On This Day: 29 January

29 January in Indian history

• 2006India's Irfan Pathan became the first bowler to take a Test cricket hat-trick in the opening over of a match.India

29 January in world history

• 2025American Eagle Flight 5342 collided mid-air with a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk operated by the United States Army and crashed into the Potomac River, killing all 67 people on board both aircraft.
• 2022Canadian truck drivers and pedestrians gathered to rally and protest on Parliament Hill against Canadian COVID-19 restrictions, which caused traffic and closures around the city.
• 2009Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich is removed from office following his conviction of several corruption charges, including solicitation of personal benefit in exchange for an appointment to the United States Senate as a replacement for then-U.S. president-e
• 2005The first direct commercial flights from mainland China (from Guangzhou) to Taiwan since 1949 arrived in Taipei. Shortly afterwards, a China Airlines flight lands in Beijing.
• 2002In his State of the Union address, President George W. Bush describes "regimes that sponsor terror" as an Axis of evil, in which he includes Iraq, Iran and North Korea.
• 1989Cold War: Hungary establishes diplomatic relations with South Korea, making it the first Eastern Bloc nation to do so.
• 1983Singapore cable car crash: Panamanian-registered oil rig, Eniwetok, strikes the cables of the Singapore Cable Car system linking the mainland and Sentosa Island, causing two cabins to fall into the water and killing seven people and leaving thirteen others tra
• 1967The Mantra-Rock Dance, called the "ultimate high" of the hippie era, took place in San Francisco, featuring Swami Bhaktivedanta, Janis Joplin, the Grateful Dead, and Allen Ginsberg.
• 1959The first Melodifestivalen is held at Cirkus in Stockholm, Sweden.
• 1944World War II: At least 38 civilians were killed and about a dozen others injured when the Polish village of Koniuchy was attacked by a Soviet partisan unit with a contingent of Jewish partisans.
• 1943World War II: The Battle of Rennell Island, the last major naval engagement between the United States Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy during the Guadalcanal campaign, began.
• 1936The first inductees into the Baseball Hall of Fame are announced.
• 1918Ukrainian–Soviet War: An armed uprising organized by the Bolsheviks in anticipation of the encroaching Red Army begins at the Kiev Arsenal, which will be put down six days later.
• 1911Mexican Revolution: The Magonista rebellion began when Mexican Liberal Party troops captured the town of Mexicali.
• 1907Charles Curtis of Kansas, a citizen of the Kaw Nation, became the first Native American U.S. Senator.
• 1814War of the Sixth Coalition: At the Battle of Brienne, both sides' commanders, Napoleon and Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, were nearly captured.
• 757An Lushan, leader of a revolt against the Tang dynasty and emperor of Yan, was assassinated in a plot involving his own son, An Qingxu.

Born on 29 January

• 1970Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Indian colonel and politicianIndia
• 1962Gauri Lankesh, Indian journalist and activist (died 2017)India
• 1941Gamini Jayawickrama Perera, Sri Lankan politician (died 2024)
• 1936Veturi, Indian poet and songwriter (died 2010)India
• 1901Allen B. DuMont, American engineer and broadcaster, founded the DuMont Television Network (died 1965)
• 1761Albert Gallatin, Swiss-American ethnologist, linguist, and politician, 4th United States Secretary of the Treasury (died 1849)

Died on 29 January

• 2019George Fernandes, Indian politician (born 1930)India
• 2012Ranjit Singh Dyal, Indian general and politician, 10th Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry (born 1928)India
• 1982Roger Stanier, Canadian microbiologist (born 1916)
• 1934Fritz Haber, Polish-German chemist and engineer, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1868)

Frequently asked questions

What happened on 29 January in history?

2025: American Eagle Flight 5342 collided mid-air with a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk operated by the United States Army and crashed into the Potomac River, killing all 67 people on board both aircraft. 2022: Canadian truck drivers and pedestrians gathered to rally and protest on Parliament Hill against Canadian COVID-19 restrictions, which caused traffic and closures around the city. 2009: Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich is removed from office following his conviction of several corruption charges, including solicitation of personal benefit in exchange for an appointment to the United States Senate as a replacement for then-U.S. president-e. 2006: India's Irfan Pathan became the first bowler to take a Test cricket hat-trick in the opening over of a match.

What happened on 29 January in Indian history?

2006: India's Irfan Pathan became the first bowler to take a Test cricket hat-trick in the opening over of a match.

Which famous people were born on 29 January?

Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, Indian colonel and politician (1970); Gauri Lankesh, Indian journalist and activist (died 2017) (1962); Gamini Jayawickrama Perera, Sri Lankan politician (died 2024) (1941); Veturi, Indian poet and songwriter (died 2010) (1936).

Which day is observed on 29 January?

Earliest day on which Fat Thursday can fall, while March 4 is the latest; celebrated on Thursday before Ash Wednesday. (Christianity); Kansas Day (Kansas, United States).