Dr. Mahmoud Hamshari, the PLO representative in France, was fatally wounded when a bomb exploded in his residence. His assassination was the second reprisal killing by Israel for the Munich Olympic's killings.
United Airlines Flight 553, a 737 flight from Lincoln to Chicago, crashed at Chicago Midway International Airport, killing 43 out of 61 occupants, and two people on the ground, including several notable figures.
Among those who died was Dorthy Hunt, the wife of E. Howard Hunt of Watergate fame, as well as journalist Michelle Clark. This has given rise to conspiracy theories regarding the incident.
Mrs. Hunt had met her husband when they were both employed by the Central Intelligence Agency. As things began to go badly for her husband, she began to levy inside threats that if things didn't go well, she would blow the lid on things about the conspiracy and, according to some, other clandestine matters.
Hunt met with journalist Clark on the evening of December 8. The plane hit tree branches while landing, which lead to the disaster. Prior to boarding the plane Hunt had purchased $250,000 in flight insurance, a substantial amount, particularly in 1972, with her husband as the beneficiary. She was carrying $10,000 in her purse, which E. Howard Hunt explained as down payment money for investments in area Holiday Inns.
All of this, and rumors about the investigation, have contributed to a conspiracy theory that the plane was sabotaged in order to kill Mrs. Hunt.
