April 1961

On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin was the first human in space. His ship, Vostok 1, made one orbit of the Earth, lasting 89.1 minutes. The entire trip from blastoff to landing lasted one hour and 48 minutes.

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)-backed invasion of Cuba at the Bay of Pigs failed. Shortly after taking office, President Kennedy approved the CIA's plan, inherited from the Eisenhower administration, to invade Cuba and oust Fidel Castro's Communist government. The United States launched the invasion three months into Kennedy's administration. Over 1,400 Cuban exiles, trained and equipped by the CIA, landed on Cuba's coast without air cover. The success of the invasion depended on a large uprising against Fidel Castro. However, the CIA had underestimated Castro's military strength and his popular support. All of the exiles were captured or killed by the Cuban armed forces within three days.