Wikipedia:Main Page history/2019 November 15

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From today's featured article

No. 33 Squadron Boeing 707
refuelling a US Navy F/A-18 Hornet

No. 33 Squadron is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) strategic transport and air-to-air refuelling squadron. It operates Airbus KC-30A Multi Role Tanker Transports from RAAF Base Amberley, Queensland. The squadron was formed in February 1942 during World War II, operating Short Empire flying boats and a variety of smaller aircraft until 1944, and flying Douglas C-47 Dakota transports in New Guinea before disbanding in May 1946. The unit was re-established in February 1981 as a flight, and re-formed as a full squadron in July 1983. By 1988 it was operating six Boeing 707s, four of which were later converted for aerial refuelling (pictured). The 707s saw active service during operations in Namibia, Somalia, the Persian Gulf, and Afghanistan. No. 33 Squadron relocated to Amberley, and in June 2011 began re-equipping with KC-30As. One of its aircraft has been deployed to the Middle East since September 2014, as part of Australia's contribution to the military coalition against ISIS. (Full article...)

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Did you know ...

John Ystumllyn

... that John Ystumllyn (portrait shown) has been described as the first black person of North Wales "about whom we have detailed knowledge"?
... that in the 1858 Staten Island Quarantine War, angry local residents burned down the United States' largest quarantine facility after years of opposition?
... that self-taught Israeli singer-songwriter Ishay Ribo has released four studio albums, two of them certified gold and one platinum?
... that Red Dead Redemption 2 was developed by a team of 1,600 people?
... that Samuel May Williams borrowed against his brother's credit to purchase the 125-ton schooner Invincible on behalf of Texian rebels?
... that the Isla dela Victoria resort and casino under construction in Kawit Island, Cebu City, Philippines, is named for a city officer murdered for his role in the fight against illegal fishing?
... that Margaret Lyons, the first female vice president of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, was nicknamed the "Dragon Lady"?
... that for their 2019 documentary film The Elephant Queen, the two directors followed elephant herds for four years?

In the news

Cyclone Bulbul

Cyclone Bulbul (satellite image shown) hits the Indian and Bangladeshi coasts of the Bay of Bengal, killing at least 36 people.
After weeks of protests over electoral fraud, Bolivian president Evo Morales and other high-ranking politicians are forced to resign, and opposition senator Jeanine Áñez becomes interim president.
The Supreme Court of India delivers a unanimous verdict in favour of the construction of a Hindu temple at a disputed holy site in Ayodhya.
A border corridor is opened between Pakistan and India, allowing Indian Sikh pilgrims visa-free access to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib for the first time since the partition.

On this day

November 15: Mawlid (Shia Islam, 2019); Republic Day in Brazil (1889)

Xi Jinping

565 – Justin II became Byzantine emperor, his uncle Justinian I having allegedly chosen Justin as his successor on his deathbed.
1864 – American Civil War: Union Army General William T. Sherman began his "March to the Sea", inflicting significant damage to property and infrastructure on his way from Atlanta to Savannah, Georgia.
1922 – During a general strike in Guayaquil, Ecuador, police and military fired into a crowd, killing at least 300 people.
1959 – Two men murdered a family in Holcomb, Kansas; the events became the subject of Truman Capote's non-fiction novel In Cold Blood, a pioneering work of the true crime genre.
2012 – After ten years as General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, Hu Jintao stepped down and was replaced by Xi Jinping (pictured).

Æthelhere of East Anglia (d. 655) · Sara Josephine Baker (b. 1873) · Johanna Westerdijk (d. 1961)

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From today's featured list

Pushpa Girimaji, winner in 1991

The Chameli Devi Jain Award for Outstanding Women Mediaperson is an Indian journalistic award named after Chameli Devi Jain, an Indian freedom fighter who became the first Jain woman to go to prison during India's freedom struggle. The award was instituted in 1980 by The Media Foundation and is given to women in the journalism field. According to Business Standard, the award is "perhaps India's longest running media award for women". The Media Foundation was founded in 1979 by B. G. Verghese, Lakshmi Chand Jain, Prabhash Joshi, Ajit Bhattacharjea and N. S. Jagannathan. The award was instituted by Verghese and the family of Chameli Devi. The criteria for selection include social concern, dedication, courage and compassion in the individual's work. Since its inception in 1981, the award has been given to a total of 52 individuals. Neerja Chowdhury won the inaugural award. In 2015, Supriya Sharma of Scroll.in became the first online journalist to receive the award. The most recent award was given to Priyanka Dubey of the BBC in March 2019. (Full list...)

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Today's featured picture

The Roman Baths complex is a site of historical interest in the English city of Bath, Somerset. It is a well-preserved site dating from Roman Britain once used for public bathing. The Roman baths themselves are below the modern street level. There are four main features: the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House, and the museum which holds finds from the Roman town. The buildings above street level date from the 19th century. The Baths are a major tourist attraction and, together with the Grand Pump Room, received more than 1.3 million visitors in 2018. Visitors can tour the baths and museum but cannot enter the water.

This picture shows the Great Bath of the Roman Baths complex, with Bath Abbey visible in the background. The entire structure above the level of the pillar bases is of later construction.

Photograph credit: David Iliff

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