TODAY IN HISTORY

In 1946, a plane crashed into the 58th floor of the Empire State Building in New York.

In 1948, Canadian war ace Buzz Beurling was killed when his plane crashed during a flight to Rome. Beurling was one of Canada’s greatest flying aces, shooting down 31 enemy aircraft while serving with the Royal Air Force and Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. He had been hoping to build a second career flying fighter planes for Israel when he was killed.

In 1969, U.S. and South Vietnamese forces captured Ap Bia Mountain, referred to as “Hamburger Hill” by the Americans, following one of the bloodiest battles of the Vietnam War.

In 1971, Francis Simard was sentenced to life imprisonment for the 1970 murder of Quebec Labour Minister Pierre Laporte.

In 1972, Richard Nixon became the first U.S. president to visit the Soviet Union.

In 1979, the Winnipeg Jets won the last World Hockey Association championship, beating the visiting Edmonton Oilers 7-3 to take the series in six games. The final WHA goal was scored by Edmonton’s Dave Semenko with 12 seconds left. The Jets, Oilers, Quebec Nordiques and New England Whalers joined the NHL the following season.

In 1991, the Soviet parliament approved a landmark bill that would allow its citizens to travel abroad and emigrate freely for the first time in more than 60 years.