Today in News History

On July 11, several notable moments in the history of News stand out. In 1832, Charilaos Trikoupis, Greek lawyer and politician, 55th Prime Minister of Greece (died 1896) was born. In 1916, Alexander Prokhorov, Australian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2002) was born. In 1934, Engelbert Zaschka of Germany flies his large human-powered aircraft, the Zaschka Human-Power Aircraft, about 20 meters at Berlin Tempelhof Airport without assisted take-off. In 1973, Varig Flight 820 crashes near Paris on approach to Orly Airport, killing 123 of the 134 on board. In response, the FAA bans smoking in airplane lavatories. In 1973, Konstantinos Kenteris, Greek runner was born. In 1978, Los Alfaques disaster: A truck carrying liquid gas crashes and explodes at a coastal campsite in Tarragona, Spain killing 216 tourists. In 1991, Nigeria Airways Flight 2120 crashes in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, killing all 261 passengers and crew on board. In 1994, Lucas Ocampos, Argentinian footballer was born. In 2003, Zahra Kazemi, Iranian-Canadian freelance photographer (born 1948) passed away. In 2011, Ninety-eight containers of explosives self-detonate killing 13 people in Zygi, Cyprus. Together, these milestones provide historical context for today's news news and ongoing narratives.