April 15, 1969: A U.S. Navy Lockheed EC-121M Warning Star, of Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron One (VQ-1), on a reconnaissance mission, was shot down by a North Korean MiG-21 aircraft over the Sea of Japan.
The plane crashed 90 nautical miles off the North Korean coast, and all 31 Americans on board -- a Marine and 30 Navy sailors -- were killed. This was the largest single loss of U.S. aircrew during the Cold War era, 1946 to 1991.
The plane was an adaptation of a Lockheed Super Constellation, and was fitted with a fuselage radar, so the primary tasks were to act as a long range patrol, conduct electronic surveillance, and act as a warning device.
Despite this being a high point in the Cold War, the Soviet Union quickly provided assistance in the recovery efforts. Two Soviet destroyers were sent to the Sea of Japan, and their involvement highlighted Moscow's disapproval of the attack on the EC-121.
The Nixon Administration did not retaliate against North Korea, apart from staging a naval demonstration in the Sea of Japan a few days later, which was quickly removed. It resumed the reconnaissance flights within a week, to demonstrate that it would not be intimidated by the action while at the same time avoiding a confrontation.
The Warning Star first flew in 1949, and was first used by the U.S. Department of Defense in 1954. The U.S. Air Force retired theirs in 1978, and the Navy followed suit in 1982.
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April 15, 1969 was a Tuesday. Baseball player Jeromy Burnitz was born. These Major League Baseball games were played:
* The New York Yankees beat the Washington Senators, 8-2 at Yankee Stadium. Fritz Peterson went the distance for the win. Bobby Murcer and Joe Pepitone hit home runs.
* The New York Mets beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-3 at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. The Mets scored 3 runs in the top of the 8th inning to win it. No one knew it yet, but a special season had begun.
* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the expansion Montreal Expos, 4-3 at Jarry Park in Montreal. Mike Shannon and Vada Pinson hit home runs for the Cards, while Lou Brock went 1-for-5 with an RBI.
* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Boston Red Sox, 10-5 at Fenway Park in Boston. The O's scored 5 runs in the top of the 8th inning to win it, including a home run by Frank Robinson, part of a 3-for-5 with 3 RBIs day for him. Brooks Robinson went 0-for-5. Carl Yastrzemski went 0-for-4 with a walk.
* The Cleveland Indians beat the Detroit Red Wings, 3-2 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. José Cardenal hit a sacrifice fly to score Max Alvis with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning. For the Tigers, Willie Horton hit a home run, and Al Kaline went 1-for-4 with a walk.
* The Cincinnati Reds beat the San Francisco Giants, 11-10 at Crosley Field in Cincinnati. Johnny Bench singled Alex Johnson home with the winning run in the bottom of the 12th inning.
Bench went 3-for-7 with 2 RBIs. Johnson went 4-for-7 with 2 home runs and 5 RBIs. Bobby Tolan went 4-for-7. Pete Rose went 2-for-5 with 2 walks. For the Giants, Willie Mays went 3-for-7 with a home run and 2 RBIs, while Dave Marshall went 2-for-5 with 4 RBIs. Mike McCormick only pitched 4 batters, and gave up 2 runs, but also hit a home run.
* The Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 7-4 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Billy Williams and Don Young hit home runs, and Ernie Banks went 1-for-4. Roberto Clemente went 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk, and 3 RBIs. Willie Stargell went 0-for-5.
* The Houston Astros beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-2 at the Astrodome in Houston. Hank Aaron went 0-for-4.
* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the expansion San Diego Padres, 14-0 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Claude Osteen pitched a 3-hit shutout. Former Dodger hero Johnny Podres got tagged with 6 runs in 5 innings. Andy Kosco and former Giant Tom Haller homered for the Dodgers.
* The Minnesota Twins beat the Oakland Athletics, 5-4 at the Oakland Coliseum. The A's led, 2-0 after 6 innings, but the Twins scored 2 in the 7th, 2 in the 8th and 1 in the 9th. The A's scored 2 in the bottom of the 9th, but it wasn't enough. Jim "Kitty" Kaat outpitched Jim "Catfish" Hunter. Harmon Killebrew, Tony Oliva and Rich Reese hit home runs for the Twins, while Rod Carew went 1-for-5. Reggie Jackson went 0-for-4 for the A's.
* And the California Angels, the Chicago White Sox, and the AL's expansion teams, the Kansas City Royals and the Seattle Pilots, were not scheduled.
There was 1 game in the NBA Playoffs: The Atlanta Hawks beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 99-86 at the Alexander Memorial Coliseum, on the Georgia Tech campus in Atlanta. The arena is now known as the Hank McCamish Pavilion. This was the only game the Hawks won in the series. The Lakers went on to lose the NBA Finals to the Boston Celtics.
There was 1 game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The St. Louis Blues beat the Los Angeles Kings, 4-0 at the St. Louis Arena. Red Berenson had a hat trick. The Blues went on to sweep the series, then got swept in the Stanley Cup Finals by the Montreal Canadiens.
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