The American bomber had been hit during an air raid near Graz in Austria but crashed in the Slovenian region of Dry Carniola.

All ten members of the crew survived the accident since they jumped from the plane in time. An event, which quite a few Slovenians know nothing about, has connected this part of Slovenia and the United States in an interesting way.

"We were planting potatoes when the plane appeared, it made a turn by the church. My mother yelled that we must lie down on the ground, and then the plane just circled over the village and nose-dived toward the ground," describes villager Julka Vidmar.

Pilot wrote a book
Locals from Dry Carniola as well as Partisans helped American fliers to return to their base in Italy. This historically little known event with a happy ending has resurfaced after 72 years.

The municipality of Žužemberk has decided to honour the event by setting up a memorial plaque for the American airmen. "To commemorate peace and friendship between the two nations. Essentially this is a permanent monument for our descendents and a memory of this lucky event during the second world war," explains the initiator of the plaque Slavko Mirtič.

The ceremony has attracted numerous visitors. In her address to the crowd, Defence Minister Andreja Katič emphasized that memories also provide an opportunity for learning from them.

The pilot of the aircraft, Edward Logan, is still alive and has watched in Saturday's ceremony online. He described the accident - which took place on 9 March 1945 - in a book, reports Jože Žura for Radio Slovenija.

T. H., Petra Držaj/TV Slovenija; photo: Jože Žura/Radio Slovenija; translated by K. Z.