What Happened in May?

Lauda Air Flight 004, a Boeing 767-300ER crashed, on May 26, 1991, in Thailand, following an un-commanded deployment of the thrust reverser on the No. 1 engine during the climb phase, causing the aircraft to enter an uncontrolled dive, and in-flight breakup.  Expand +

Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, falls to the forces of the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) on May 28, 1991, marking the end of the 17 year rule of the Derg regime, a Marxist military junta that had ruled Ethiopia since 1974.  Expand +

Former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev gives a symbolic speech about the Cold War, on May 6, 1992, at Westminster College in Fulton Missouri; the same site of Winston Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech 46 years earlier. More

The English Channel Tunnel, or “Chunnel,” built under the English Channel is officially opened on May 6, 1994, by Queen Elizabeth II and French president, François Mitterrand. The Chunnel is 31 miles long, 23 of them underwater at an average depth of 150 feet below the sea bed, making it the world’s longest undersea tunnel. The Chunnel cuts travel time between England and France to 35 minutes. More

Nelson Mandela becomes the first Black African president of democratic South Africa, on May 10, 1994, following the country's first fully democratic, multiracial election. He led a Government of National Unity, after 27 years of imprisonment, fostering reconciliation and dismantling the apartheid system. More

Four  men, Mohammed Salameh, Nidal Ayyad, Mahmud Abouhalima, and Ahmad Ajaj, are convicted on May 24, 1994, for the February 26, 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center. Each was sentenced to 240 years in prison. The terrorist attack, involved detonating a truck bomb in the parking garage of the North Tower, killing six people and injuring over 1,000. More

More than 170 countries agree on May 11, 1995, to extend the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) indefinitely and without conditions to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons. A total of 191 States have now joined the Treaty, including the five nuclear-weapon States More

“Megan's Law" is signed into law, on May 17, 1996, by U.S. President Bill Clinton requiring that law-enforcement officials notify local schools, day-care centers, and residents of the presence of registered sex offenders in their communities. Expand +

Chess Master, Garry Kasparov became the first Chess World Champion to be defeated by a computer on May 11, 1997, in a six-game match tournament, played under standard time controls against the IBM supercomputer Deep Blue. Expand +

Zaire's President Mobutu Sese Seko flees the country on May 16, 1997, ending his 32-year rule and leading to the rise of Laurent Kabila, who declared himself declaring himself head of state and immediately changed the country's name from Zaire back to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).  Expand +

Steve Jobs introduces Apple's first iMac, a personal computer on May 6, 1998. The iMac G3 was a redesigned, consumer-focused computer that was both innovative and easy to use. Its distinctive design and ease of internet access made it a popular choice. It went on to became hugely successful and helped revive the struggling company.

Pakistan detonates its first nuclear device, on May 28, 1998, at the Ros Koh Hills in the province of Balochistan, becoming the seventh country to publicly test nuclear weapons. More

The Space Shuttle Discovery becomes the first Space Shuttle to Dock with the International Space Station, on May 29, 1999, marking a crucial step in assembling the orbiting laboratory. More

A BAC One-Eleven 525FT operated by EAS Airlines as Flight 4226 as a scheduled domestic passenger flight from Kano to Lagos, Nigeria, crashed on may 4, 2002, into Gwammaja Quarters, a densely populated residential area, resulting in the death of 103 people. 69 passengers, a crew of 7 and at least an additional 30 civilians on the ground. The accident was attributed to pilot error. 

Robert Hanssen, an FBI agent who was convicted of spying for the Russian government is sentenced on May 10, 2002, to life in prison without parole. Hanssen died in prison on June 2023, at the age of 79. More

United States President George W. Bush declared the end of major combat operations in Iraq, on May 1, 2003 roughly six weeks after the invasion began on March 20, 2003 and after the swift collapse of Saddam Hussein’s Ba'athist government. President Bush delivered the speech aboard the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, with a banner behind him prominently featuring the phrase "Mission Accomplished." Expand +

The EU's largest enlargement in its history takes place as, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, along with the island of Malta and the Greek portion of the island of Cyprus joined the European Union (EU). This expansion unified Europe after decades of division and strengthened the EU politically, economically, and culturally.

A massive immigration reform protest, known as the "Great American Boycott," takes place on May 1, 2006, across the United States following similar large protests on  May 25 and April 11 2006.

Montenegro celebrates its Independence Day annually on May 21st, in commemoration of the day in 2006 when the majority (55.5%) of the citizens of Montenegro, voted to restore sovereignty and peacefully separate from the State Union with Serbia. Montenegro's parliament followed, by declaring the Republic's independence, on June 3, 2006.  Expand +

An 8.0 earthquake occurs on May 12, 2008, in the province of Sichuan, China. The earthquake ruptured the fault for over 150 miles, with surface displacements of several meters. Over 69,000 people lost their lives. Expand +