1951 – Libya becomes independent, with Idris I as king.
1953 – Tangiwai Disaster: After a volcanic eruption (of Mt. Ruapehu) on New Zealand's North Island, a train plunges into the Whangeahu river following a bridge collapse caused by the eruption, killing 153 people.
1971 - A Lockheed L-188 Electra crashes in the Peruvianrainforest, killing 91 people. The only survivor is then-17-year-old German Juliane Koepcke, who lost both her parents in the crash.
2013 - Queen Elizabeth II issues an official pardon to the mathematician Alan Turing (who had died in 1954). Turing was convicted of homosexuality at a time when it was illegal in the UK.