1983 ⟶ Soviet Downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007
September 1: Korean Air Lines Flight 007, a scheduled flight...
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✈️ U-2 Spy Plane Shot Down Over Soviet Territory
May 1: 1960 U-2 incident sparks deterioration in relations between superpowers.⟶
Cold WarEspionageSoviet UnionDiplomacyIntelligenceArms RaceInternational RelationsKhrushchev
Soviet Union
United States☢️ Cuban Missile Crisis: Brink of Nuclear War
October 16 – 29: The Cuban Missile Crisis nearly causes nuclear war.⟶
Cold WarNuclear WeaponsCuban RevolutionSoviet UnionJohn F. KennedyNikita KhrushchevProxy WarInternational RelationsGeopolitics
United States
CubaSoviet Union✈️ Soviet Downing of Korean Air Lines Flight 007
September 1: Korean Air Lines Flight 007, a scheduled flight from New York City to Seoul via Anchorage, Alaska, is shot down by a Soviet Su-15 interceptor, resulting in 269 fatalities and no survivors. This leads to the declassification of GPS development.⟶
Cold WarAviation DisasterInternational RelationsSoviet UnionEspionageMilitary Technology
Soviet Union
South KoreaUnited States💥 Space Shuttle Challenger Disaster
January 28: The Space Shuttle Challenger breaks apart 73 seconds into its flight, killing all seven crew members aboard.⟶
Space ExplorationSpace Shuttle ProgramNASATechnological FailureAviationRonald ReaganTragedy
United States✈️ Pan Am Flight 103 Bombing Over Lockerbie
December 21: Pan Am Flight 103 is destroyed by a bomb and falls over Lockerbie, Scotland, killing 259 people on-board, leaving no survivors, and 11 in town.⟶
TerrorismAviation DisasterBombingCold WarInternational RelationsAviation Safety
United KingdomUnited States
Libya