WHAT ALL HAPPENED NOVEMBER TO DECEMBER 1971
Find out what all happened November to December 1971

The Montreux Casino in Switzerland is set ablaze by someone wielding a flare gun during a Frank Zappa concert; the incident would be noted in the Deep Purple song "Smoke on the Water". (4. December 1971)

Indian troops, partly aided by Mukti Bahini (Bengali guerrillas), defeat the Pakistan army in the Battle of Garibpur. (21. November 1971)

Indo-Pakistani War: The Indian Air Force executes an airdrop of Indian Army units, bypassing Pakistani defences. (9. December 1971)

During a severe thunderstorm over Washington state, a hijacker calling himself Dan Cooper (aka D. B. Cooper) parachutes from a Northwest Orient Airlines plane with $200,000 in ransom money. He has never been found. (24. November 1971)

Bangladesh Liberation War and Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: The surrender of the Pakistan Army brings an end to both conflicts. This is commemorated annually as Victory Day in Bangladesh, and as Vijay Diwas in India. (16. December 1971)

Capitol Reef National Park is established in Utah. (18. December 1971)

The United Arab Emirates join the United Nations. (9. December 1971)

"The Troubles": The Ulster Volunteer Force bombs a Catholic-owned pub in Belfast, killing 15 civilians and wounding 17. It was the city's highest death toll from a single incident during the conflict. (4. December 1971)

Fred Quilt, a leader of the Tsilhqot'in First Nation suffers severe abdominal injuries allegedly caused by Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers; he dies two days later. (28. November 1971)

Representatives of the People's Republic of China attend the United Nations, including the United Nations Security Council, for the first time. (23. November 1971)

Mariner 9 enters orbit around Mars. (14. November 1971)

Wasfi al-Tal, Prime Minister of Jordan, is assassinated by the Black September unit of the Palestine Liberation Organization. (28. November 1971)

The Indian Navy attacks the Pakistan Navy and Karachi. (4. December 1971)

Pakistan President Yahya Khan announces the formation of a coalition government with Nurul Amin as Prime Minister and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto as Deputy Prime Minister. (7. December 1971)

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971: Pakistan launches a pre-emptive strike against India and a full scale war begins claiming hundreds of lives. (3. December 1971)

Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Fujairah, Sharjah, Dubai, and Umm Al Quwain form the United Arab Emirates. (2. December 1971)

The United Nations Security Council calls an emergency session to consider the deteriorating situation between India and Pakistan. (4. December 1971)

In Cambodia, Khmer Rouge forces attack the city of Phnom Penh and its airport, killing 44, wounding at least 30 and damaging nine aircraft. (10. November 1971)

Zulfikar Ali Bhutto takes over as the fourth President of Pakistan. (20. December 1971)

The United States Atomic Energy Commission tests the largest U.S. underground hydrogen bomb, code-named Cannikin, on Amchitka Island in the Aleutians. (6. November 1971)