Churchill's Plane Struck By Lightning In 1943

[Weather-history]

Churchill and General Marshall, the US General Chief of Staff were en route from Newfoundland to Algiers via Gibraltar to meet General Eisenhower at Algiers for a conference for the next stage of operations against the Axis forces after the successful campaign in North Africa.

As the Boeing flying boat was crossing the Atlantic on the 27th of May 1943, it was struck by lightning. Here is Churchill's account

The large double bed in the bridal suite of the Boeing was most comfortable and I slept sound for a good many hours. All at once there was a sudden shock and bump. I awoke. Something had happened. There were no consequences, which after all are what is important in air journeys. Nevertheless, being thoroughly awake, I put on my zip suit and went forward down the long central gallery of spacious machine, and climbed the staircase to the navigational controls. I sat in the co-pilot's seat. It was by now a lovely moonlight night. After a while I asked the pilot what caused the bump. "We were struck by lightning", he said, "but there's nothing wrong" This was good news. We had not caught fire or broken up in the air; there was no need to make a force landing a thousand miles from anywhere. I had always wondered why aircraft did not mind being struck by lightning. To a groundsman it would seem quite a dangerous thing. Afterwards I learned that there had been a good deal of anxiety.

Winston S. Churchill, The Second World War, volume 4, London 1951, page 727