1943 83 years ago Historical Events June 1 6 sources

BOAC Flight 777 is shot down over the Bay of Biscay by German Junkers Ju 88s, killing British actor Leslie Howard and leading to speculation that it was actually an attempt to kill British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

On June 1, in the year 1943, BOAC Flight 777 is shot down over the Bay of Biscay by German Junkers Ju 88s, killing British actor Leslie Howard and leading to speculation that it was actually an attempt to kill British Prime Minister Winston Churchill. This event is recorded as a Historical Events event in the history of June 1, one of 430 recorded events on this date across all of history.

BOAC Flight 777 was a KLM flight scheduled as a British Overseas Airways Corporation civilian airline flight from Portela Airport in Lisbon, Portugal to Whitchurch Airport near Bristol, England. On 1 June 1943, the Douglas DC-3 serving the flight was attacked by eight German Junkers Ju 88 bombers and crashed into the Bay of Biscay, killing all 17 on board. There were several notable passengers, among them actor Leslie Howard.

Key Facts

  • This event took place on June 1, 1943 (AD era).
  • It is categorised as a Historical Events event in recorded history.
  • Referenced in 6 Wikipedia articles.
  • The event is associated with a specific geographical location (see map below).
  • Wikipedia source last updated on 2 May 2026.

On This Date in History 430

Type Year Date Event
Notable Deaths 2025 Jun 1 Jonathan Joss, American actor (born 1965)
Notable Deaths 2024 Jun 1 Tin Oo, Burmese general and politician (born 1927)
Notable Deaths 2019 Jun 1 Ani Yudhoyono, Indonesian politician, 6th First Lady of Indonesia
Selected Events 2018 Jun 1 For the first time since its transition to democracy, the Congress of Deputies in Spain passed a motion of no confidence
Historical Events 2015 Jun 1 A ship carrying 458 people capsizes in the Yangtze river in China's Hubei province, killing 442 people
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 1 Charles Kennedy, Scottish journalist and politician (born 1959)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 1 Joan Kirner, Australian educator and politician, 42nd Premier of Victoria (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 1 Nicholas Liverpool, Dominican lawyer and politician, 6th President of Dominica (born 1934)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 1 Jacques Parizeau, Canadian economist and politician, 26th Premier of Quebec (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2015 Jun 1 Jean Ritchie, American singer-songwriter (born 1922)
Selected Events 2015 Jun 1 The river cruise ship Dongfang zhi Xing capsized in the Yangtze, resulting in 442 deaths in China's worst peacetime mari
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 1 Ann B
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 1 Valentin Mankin, Ukrainian sailor (born 1938)
Notable Deaths 2014 Jun 1 Timofei Moșneaga, Moldovan physician and politician, Moldovan Minister of Health (born 1932)
Notable Deaths 2013 Jun 1 James Kelleher, Canadian lawyer and politician, 33rd Solicitor General of Canada (born 1930)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 1 Faruq Z
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 1 Pádraig Faulkner, Irish educator and politician, 19th Irish Minister of Defence (born 1918)
Notable Deaths 2012 Jun 1 Milan Gaľa, Slovak politician (born 1953)
Historical Events 2011 Jun 1 A rare tornado outbreak occurs in New England; a strong EF3 tornado strikes Springfield, Massachusetts, during the event
Historical Events 2011 Jun 1 Space Shuttle Endeavour makes its final landing after 25 flights
Notable Deaths 2011 Jun 1 Haleh Sahabi, Iranian humanitarian and activist (born 1957)
Notable Deaths 2010 Jun 1 Kazuo Ohno, Japanese dancer (born 1906)
Notable Deaths 2010 Jun 1 Andrei Voznesensky, Russian poet (born 1933)
Historical Events 2009 Jun 1 Air France Flight 447 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Brazil on a flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris
Historical Events 2009 Jun 1 General Motors files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
Notable Deaths 2009 Jun 1 Vincent O'Brien, Irish horse trainer (born 1917)
Historical Events 2008 Jun 1 A fire on the back lot of Universal Studios breaks out, destroying the attraction King Kong Encounter and a large archiv
Notable Deaths 2008 Jun 1 Tommy Lapid, Israeli journalist and politician, 17th Justice Minister of Israel (born 1931)
Notable Deaths 2008 Jun 1 Yves Saint Laurent, French fashion designer, founded Saint Laurent Paris (born 1936)
Selected Events 2008 Jun 1 A fire on the back lot of Universal Studios Hollywood destroyed the King Kong Encounter and a large archive of music and
Historical Events 2007 Jun 1 Cyclone Gonu develops from an area of convection in the Arabian Sea, becoming the worst recorded natural disaster in Oma
Notable Deaths 2007 Jun 1 Tony Thompson, American singer and songwriter (born 1975)
Notable Deaths 2005 Jun 1 Hilda Crosby Standish, American physician (born 1902)
Notable Deaths 2005 Jun 1 George Mikan, American basketball player and coach (born 1924)
Historical Events 2004 Jun 1 Oklahoma City bombing co-conspirator Terry Nichols is sentenced to 161 consecutive life terms without the possibility of
Notable Deaths 2004 Jun 1 William Manchester, American historian and author (born 1922)
Notable Deaths 2002 Jun 1 Hansie Cronje, South African cricketer (born 1969)
Historical Events 2001 Jun 1 Nepalese royal massacre: Crown Prince Dipendra of Nepal shoots and kills several members of his family including his fat
Historical Events 2001 Jun 1 Dolphinarium discotheque massacre: A Hamas suicide bomber kills 21 at a disco in Tel Aviv
Notable Deaths 2001 Jun 1 Hank Ketcham, American cartoonist, created Dennis the Menace (born 1920)
Notable Deaths 2001 Jun 1 notable victims of the Nepalese royal massacre
Selected Events 2001 Jun 1 A Hamas-affiliated Islamist militant blew himself up outside a nightclub in Tel Aviv, Israel, killing 21 people, most of
Notable Deaths 2000 Jun 1 Tito Puente, American drummer, composer, and producer (born 1923)
Historical Events 1999 Jun 1 American Airlines Flight 1420 slides and crashes while landing at Little Rock National Airport, killing 11 people on a f
Notable Births 1999 Jun 1 Technoblade, American YouTuber and streamer (died 2022)
Notable Births 1999 Jun 1 Dmytro Udovychenko, Ukrainian violinist
Notable Deaths 1999 Jun 1 Christopher Cockerell, English engineer, invented the hovercraft (born 1910)
Selected Events 1999 Jun 1 On landing at Little Rock National Airport in the U
Notable Births 1996 Jun 1 Edvinas Gertmonas, Lithuanian footballer
Notable Births 1996 Jun 1 Tom Holland, English actor

This article draws on content from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

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