

After the Lady Be Good was identified, some parts of the plane were returned to the United States for evaluation while the rest of the wreckage remained. In August 1994, the remains of the craft were recovered by a team led by Dr. Fadel Ali Mohamed and taken to a Libyan military base in Tobruk for safekeeping.

A stained glass window was installed in the chapel at Wheelus Air Base to commemorate Lady Be Good and her crew.