Wikipedia:Main Page history/2020 May 8

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South Lawn of the White House

The 1974 White House helicopter incident occurred when U.S. Army private Robert K. Preston stole a Bell UH-1B Iroquois helicopter (a "Huey") from Tipton Field, Maryland, and, in a major breach of security, landed it on the South Lawn (pictured) of the White House. Preston had enlisted in the Army to become a helicopter pilot, but did not graduate from the helicopter training course. Shortly after midnight on February 17, 1974, he was returning from leave when he took off in a helicopter. Preston flew towards Washington, D.C., where he hovered close to the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument and over the South Lawn of the White House. He then flew back towards Tipton Field, pursued by two police Bell 206 JetRanger helicopters. He returned to Washington, and again hovered over the South Lawn. The Secret Service opened fire; lightly wounded, Preston landed and was arrested. At his court-martial, he was sentenced to one year in prison and fined $2400. (Full article...)

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Hunter/killer team of AH-1 and OH-58 helicopters as tested at Ansbach

... that when the Ansbach Tests pitted attack and scout helicopters (examples pictured) against tanks, the outcome was so lopsided that some claimed the era of the primacy of the tank was over?
... that Northern Dancer was the first Canadian-bred horse to win the Kentucky Derby, setting a new track record of two minutes flat?
... that a documentary and a board game have been made about the New York City Subway's 14th Street Tunnel shutdown?
... that Nepali actress Swastima Khadka holds a three-year diploma in architectural engineering?
... that Muhammad and his followers in Medina originally faced Jerusalem as their direction for prayer?
... that UCLA basketball player Natalie Chou said that the use of a slang term for COVID-19 created "unnecessary xenophobia for people who look like me"?
... that the construction of Gappo Park in Aomori, Japan, led to the death of its designer in 1885?
... that catalog showroom retailer Luria's hired former Cuban diplomats in the 1960s due to their knowledge of china and silverware?

In the news

COVID-19 pandemic

ABS-CBN Broadcasting Center

A gas leak in Andhra Pradesh, India, kills at least eleven people and injures over a thousand others.
Astronomers announce the discovery of the first black hole located in a star system visible to the naked eye.
In the Philippines, the leading television network ABS-CBN (headquarters pictured) is ordered to stop broadcasting by the National Telecommunications Commission.

On this day

May 8: World Red Cross and Red Crescent Day; Pesach Sheni (Judaism, 2020); Miguel Hidalgo's Birthday in Mexico (1753)

Sketch of the Versailles rail accident

1842 – A train derailed and caught fire (depicted) near Paris, killing between 52 and 200 people.
1902 – An eruption of Mount Pelée destroyed the town of Saint-Pierre, Martinique, causing around 30,000 deaths.
1945 – A parade in Sétif, French Algeria, celebrating the end of World War II in Europe became a riot and was followed by a massacre carried out by colonial authorities.
1970 – Construction workers attacked students and others who were protesting the Vietnam War in New York City.

Pope Boniface IV (d. 615)
Harry S. Truman (b. 1884)
Gordon McClymont (b. 1920)

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2014 winner Bernard Parker

The Lesley Manyathela Golden Boot is an annual association football award presented by the Premier Soccer League to the leading goalscorer in the South African Premier Division. The award, colloquially known as the PSL Golden Boot or simply the Golden Boot, has been presented since the inception of the post-apartheid format of the league in 1996. It was named in 2003 in honour of Lesley Manyathela, a South African international footballer and former recipient of the award who died in a motor vehicle collision in August of that year. Wilfred Mugeyi was the first recipient of the award, after he scored 22 goals for Bush Bucks in the inaugural Premier Division season. He is one of only four players to have scored 20 or more goals in a season, alongside Pollen Ndlanya, Collins Mbesuma and Siyabonga Nomvethe. Players from Moroka Swallows and Kaizer Chiefs have won the award the most times, with each club having four unique winners. (Full list...)

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The German Instrument of Surrender was the legal document that effected the termination of the Nazi regime and ended World War II in Europe. A July 1944 draft version had also included the surrender of the German government, but this was changed due to concern that there might be no functional German government that could surrender; instead, the document stated that it could be "superseded by any general instrument of surrender imposed by, or on behalf of the United Nations", which was done the next month.

This photograph shows Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel signing the German Instrument of Surrender in Berlin. The first surrender document was signed on 7 May 1945 in Reims by General Alfred Jodl, but this version was not recognized by the Soviet High Command and a revised version was required. Prepared in three languages on 8 May, it was not ready for signing in Berlin until after midnight; consequently, the physical signing was delayed until nearly 1:00 a.m. on 9 May, and backdated to 8 May to be consistent with the Reims agreement and public announcements of the surrender already made by Western leaders.

Photograph credit: Lt. Moore; restored by Adam Cuerden

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