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Albert Joseph Scanlon (10 October 1935 – 22 December 2009) was an English footballer who played as an outside left. He began his career with Manchester United and was one of the "Busby Babes" who survived the Munich air disaster of 1958. Although he sustained severe injuries, he recovered and continued to play league football for Newcastle United, Lincoln City and Mansfield Town. He then went on to play non-league football until his retirement.
On 5 February 1958, Scanlon started on the left wing in United's European Cup quarter-final second leg away to Red Star Belgrade; for five of the players who started the game, it was to be their last match for the club. The next day, on the return journey to Manchester, the team's plane crashed while attempting to take off from Munich airport, in an incident that later became known as the Munich air disaster. The crash killed 23 of the plane's 44 passengers and crew, and Scanlon suffered a fractured skull, a broken leg and kidney damage. He did not play again that season.
He made a full recovery and was back in action at the start of the following season, going on to appear in every game that season, scoring 16 goals in the process.
In 2006, Scanlon complained about several "inaccuracies" in an episode of Surviving Disaster focussing on the Munich air disaster, despite being consulted by the production company.
On 13 May 2007, Scanlon presented the Premier League trophy to Manchester United along with former teammate Bill Foulkes.
He attended United's victorious Champions League final appearance in May 2008 in Moscow, being flown to the game in Russia on a private jet hired by United, along with fellow Munich survivors Bobby Charlton and Harry Gregg. Bill Foulkes, the other remaining survivor, attended the game as well.
Scanlon was admitted to the Salford Royal Hospital with kidney problems and pneumonia on 21 October 2009. He was in intensive care for more than a month, and died on 22 December 2009, aged 74. His funeral was held on 13 January 2010, and more than 300 people attended the service at All Souls' Church in Weaste, including fellow Munich survivors Bobby Charlton, Harry Gregg and Bill Foulkes, and former Manchester United players Denis Law and Nobby Stiles.
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