LAN-Chile Flight 621 Crashes in Andes, Kills 21, April 3, 1961

Vietnam War: The U.S. Army begins Operation Ranch Hand, spraying an estimated 20 million US gallons (76,000 m3) of defoliants and herbicides over rural areas of South Vietnam in an attempt to deprive the Viet Cong of food and vegetation cover. Date: August 10, 1961 Read more on Wikipedia → 📅 Other events on August 10 📅…

The Angolan War of Independence and the greater Portuguese Colonial War begin. Date: February 4, 1961 Read more on Wikipedia → 📅 Other events on February 4 📅 Events on this day in 1961 📅 On This Day (Today) More events from 1961Freedom Riders Bus Firebombed by White Mob in Alabama, May 14, 1961De Gaulle…

Malcolm Ross and Victor Prather attain a new altitude record for manned balloon flight ascending in the Strato-Lab V open gondola to 113,740 feet (34.67 km). Date: May 4, 1961 Read more on Wikipedia → 📅 Other events on May 4 📅 Events on this day in 1961 📅 On This Day (Today) More events from…

The United States Air Force begins Operation Looking Glass, and over the next 30 years, a "Doomsday Plane" is always in the air, with the capability of taking direct control of the United States' bombers and missiles in the event of the destruction of the SAC's command post. Date: February 3, 1961 Read more on…

Kuwait declares independence from the United Kingdom. Date: June 19, 1961 Read more on Wikipedia → 📅 Other events on June 19 📅 Events on this day in 1961 📅 On This Day (Today) More events from 1961Park Chung Hee Leads South Korea Coup d’État, May 16, 1961Rokotov-Faibishenko Show Trial Begins in Moscow, May 31,…

Project Mercury: Mercury-Redstone 2: The chimpanzee Ham travels into outer space. Date: January 31, 1961 Read more on Wikipedia → 📅 Other events on January 31 📅 Events on this day in 1961 📅 On This Day (Today) More events from 1961SL-1 Nuclear Reactor Steam Explosion Near Idaho Falls, January 3, 1961Alleged 500,000-Year-Old Spark Plug…