February 17 in history — What Happened Today in History

First winter ascent of Mount Everest by Krzysztof Wielicki and Leszek Cichy.

The Sino-Vietnamese War begins.

The Troubles: The Provisional IRA detonates an incendiary bomb at the La Mon restaurant, near Belfast, killing 12 and seriously injuring 30 others, all Protestants.

Robert K. Preston, a disgruntled U.S. Army private, buzzes the White House in a stolen helicopter.

Cumulative sales of the Volkswagen Beetle exceed those of the Ford Model T.

The family of Jeffrey R. MacDonald, United States Army captain, is found murdered in their home in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, US. Eventually, MacDonald was charged with and convicted of the murder of his pregnant wife and two daughters.

American aquanaut Berry L. Cannon dies of carbon dioxide poisoning while attempting to repair a leak in the SEALAB III underwater habitat. The SEALAB project was subsequently abandoned.

Aeroflot Flight 065 crashes during take-off from Sheremetyevo International Airport, killing 21.

Project Ranger: The Ranger 8 probe launches on its mission to photograph the Mare Tranquillitatis region of the Moon in preparation for the crewed Apollo missions. Mare Tranquillitatis or the "Sea of Tranquility" would become the site chosen for the Apollo 11 lunar landing.

In Wesberry v. Sanders the Supreme Court of the United States rules that congressional districts have to be approximately equal in population.

Gabonese president Léon M'ba is toppled by a coup and his rival, Jean-Hilaire Aubame, is installed in his place.

Project Vanguard: Vanguard 2: The first weather satellite is launched to measure cloud-cover distribution.

A Turkish Airlines Vickers Viscount crashes near Gatwick Airport, killing 14; Turkish prime minister Adnan Menderes survives the crash.

Chaim Weizmann begins his term as the first President of Israel.

The Al-Waziri coup briefly ousts the ruling Hamidaddin dynasty of Yemen; Imam Yahya Muhammad Hamid ed-Din is killed.

World War II: The Battle of Eniwetok begins. The battle ends in an American victory on February 22.

World War II: Operation Hailstone begins: U.S. naval air, surface and submarine attack against Truk Lagoon, Japan's main base in the central Pacific, in support of the Eniwetok invasion.

The Ukrainian People's Republic asks the Entente and the United States for help fighting the Bolsheviks.

The Armory Show opens in New York City, displaying works of artists who subsequently become some of the most influential painters of the early 20th century.

Russian Revolution of 1905: Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia is assassinated in the Moscow Kremlin by Socialist Revolutionary Ivan Kalyayev.

American Civil War: Columbia, South Carolina, is burned as Confederate forces flee from advancing Union forces.

American Civil War: The H. L. Hunley becomes the first submarine to engage and sink a warship, the USS Housatonic.

A group of citizens of Geneva found an International Committee for Relief to the Wounded, which later became known as the International Committee of the Red Cross.

Cochinchina Campaign: The French Navy captures the Citadel of Saigon, a fortress manned by 1,000 Nguyễn dynasty soldiers, en route to conquering Saigon and other regions of southern Viet Nam.

The United Kingdom recognizes the independence of the Orange Free State.

In the Weenen massacre, hundreds of Voortrekkers along the Blaukraans River, Natal are killed by Zulus.

The United States House of Representatives passes the Missouri Compromise for the first time.

War of the Sixth Coalition: The Battle of Mormant.

Jeremy Allen White, American actor

Bonnie Wright, English actress, filmmaker, and activist

Marianne St-Gelais, Canadian speed skater

Edin Višća, Bosnian footballer

Rebecca Adlington, English swimmer

Jake Marketo, Australian rugby league player

Chord Overstreet, American actor and singer

Michael Frolík, Czech ice hockey player

Case Keenum, American football player

Vasyl Lomachenko, Ukrainian boxer

Ísis Valverde, Brazilian actress

Brett Kern, American football player

Anders Jacobsen, Norwegian ski jumper

Andy Ganteaume, Trinidadian cricketer (born 1921)

Mohamed Hassanein Heikal, Egyptian journalist (born 1923)

Claude Jeancolas, French historian, author, and journalist (born 1949)

Tony Phillips, American baseball player (born 1959)

Andrzej Żuławski, Polish film director (born 1940)

John Barrow, American-Canadian football player and manager (born 1935)

Cathy Ubels-Veen, Dutch politician (born 1928)

Liu Yudi, Chinese general and pilot (born 1923)

Bob Casale, American guitarist, keyboard player, and producer (born 1952)

Peter Florin, German politician and diplomat, President of the United Nations General Assembly (born 1921)

Wayne Smith, Jamaican singer (born 1965)

Richard Briers, English actor (born 1934)

Shmulik Kraus, Israeli singer-songwriter and actor (born 1935)