Today In History:  17 October  [1951]   --  Yugoslavian DC-3 pilots seek asylum in Switzerland

The pilot and copilot of a JAT Douglas DC-3 making a domestic flight in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia from Ljubljana to Beograd instead land the airliner at Zürich, Switzerland, where they request political asylum for themselves and members of their families who are aboard the plane as passengers.

Jat Airways was the national flag carrier and largest airline of Yugoslavia and later Serbia and Montenegro and Serbia. Founded in 1927 as Aeroput, the airline ceased operations during World War II. After resuming flights in 1947, the airline was renamed Jugoslovenski Aerotransport (abbreviated JAT) on 1 April 1947.

PHOTO: Postcard of a JAT DC-3.

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Photo Attribution:  Public Domain