THE darkest day in Greater Manchester's history was marked in the city and in Munich today.

More than a thousand United fans were making a pilgrimage to Germany today - the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster.

They were expected to join a solemn tribute at the site where the plane crash all but wiped out the country's most promising football team in a generation.

Prince William and the Prime Minister Gordon Brown today led tributes to the 23 people who lost their lives when the United squad's flight came to grief. Mr Brown described it as a "tragedy which transcends the generations" while the prince spoke of a "heartbreaking day for English football."

The disaster was also remembered at events across Greater Manchester.

Surviving Busby Babes, including Sir Bobby Charlton, Arthur Scanlon, Harry Gregg, and Ken Morgans were expected at a memorial service at Old Trafford where a statue of Sir Matt stands.

They were being joined by manager Sir Alex Ferguson, senior players and other club bosses as well as joint chairmen Joel and Avram Glazer, long-standing club staff and a number of season-ticket fans who took part in a ballot to participate.

Rosemary Cheverton, an air stewardess who survived the crash has travelled from America to be at the service which will be conducted by club chaplain, the Rev John Boyers.

Other events included a service at Manchester Cathedral and a separate memorial for residents at Duncan Edwards Court - named after the gifted crash victim - in Newton Heath. The housing estate was built in 1983 on the site acknowledged as the birth place of the club, with the streets named in honour of the players who lost their lives in the crash.

This morning dedicated fans flew to Munich to hold a memorial service at the exact spot where the plane returning the squad home from a European Cup game at Red Star Belgrade crashed.

The event was organised by the Independent Manchester United Supporters' Association (IMUSA) and was being attended by a number of local dignitaries, including the Mayor of Munich Christian Ude.

IMUSA spokesman Colin Hendrie said: "Most people travelled on the day itself to remember the dead and to spend some time in silent reflection at the crash site."

A priest from the local English-speaking Catholic Church was leading the service in the village of Trudering with flowers laid at a memorial plaque. The airport closed in 1992 and the site was redeveloped as a convention centre, although a number of structures including the original terminal building and a section of runway still remain.

The tragedy has also been remembered by Germans in the days running up to the anniversary. Munich's daily TZ paper this week carried a four-page supplement marking the crash.

Paul Daly, manager of Kilian's Irish bar in the Bavarian capital, told the MEN fans were already flocking to the city.

He said: "There has been a lot of local coverage about the crash. There are people who remember it happening and remember the reaction at the time.

"We've been told that people arrived as early as Monday and there have a few people milling around the town centre. We are the home of the city's United supporters club and our staff will be wearing strips on the day."

The accident claimed the life of eight players, three members of club staff, eight journalists who were travelling with the squad, and four members of crew and other staff.

The BEA Airspeed Ambassador plane, named the Lord Burghley, failed to take off in heavy snow after refuelling in Munich and crashed into a fence and unoccupied house at the end of the runway. Of the 44 people on board, only 21 eventually survived.

The event was a devastating blow to the pioneering young side created by Sir Matt Busby. But the manager, who survived after German doctors battled to save his life, went on to rebuild the team and win further European glory a decade later.

Club bosses have spent more than a year considering a range of activities to mark the anniversary - one of the largest commemoration events ever staged by United. The centrepiece of their plans is for a vast mural to be created in the corridor which runs from their south stand entrance to the railway.

The design, which will be renamed the Munich Tunnel, will feature a series of giant glass panels telling the story of the Busy Babes, the air crash, and the re-birth of the team during their 1968 European Cup triumph against Benfica in Wembley.

Ceremonies were also taking place in the home towns of several of the players involved, with tributes being staged in Ashington, birthplace of Bobby Charlton, Liam Whelan's home of Dublin, and the Midland's town of Dudley where Duncan Edward was born.

Even United fans living as far away as Malta will hold a memorial service in the town of Msida.

On Sunday, when a derby match against City at Old Trafford takes place. the United team will wear a unique tribute strip, designed in homage to the kit worn by United on the eve of the disaster. The kit will feature no sponsorship logos and is numbered simply from one to 11, which aims to recreate the simple kit worn by United in Belgrade against Red Star on the eve of the Munich crash.

A replica programme of the 1958 FA Cup tie against Sheffield Wednesday, the first game played by the devastated United squad, will be placed on every one of the 76,000 seats during the derby match.

Officials for both clubs, including City boss Sven Goran-Erikson, have pleaded for respect from all supporters when a minute of silence is observed before kick-off.

A minute of silence will be held at Wembley tonight, when England play Switzerland in the first match since Fabio Capello's appointment as manager. The home team will also wear black armbands during the game.

The M.E.N has published a 48 page special to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the air disaster. It is on sale now