When Morocco’s Air Force Attacked Their King and He Talked Them Down

On 16 August 1972, King Hassan II of Morocco survived an aerial attack by his own air force. Six F-5 fighters intercepted his Boeing 727 over the Atlantic, opened fire, and killed several crew members before the attack collapsed. What happened next belongs in fiction: Hassan allegedly got on the radio himself and talked the pilots into standing down. He landed safely, reasserted control, and remained in power for another 27 years. This episode also explores a 1550 copyright dispute between Venetian printers over the Talmud, ruled on by Rabbi Moses Isserles and considered one of the earliest recorded copyright decisions. Finally, we revisit the 1989 solar particle event that forced the Toronto Stock Exchange to halt trading, a reminder that our digital infrastructure remains vulnerable to cosmic weather. Three strange stories from the sixteenth of August, each illustrating humanity’s talent for improvisation under pressure.

Chapters

• Intro Opening hook: a king flying home when his own air force opens fire. Clara introduces the episode and the day’s theme of improbable survival.
• The Day Morocco’s Air Force Shot at Their Own King On 16 August 1972, six Moroccan F-5 fighters attacked King Hassan II’s Boeing 727. Hassan survived by allegedly getting on the radio and talking the pilots down. The aftermath was swift: arrests, executions, and the suspicious death of General Oufkir. Hassan ruled for another 27 years.
• A Sixteenth-Century Copyright Dispute On 16 August 1550, Rabbi Moses Isserles ruled on a dispute between Venetian printers over competing Talmud editions. The case is considered one of the earliest recorded copyright decisions, planting an early flag in the legal territory that now shapes modern intellectual property law.
• The Sun Takes Down the Stock Exchange On 16 August 1989, a solar particle event interfered with computer systems at the Toronto Stock Exchange, forcing a halt to trading. The incident was part of a broader year of heightened solar activity and highlighted the fragility of digital infrastructure to cosmic weather.
• Outro Clara reflects on the three stories: a king who survived by talking, a rabbi who drew an early line around intellectual ownership, and a star that quietly broke a stock exchange. History, she notes, is rarely short of nerve.