Month: April 2026

Russian air attacks on northeast Ukraine over the past 24 hours have killed at least four people and injured 11 others, according to Oleh Syniehubov, Kharkiv’s regional governor.

Syniehubov said on Saturday that the attacks targeted the city of Kharkiv and 11 other towns and villages.

Also in northeastern Ukraine, at least 11 people, including a child, were injured after a Russian drone struck a building in the region of Sumy in an overnight attack.

“Attack drones struck a 16-storey building and a private residential area [in the region of Sumy]. Residents of the burning high-rise were promptly evacuated … The fire has been extinguished,” the State Emergency Service of Ukraine’s press office said in a statement.

“Law enforcement officers are documenting the aftermath of the shelling, recording the damage and gathering evidence of war crimes,” reported Russia’s Interfax news agency.

The Ukrainian Air Force said that the defence forces had “shot down or neutralised” 260 of 286 Russian drones fired towards the “north, south, east and centre of the country” in overnight attacks.

It added that 11 drones “were recorded striking 10 locations” with debris from the downed drones found at “six locations”.

Meanwhile in Russia, at least one person was killed and four others injured in drone and missile attacks in its southern Rostov region, according to its governor.

The overnight attack took place in the port city of Taganrog, Rostov Governor Yury Slyusar said on Telegram.

Slyusar said that the injured people – three of whom were Russians and one foreign national – were in “critical condition”.

A missile also struck a “commercial facility”, said Slyusar, causing a fire to break out on the premises. People were evacuated and the fire was brought under control, he said.

Separately, falling drone debris hit a foreign-flagged cargo vessel in the Sea of Azov, causing a fire, while air defences destroyed drones over Taganrog Bay and other districts, said Slyusar, who did not specify the origin of the attacks.

The Sea of Azov, an economic lifeline connecting Russia and Ukraine, acts as a key shipping route for industrial cargo.

Stalled diplomacy

Diplomatic efforts to end Russia’s full-scale war on Ukraine that started in February 2022 continue to stall.

The United States, Russia and Ukraine have held three rounds of high-level, trilateral talks in the United Arab Emirates’ Abu Dhabi and Switzerland’s Geneva this year in a bid to negotiate an end to the war.

A fourth round of talks due to take place last month was postponed due to the US-Israel war on Iran, with no progress on the vital question of territory in eastern Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had proposed an Easter truce, which Russia’s foreign ministry had rejected, dismissing it as a “PR stunt”.

As its price for peace, Russia is insisting that Ukraine cede the fifth of the eastern area of Donbas that it has been unable to conquer during four years of war, with Zelenskyy refusing to countenance the prospect, which in any case goes against the country’s constitution.

Kyiv believes it can keep defending its remaining “fortress belt” of industrial towns and cities in the Donbas for years, citing the glacial pace of Russia’s front-line advances since 2023 as its soldiers run into a defensive wall of Ukrainian drones.

A CLASSIC British rock band’s touring plans have been put on hold until one member gets a bill of clean health.

The band YES was due to embark on an 11-date European tour this month, launching in Glasgow on April 22nd – but the group’s guitarist Steve Howe has to undergo essential surgery, forcing the band to announce a change in plans.

YES was set to play their much-loved 1971 album Fragile in full, after the success of their North American tour in 2025.

But taking to Instagram, the group have issued a statement explaining the need to postpone.

“The upcoming YES ‘Fragile’ UK and EU Tour has had to be postponed as guitarist Steve Howe requires an essential operation that requires recovery time,” read the statement on social media.

“This decision has been made to ensure that Steve can return to the stage in full health and deliver the performances that fans deserve.

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“We are working hard to reschedule the UK and EU shows to a later date, with full details to be announced after Easter.

“Steve Howe and YES would like to thank their UK fans and hope for their continued support at this time.”

The post explained that tickets would be valid for the rescheduled dates and that the concerts would take place later in 2026.

Fans took to the comments underneath the post to express concern for Steve, wishing him well.

One wrote: “The most important thing is Steve’s health… wishing a full and speedy recovery to one of rock’s greats!”

YES released Fragile as their fourth album – and it’s widely considered their best among fans and critics alike.

The group formed in 1969, but Steve didn’t join until a year later, replacing original guitarist Peter Banks.

The group gained considerable recognition with their third and fourth albums – The Yes Album and Fragile – which were both released in 1971.

The latter included famed single Roundabout.

Over the decades, 20 different members have been part of YES, including founding members Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Bill Bruford and Tony Kaye.

Steve is the only remaining member of his era, now joined by lead singer Jon Davison, drummer Jay Schellan, keyboard player Geoff Downes, and Billy Sherwood on bass.

In 2017, the group had to cut another tour short due to personal circumstances when Steve’s 41-year-old son tragically died from a heart attack.

YES are considered the pioneers of progressive rock by many music fans, known also for their impressive live performances, and are members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The band originally split in 1980, with some members attempting to launch spin-off groups, which mostly failed to take off.

One of these groups ended up comprising mostly of ex-YES members, and in 1983 the band was re-launched.

More incarnations of the group followed, with Steve eventually leaving in the early 1990s, returning later that decade, before the group split again in the early 2000s.

They reformed again in 2009 and have recorded new material and toured on-and-off ever since, marking their 50th anniversary in the process.

In 2024, former keyboardist Rick Wakeman left the group, saying he felt it was “time to call it a day”.

Steve and the other current line-up have continued with the group without Rick over the past two years.

SACRAMENTO — As Democratic leaders in California challenge President Trump’s latest effort to restrict the use of mail-in ballots, they also must grapple with a troubling development in the last election.

A significant number of mail-in ballots arrived too late to be counted in the Nov. 4 special election for Proposition 50, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s successful measure to reconfigure the state’s congressional districts, according to state data.

Ballots came in late at an average rate four times higher than that of the 2024 election, with rural counties seeing some of the biggest increases, according to a Times review.

“Something changed,” said Melvin E. Levey, who heads the Merced County Registrar of Voters. “We don’t like seeing late ballots and if someone has made the effort to vote, we want to count it.”

Merced saw almost a sevenfold increase in late-arriving mail ballots in the November election compared with the year before.

Vote-by-mail ballots are considered late if they are not postmarked on or ahead of election day or do not arrive within seven days of election day.

The issue appears to be linked to the U.S. Postal Service, which last year reduced the number of trips to pick up mail at post offices in mostly rural areas. Election officials warned before Nov. 4 that the Postal Service changes could delay the postmarking of ballots and lead to votes not being counted.

During the Nov. 4 election in California, an average of 8 out of every 1,000 vote-by-mail ballots were rejected by counties because they arrived too late, according to Secretary of State data. In the 2024 general election, which included the presidential race, an average of 2 of every 1,000 vote-by-mail ballots were rejected for being late.

In Kern County, for example, 3,303 mail-in ballots — or 1.95% of returned mail-in ballots — were not counted in the 2025 special election because they arrived too late. In 2024, that number was 332 — or 0.14%. And in Riverside County, 5,831 ballots — or 0.95% of those mailed in — were deemed too late to count, more than double the number of late ballots rejected in 2024.

Postal Service spokesperson Cathy Purcell recommended that voters mail their ballot a week in advance of when it must be received by election officials to ensure it arrives on time.

“You should never be mailing your ballot on election day,” Purcell told The Times.

Before last’s year’s special election, California Secretary of State Shirley Weber issued a similar warning about the delays. Anyone dropping off their ballot at a post office on election day should get it postmarked at the counter, she said.

“We don’t want anyone to just toss it into the mailbox as we have been able to do in the past and have it counted,” she said. “The Postal Service has said that they may not be counted in certain areas.”

California voter data expert Paul Mitchell expressed astonishment about the Postal Service’s guidance.

“We’ve had six, eight years of elections where people were feeling confident about mailing in their ballot,” said Mitchell, vice president of the voter data firm Political Data Inc. “Now the USPS is saying they have to mail it in a week early.”

“That is a dramatic change that can disenfranchise voters who are just following the same pattern that they’ve used in prior elections,” he added.

Democrats have been defending the vote-by-mail system in the face of Republican attacks. Trump recently signed an executive order to impose federal restrictions on mail-in ballots and, without evidence, has long criticized mail-in ballots as a source of fraud and a factor in his 2020 election loss to Joe Biden.

The Nov. 4 special election on Proposition 50 was the Democrats’ attempt to counter Trump’s push for Republican-led states, most notably Texas, to redraw their electoral maps to keep Democrats from gaining control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the 2026 midterms and upending his agenda. The ballot measure overwhelmingly passed.

Nearly 89% of votes in the Nov. 4 election were vote-by-mail ballots, according to Weber’s office. In addition to Proposition 50, tax measures were also on the ballots in some counties.

Postal Service changes

About a month before the Nov. 4 election, Weber and Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta held a news conference to encourage California voters to vote early because of service changes at the U.S. Postal Service.

Bonta told reporters that voters living 50 or more miles from six large mail processing centers in urban areas who mailed their ballots on election day would not have those ballots postmarked in time. The centers are in Los Angeles, Bell Gardens, San Diego, Santa Clarita, Richmond and West Sacramento, according to Bonta’s office.

The changes at the U.S. Postal Service are part of a 10-year plan that kicked off several years ago aimed at improving services and reducing costs at the independent federal agency.

In the 17 counties that are mostly or entirely within the 50-mile distance from the mail facilities, the average rate of late ballots doubled in the November 2025 election compared with the election the year before — from 2.5 per 1,000 ballots received in 2024 to 5.6 per 1,000 in 2025.

But in counties that are entirely or mostly outside of the 50-mile radius, the average rate of late ballots quadrupled — from 2 per 1,000 ballots received in 2024 to 9.3 per 1,000 in 2025, state election records show.

Similar complaints about late ballots because of the mail changes have been reported in other states, including in Snohomish County, Wash., according to the New York Times.

The U.S. Postal Services told the Times that there are “any number of factors” that may affect the timeliness of mail.

“The Postal Service has successfully delivered America’s election mail, and we are confident that we will do so again this year,” spokesperson Nikolaj Hagen said. “We rely on long-standing, robust and tested policies and procedures, which have proven successful in the secure and timely delivery of election mail.”

Hagen added that “adjustments to our transportation operations will result in some mailpieces not arriving at our originating processing facilities on the same day that they are mailed.”

Postmarks are generally applied at those processing facilities, Hagen said, so the postmark date may not reflect the date the mail was collected by a letter carrier, dropped off at a retail location, or placed in a collection box.

While the U.S. Postal Service uses postmarking as an internal tool to track the place and date the mail was accepted, outside entities also use the postmarks for their own purposes, including the Internal Revenue Service, which requires federal tax returns to be mailed by April 15.

Several U.S. senators, including Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), sent a letter in January to USPS Postmaster Gen. Dave Steiner warning that changes to postmarking will make it more difficult for people, particularly those in rural areas, to vote by mail and pay tax bills on time.

On Tuesday, Trump signed an executive order that seeks to put new federal controls on voting by mail in states, repeating his long-held but unsubstantiated claim that mail-in ballots are a source of widespread fraud in U.S. elections.

The order directs the U.S. Postal Service to take control of mail balloting by designing new envelopes with special bar codes that will allow the federal government to ensure that such ballots go out only to eligible voters.

States must follow the USPS process if they plan to use the federal mail system for sending or receiving ballots. They also must submit to the USPS lists of eligible voters in advance of such ballots passing through the mail system.

Separately, the Republican National Committee is challenging a Mississippi law that allows ballots that arrive up to five days after election day to be accepted and counted. The case was argued before the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court in March.

Times staff reporter Kevin Rector contributed to this report.

The Angels celebrated their 2026 home opener on Friday, and the fans booed the ceremonial first pitch.

Magic Johnson, the Dodgers’ co-owner and the foremost winner in Los Angeles sports history, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Dodgers’ opener. Jeff Kent, just elected to the Hall of Fame, did the honors for the San Francisco Giants.

In Anaheim, John Carpino tossed the first pitch, even with popular alumni such as Torii Hunter and Tim Salmon in the house. Carpino is the Angels’ president, retiring Monday after 16 years in that role and 23 years in all as a loyal executive under Angels owner Arte Moreno.

Moreno thought it would be lovely for Carpino to throw out the first pitch and, under different circumstances, it would have been.

The fans can deal with the aging stadium, the recent lack of marquee signings and the longest playoff drought in the major leagues, but not with Moreno’s spring comment to the Orange County Register that surveys show affordability is the fans’ top priority and “believe it or not, winning is not in their top five.”

So Carpino, as a proxy for Moreno, was booed loudly. Then a few modest choruses of “sell the team” broke out.

Behind the Angels’ dugout, Dave and Chris Bloye of Upland wore red T-shirts. His shirt listed five priorities, in order: Affordability, good experience, safety, peanuts, fan surveys. Her shirt listed five priorities too, starting with “sell the team.” The Bloyes said they have had season tickets for more than 20 years.

“We’ve never had a survey,” Chris Bloye said.

Moreno is competitive, a hardcore fan who regularly attends even spring training games. Perhaps he did not mean his words to come out the way they did.

Moreno declined an interview request from The Times at the owners’ meetings in February. A team spokesman said last week that Moreno would pass on an opportunity to clarify his remarks about fan priorities.

But, if those were indeed the priorities, they would have been reflected by the fans that showed up more than six hours before game time for the free fan festival the Angels throw before the home opener every year.

Surely, the man in the jersey that read “FAN SINCE 81” and the Angels tattoo on his left leg would be here win or lose.

Angels fans stand in front of the stadium before the team’s home opener against the Seattle Mariners on Friday night.

(Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

Yes, Jose Bocanegra of Chino said, he would be. But for Moreno to say winning was not a top fan priority?

“That’s crazy,” Bocanegra said. “If you’re not in it to win it, then what are we doing?”

How about the fan in the Nolan Ryan jersey? He held his 7-year-old daughter atop his shoulders. She wore a Mike Trout jersey, smiled broadly, and clutched a cup of ice cream.

His name was Nate Ryan, from Hemet. He and his daughter attend Dodgers and Angels games, but they particularly like visits to Angel Stadium. His daughter loves the rally monkey and the free games in the Pac-Man arcade, and he appreciates Moreno’s focus on affordability.

“The Angels are more economical,” Ryan said. “We have a good time.”

At Angel Stadium, $44 gets you four tickets, four hot dogs, and four drinks. At Dodger Stadium, $45 gets you a parking space.

Ryan had one more thing to say.

“I’d like to see a new owner,” Ryan said.

Jarod Venegas of Corona dressed in a white wrap, wearing a red cap topped by a gold halo. He was about to spend nine innings as — you guessed it — an angel in the outfield.

“I believe we have a team that can be the best,” he said.

What exactly do you mean by best?

“I mean World Series champions,” he said.

Venegas had something to say about fan priorities.

“Winning is our No. 2 priority,” he said. “No. 1 is getting a new owner.”

Johnny Estrada of Corona wore a T-shirt with eight lines on the back. All eight lines read the same: “Sell the team.”

He said he loves the team, supports the players, and does not believe Moreno chose his words poorly.

“I don’t necessarily feel it came out wrong,” Estrada said. “I feel he hasn’t cared for a while.”

Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken, who remains irked by Moreno branding the team with a Los Angeles name, has been a season-ticket holder far longer than she has been mayor. She’ll give Moreno a pass on his comments.

“I think it was a misstep,” Aitken said. “I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. He knows that winning, for a true fan, is one of the most important things. Winning is a priority for our players. Winning is a priority to the loyal fan base.”

Even more so, perhaps, to the casual fans, the ones that determine whether the Angels sell three million tickets in any given year.

The Angels sold 2.6 million tickets last year, a testament to the strength of the market amid a second consecutive last-place finish.

The “Big A” sign outside Angel Stadium on Friday during the team’s home opener.

(Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

However, attendance has fallen 20% over the past 20 years, a span that includes one postseason series victory and the current streaks of 10 seasons with losing records and 11 seasons without a playoff appearance.

Friday’s home opener was sold out. However, as of Friday afternoon, resale markets listed tickets for as little as $7 for Saturday’s game and $4 for Sunday’s game.

This is a great fan base, to me much more frustrated than angry, waiting to erupt in joy. The fan festival was dominated by fans wearing “sell” jerseys but a variety of Trout jerseys — home white, road gray, alternate red, City Connect, All-Star, World Baseball Classic, even one from the Salt Lake Bees.

Trout’s loyalty has been reciprocated by the fans. Moreno could feel that love too, with a renewed commitment to the excellence the Angels he displayed in his first decade as owner.

In 2002, the year before Moreno bought the team, the stadium was rocking with thunder sticks as the Angels won the World Series. Thunder sticks are so loud that they were banned at the World Baseball Classic finals, even as drums, trumpets and cowbells were permitted.

In Anaheim, the thunder sticks were glorious. Moreno does not want to sell at the moment, so best to demonstrate a dedication to returning October to the Angels’ schedule, lest their fans take home their giveaway calendars from the home opener and start the countdown to “wait ‘til next year.”

April 3 (UPI) — More than three million bottles of eye drops sold at stores across the United States have been recalled by their manufacturer because they may not be sterile.

K.C. Pharmaceuticals earlier this month issued a nationwide U.S. recall of roughly 3.1 million bottles of eight different eye drop products because of a “lack of assurance of sterility,” an FDA notice about the recall said.

The drops have been sold at some of the nation’s largest drug and grocery retailers, including CVS, H-E-B, Publix, Walgreens, Rite Aid, Kroger, Good Neighbor and several pharmaceutical supply companies.

K.C. Pharmaceuticals bills itself as the largest private label eye care supplier in North America, servicing 26 of the top 30 U.S. retailers and more than 90,000 stores across the country.

The voluntary recall, issued on March 3, has been categorized as a Class II recall, which the Federal Drug Administration told USA Today indicates that “the probability of a serious health issue is remote.”

People who have the drops also can continue to use them unless otherwise directed by K.C. Pharmaceuticals or the FDA, the agency said.

NBC News also reported that the FDA has not received reports of injuries linked to the recalled drops.

The eight types of drops included in the recall are Sterile EYE DROPS AC, EYE DROPS Advanced Relief, Dry Eye Relief Eye Drops, Ultra Lubricating Eye Drops, Sterile Eye Drops ORIGINAL FORMULA, Sterile EYE DROPS REDNESS LUBRICANT, STERILE EYE DROPS SOOTHING TEARS, and Artificial Tears Sterile Lubricant Eye Drops.

A complete list of the products, lot numbers and expiration dates, and what company or retailer sold the recalled drops can be found at the FDA’s website.

The question of what kind of gun should be issued to aircrew for survival, should they be brought down for whatever reason, potentially behind enemy lines, is one that air forces have long grappled with. The highly specific demands of the role, coupled with the fact that the gun needs to be compact enough to fit in a cramped cockpit (and in many cases, on the aircrew themselves), mean that there have been a wide variety of solutions to the problem, some more successful than others.

Of course, for an aircraft as extraordinary as the U.S. Air Force’s SR-71 Blackbird spy plane, it would make sense that a highly specialized aircrew survival weapon might be developed for it.

Thanks to a recent social media post from firearm manufacturer Smith & Wesson, our attention was drawn to just such a weapon, although many questions remain about the degree to which it was actually fielded.

For an in-depth video tour of the Blackbird’s front and rear cockpits, follow this link to our previous article, and watch the video below. 

SR-71 Cockpit Checkout

With the world of historic firearms being particularly subject to counterfeits and other kinds of imitations, we should also be cautious about whether all of the claims about it stack up.

According to Smith & Wesson, however, in March 1967, the Air Force placed an order for “30 special Model 41 pistols for SR-71 Blackbird pilot survival kits.”

The manufacturer describes the gun as coming “equipped with threaded five-inch barrels, slide locks, ‘sound depressors,’ and extra magazines.” In this case, “sound depressor” seems to be a reference to a suppressor — a device to reduce the acoustic intensity of the gunshot.

The result was “designed to give downed pilots a quiet way to defend themselves or forage behind enemy lines.”

Before looking at just why this is such a surprising choice for an aircrew personal defense weapon, it’s worth looking at the basic Model 41 pistol in more detail.

Smith & Wesson introduced its semi-automatic Model 41 pistol after World War II, and it was tailored primarily as a competitive target firearm.

The End of an Era | Smith & Wesson® Model 41

Prototypes began to be tested in 1947, and after a long period of refinements, the Model 41 went on sale in 1957. The gun quickly established itself as a popular choice, especially for competitive shooters, and, although its manufacture was briefly ended in 1992, it soon returned to production, and the last examples were only completed in 2025.

As for the Model 41 pistol in military hands, Smith & Wesson did develop a ‘no-frills’ version, known as the Model 46, specifically for the Air Force. In 1959, the service selected the Model 46 for basic marksmanship training. A 10-year production run followed, but it doesn’t seem to have found any commercial uptake.

Considering the iconic nature of the SR-71 and its dramatic missions, it’s more than a little surprising that the ‘Blackbird Model 41’ isn’t better known.

Last year, however, a reference to a special version of the Model 41 appeared on Smith & Wesson Forums. A post on the forum describes the gun as being delivered to the Air Force with “suppressors and extra magazines,” and issued as part of the SR-71 pilot survival kits.

The post explains that the unusual attachment seen in one of the few photos of the weapon is a “factory-fitted Oxford white-dot illuminated sight, a cutting-edge innovation for its time, installed by Olympic gold medalist Art Cook, who was responsible for precision military modifications under contract.”

The same post draws attention to an undated auction lot on the website of the Wyoming-based LSB, a well-known gun-broker, which details one of these ‘Blackbird Model 41s’ sold for $5,404. The gun is described by LSB as a “Model 41 .22 LR SR-71 Pilot Survival Pistol 1967” with the serial number 78009.

The auction posting provides more detail on the Art Cook-installed sights, described as “extremely rare.” It notes that Cook, a gold medalist in smallbore rifle at the London Olympics in 1948, was “known for high-level precision firearms work for U.S. military contracts during the Cold War and developed custom mounts for the Oxford sight used in these pistols.”

Perhaps most relevant in this context is the fact that the gun in question was auctioned together with factory and historical documentation. The factory letter from Smith & Wesson historian Roy Jinks confirms the government contract details and was included with a copy of the original factory invoice documenting the 1967 sale to the Air Force.

Also part of the sale was a copy of the original serial number list for the contract batch of 30 pistols and further “original S&W historical paperwork related to the contract order.”

The provenance of the pistol is further underscored, LSB says, since it came from the collection of Kevin Williams, a respected firearms historian and author of U.S. General Officer Pistols: A Collector’s Guide.

LSB’s assessment was that the auctioned gun was “an extraordinary example of Cold War weapons history,” while “Cook’s involvement, paired with the factory’s precision and the pistol’s purpose-built configuration, makes this one of the most unique .22 pistols ever issued by the U.S. government.”

While the description of the special Model 41 as a “quiet, accurate, and discreet sidearm paired with the most advanced aircraft of its era” might be accurate, it still seems surprising that an adapted target firearm would be selected for SR-71 crews (which comprised a pilot at the front and a Reconnaissance Systems Officer, or RSO, behind them).

A pistol chambered in a .22 Long Rifle has some advantages. The very low recoil makes it easy to control, its ammunition is cheap and widely available, and it is typically far quieter than other calibers, especially when loaded to reduce sound signature. It is also light and has a low muzzle flash.

The Air Force did procure some other smaller-caliber firearms for its pilots, including the M6 aircrew survival weapon, first issued in the 1950s, and combining a .22 Hornet rifle barrel with a .410 bore shotgun barrel in an unusual ‘over-under’ configuration.

Today’s gun comes as a tool of survival. The M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon. The foldable Shotgun/Rifle hybrid chambered in .410 bore and .22 hornet FMJ was designed by Ithaca shortly after WW2 but found continued use even into Vietnam. It’s stock also allowed for easy ammo storage. pic.twitter.com/nkMg3tB3LS

— Doc Strangelove (@DocStrangelove2) December 18, 2021

The predecessor to the M6 was the M4 survival rifle, developed from the Harrington & Richardson bolt-action M265 sporting rifle, adapted to a sheet metal frame with a telescopic wire buttstock and a detachable barrel, again chambered for .22 Hornet ammo. The M4 and M6 were both intended for the killing of game for food under emergency survival conditions.

H&R M4 Survival Rifle: Handy But Short-Lived

Overall, the .22 caliber is hardly an obvious choice for a personal defense weapon. It has limited stopping power compared to common defensive calibers like 9×19mm, and even less potent ones of the era, and may not consistently penetrate deeply enough to reach vital organs, especially through clothing or at odd angles.

It seems likely, then, that the gun was primarily intended to help SR-71 crews defend themselves clandestinely if their aircraft went down.

This is supported by the claim by Smith & Wesson that the special Model 41 was “designed to give downed pilots a quiet way to defend themselves.” It is also in line with the much higher likelihood that SR-71 pilots and RSOs, were they to eject, would find themselves operating deeper behind the lines than most downed aircrews.

There are also accounts suggesting that the Blackbird survival kit included either an Air Force version of the Smith & Wesson Model 12 or a Colt Aircrewman (based on the civilian Cobra). Both of these were lightweight aluminum revolvers, chambered for .38 Special, with much more stopping power than a Model 41. Confusingly, they both carried the designation M13.

Colt M13 Aircrewman Revolver: So Light it was Unsafe

Mach 3+ Cowboys

The Blackbird’s survival kit included a very rare aluminum gun!

Yes, you read it right! The gun was made of aluminum to keep it lightweight. My Father, Col Richard (Butch) Sheffield, former SR-71 Reconnaissance Systems Officer (RSO), told my husband, Rodney… pic.twitter.com/KWLEdxNmVo

— Habubrats SR-71 (@Habubrats71) November 21, 2024

At this point, it seems there is considerable evidence that the Air Force did buy a batch of special Model 41 pistols for SR-71 Blackbird pilot survival kits.

There is no evidence immediately available suggesting that Blackbird crews took these weapons on their remarkable Mach-3 flights over and around some of the most hostile airspace ever seen. What we do know is that, with no SR-71 being brought down by enemy action in the course of over 3,500 operational spy flights, their crews never had to call upon sidearms of any kind.

We have reached out to Smith & Wesson and the National Air and Space Museum to try to get to the bottom of this intriguing story. If any readers know more about these pistols and whether they were actually issued to aircrew, let us know in the comments below, or shoot me an email.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

I’VE never tried synchronised swearing before – but then again, I’ve never been in a crowd being buzzed by a low-altitude jet fighter.

F***!! we yelled as a Blue Angels “sneak” pilot screamed over us and we watched the other five planes from the flight soaring in perfect formation high in the sky.

What made it even more exciting was that we were on a boat in the Gulf of Mexico, basking in 30C heat.

It was a highlight of our visit to Pensacola in the Florida panhandle (the top bit).

While still new to many Brits, this was familiar territory to our ancestors.

It has a claim to be America’s oldest city, established by Spanish conquerors in 1559, and is now known as The City Of Five Flags as it has also been ruled by France, the good guys from Great Britain, the Confederate States of America and, of course, the US.

DRINK IT IN

Adult-only campsite in the middle of a cider farm & you can stay for £17 each

NO KID-DING

Train company launches adult-only carriages – and kids are BANNED

The latter were fighting for strategic military importance, which is why it is now home to a US Navy base — and that formation- flying team, the oldest in the English- speaking world.

But forget the strategic importance, just go here for the beaches.

They are incredible. White sand, warm water, more dolphins than you can shake a flipper at, and plenty of pelicans.

There are also hundreds of restaurants, bars, coffee and souvenir shops, and a host of top hotels including the Hilton Pensacola Beach where we stayed.

The latter is a great stay, with charming staff, superb pools, a welcoming outdoor bar and a fine restaurant.

Best of all was its location, though it’s not in “downtown” Pensacola.

It’s on, as its name suggests, Pensacola Beach — an offshore resort on the island of Santa Rosa, linked by bridge to its big brother.

If you’re not driving, there’s the Pensacola Bay City Ferry, shuttling between downtown, Pensacola Beach and the historic Fort Pickens, well worth a visit in its own right. You can buy daily hop-on, hop-off tickets.

Also, when the Blue Angels practise, most Tuesdays, you can do what we did and, for about £25, book a cruise out to sea to catch all the action.

Pensacola and Pensacola Beach provides you with the ideal two-centre holiday without much travelling.

Head downtown and you can revel in rich history — with lots of helpful signage, marked walking paths and the Veterans Memorial Park — as well as enjoying art shops and museums and event spaces.

Our visit coincided with the Pensacola Seafood Festival. Stalls sell everything from cheese-flavoured popcorn and artisan beers to, er, mermaid outfits.

We didn’t buy much, as wifey had blown our budget on a painting of a seahorse from a lovely art shop on the main drag, Palafox Street.

Once you are tired of the culture and shopping, and have eaten and drunk your fill — check my guide, above, to Pensacola dining — what are you going to do? That’s right, head back over the bridge to the beaches.

Get yourself a boat trip to go dolphin-spotting — you can see them while you are driving over the bridge but it is an offence to stop there.

We went with Captain Steve after booking with friskyboattours.com — and that man knows how to find a dolphin.

He’s also really good at explaining the area, and identifying passing birds.

One of those passing birds was an osprey, and we ventured a little farther afield one day to see if we could find some more.

It meant sacrificing the beaches for a while as we headed inland to Tarkiln Bayou State Park, where a marked trail — the Americans are good at that — tells you what you may see.

It leads you on a beautiful, tranquil route, past rare carnivorous pitcher plants (I read the sign) to a hidden lake. It was lovely but there were no ospreys, which was surprising given the number of tasty fish we saw swimming around.

No problem, they were there at next stop, Big Lagoon State Park.

Observation towers give you a great view of the wildlife — the resting osprey being trumped for me by a great blue hero flapping past at eye level.

I did mention not many Brits know about Pensacola — whose social-media marketing message is #thewaytobeach — and some of the locals would like to keep it that way.

We had flown from Heathrow on a Virgin Atlantic booking with partner airline Delta, changing planes at Atlanta.

It wasn’t as fast as the Blue Angels, but it was much less noisy and much more comfortable.

While we were waiting for our connecting flight to Pensacola, we chatted to a couple who, it turned out, had a condo on Pensacola Beach.

They were puzzled why we were going there and I explained I was writing a piece for a British newspaper.

“Don’t”, they said, “It’s our secret.”

Sorry.

CRAB CAKE OR TACOS?

YOU won’t go hungry or thirsty in Pensacola. Here’s our guide to dining of all kinds, from flip-flop to fine, at the beach and downtown.

BEACH

Flounder’s Chowder House: Big portions and bargain Bushwhackers (the local signature cocktail, a chocolatey rum-based concoction). Family-friendly with great play areas.

Bamboo Willie’s: Home of frozen cocktails, a perfect spot to chill.

Casino Beach Bar and Grille: Overlooks the pier. Totally relaxing, with great views and food.

The Grand Marlin: A wonderful atmosphere, tremendous seafood, views to die for.

Native Cafe: All-day breakfast joint the locals love. Try Crab Cakes Benny – muffin, crab cakes and poached eggs with hollandaise sauce.

Red Fish Blue Fish: The perfect beachfront restaurant and bar. Go for the shrimp tacos.

Salt: Signature restaurant at the Hilton Pensacola Beach. Beautifully prepared seafood and the best steak I’ve had in ages.

DOWNTOWN

Bodacious Shops: Classy coffee and breakfast staples plus artisanal olive oils and vinegars to buy.

The Fish House: Go for baked oysters. Also home to Grits à Ya Ya – tasty shrimp on a savoury porridge.

Jaco’s Bayfront Bar and Grill: Perfect spot next to the ferry port. Try the crab cakes or mahi tacos.

Maker’s Cafe: Welcoming spot, perfect for coffee and cake.

Union Public House and The Well: Neighbouring venues – a great gastro pub and a cocktail bar where they mix a drink to match your mood.

CRUZ Beckham has poked fun at mum Victoria with very cheeky quip.

The youngest Beckham son Cruz, 21, took to social media as he cooked up a storm in the kitchen, seemingly following in his estranged brother Brooklyn’s footsteps.

Brooklyn, who launched a nuclear attack on his ‘controlling’ parents and vowed not to reconcile earlier this year, famously shares cookery videos on social media and deems himself a budding chef.

In Cruz’s video, he cooked some crepes for his girlfriend Jackie Apostel, and served them up with some Nutella.

A man called Daley Thompson penned: “I love when a son cooks for his mum,” which seemed to be a dig at Brooklyn being a chef and being estranged from his family.

Cruz then cheekily replied: “You think VB is eating a Nutella crepe [laughing emoji] no chance Daley.”

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Fans flocked to react to his hilarious quip.

One person said: “Daley – stop right now, thank you very much,” referecing the famous Spice Girls song.

A second penned; “Victoria hasn’t had chocolate since the 90’s !!!”

“I love that she’s not relatable,” added a third.

“Absolute gold,” said a fourth.

While a fifth penned: “What does VB eat, I need tips she’s a legend.”

In her Netflix documentary, Victoria revealed she hasn’t eaten chocolate since the 1990s.

In the series, she told husband David: “I’m not going to start now!”.

Back in January, amid the ongoing Beckham family feud, things came to a head.

Brooklyn said at the start of the year that he did “not want to reconcile” with his family, and accused his parents of “controlling” the narrative.

His initial statement read: “I have been silent for years and made every effort to keep these matters private.

“Unfortunately my parents and their team have continued to go to the press, leaving me with no choice but to speak for myself and tell the truth about only some of the lies that have been printed.

“I do not want to reconcile with my family. I’m not being controlled, I’m standing up for myself for the first time in my life.”

He then went on to recall the night of his wedding and how his mother danced in an “inappropriate way”.

For seven innings on Friday night, the much anticipated college baseball showdown between No. 1 UCLA and rival No. 12 USC, lived up to expectations before an overflow crowd at Jackie Robinson Stadium. There were three home runs, diving catches, two elite starting pitchers competing at a high level and both teams refusing to let the other separate itself.

Then came the bottom of the eighth inning.

“It was one of those weird innings,” UCLA coach John Savage said.

UCLA sent up 12 batters and scored seven runs to turn a tight game into a rout and come away with a 12-4 victory in the first game of a three-game series.

“It’s a cruddy way to end it,” USC coach Andy Stankiewicz said. “We were right there and it went sideways fast.”

UCLA (27-2) took a 5-4 lead in the seventh on an RBI single from Will Gasparino. In the eighth, the Bruins loaded the bases with none out on a walk, hit batter and infield single. Then came a two-run single from Mulvai Levu, an infield single from Roman Martin and a two-run single by Payton Brennan. The inning kept going and going. There was a dropped pop fly in foul territory, a misplayed ball in center that went for a triple by Phoenix Call, wild pitches and walks.

“At the end of the day, it was a very tight game that doesn’t look like a tight game,” Savage said.

USC celebrates a second-inning home run by Andrew Lamb (29).

(Craig Weston)

Two of the top pitchers in the nation, Logan Reddemann of UCLA and Mason Edwards of USC, each gave up home runs and faced challenges from top hitters. Reddemann gave up a two-run home run to Andrew Lamb and a solo home run to Augie Lopez. UCLA scored three earned runs off Edwards, doubling the run total he has given up all season. Martin had a home run.

“I thought you had two premier pitchers against two really good offenses,” Savage said. “They had to fight for every out. Mason is clearly the best pitcher in college baseball the first half of the season. We did a good job making him work.”

UCLA pulled off a rare pick off play when USC stole second with a man on third. Catcher Cashel Dugger did an acting job worthy of an Academy Award throwing the ball hard to Reddemman on the mound, who then got the runner on third leaving the bag.

“I thought it was executed perfectly,” said Miller, the third baseman on the play.

It doesn’t happen often, but UCLA had to find a sign gathering cobwebs in the ticket office to post at the entrance of Jackie Robinson Stadium on Friday night: “Game sold out.”

The same sign will be posted again on Sunday. Some 2,000 people were allowed in.

“I wish the ballpark was bigger,” Savage said.

Tickets were going for more than $100 on the secondary market. The auxiliary bleachers were filled. The UCLA versus USC baseball series hasn’t received this much attention and interest since the days of Rod Dedeaux winning 11 College World Series titles at USC, the last in 1978. Savage won an NCAA title in 2013 and was drawing big crowds in 2010 when future first-round picks Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer pitched UCLA to Omaha.

“We’re a competitive team,” Savage said. “They like challenges. This was a big challenge. USC has played as well as any team in the country. It was two really good teams playing in the first game of a series. The city of Los Angeles was excited. It’s good for Southern California, it’s good for recruiting, it’s good for people to come in and see the talent USC and UCLA have.”

UCLA’s relief pitching continues to be a major strength. Freshman Zach Strickland and sophomore Easton Hawk combined for three hitless innings to finish out the victory. And UCLA didn’t have to use its best reliever this season, Wylan Moss, giving Savage options for the rest of the series.

Gasparino and Brennan each finished with three hits. USC dropped to 27-4.

The world famous botanical gardens at Kew offer so much more than plants – we tried a sound bath in the iconic Nash Conservatory

Kew Gardens – the world-famous botanical gardens with the largest collection in the globe.

Internationally renowned and vitally important to our understanding of plant life, not to mention the millions of specimens also held in this stunning corner of West London, Kew also boasts being a World Heritage Site.

This oasis of calm, serenity and beauty is also one of the capital’s most visited tourist attractions – and my ultimate happy place.

Be in the depths of winter, the first blooms of spring, the sun-kissed height of summer or the golden autumn days, Kew always has something to entrance and amaze.

It doesn’t matter how many thousands of people might flood through the gates each day, this vast site always has an air of peace and calm.

So, when it came to my first ever sound bath experience – have no fear there is no water involved – what better place to try it than surrounded by nature at Kew.

And what exactly is a sound bath? In short it’s a meditation experience using gongs, Tibetan bowls and crystal bowls, along with chimes to create a dream-like state somewhere between sleep and waking.

Said to help ease stress and anxiety – and with the state of, well, everything, at the moment – who doesn’t need a bit of that?

On Kew’s website, it states: “Therapeutic sound has been proven to offer a wide range of health benefits, helping to boost your immune system by making you feel more grounded, balanced, and connected.

“No previous experience is needed for this expert-led session, making it the perfect opportunity to try a new way of reaching deep meditation and relaxation.”

It’s also recommended to have a stroll around the incredible gardens before you step into the Nash Conservatory for the hour long session.

Gently strolling through the vast expanse of Kew, surrounded by blossom trees and areas filled with sunshine-coloured daffodils, I could already feel my stress melting away even before the session began.

Held in the glorious Nash Conservatory, close to Kew Palace with the Elizabeth Gate the closest entrance, this sunshine-filled spaced already felt welcoming and calm the moment you stepped in.

You’re advised to bring a blanket, cushion and eye mask so you can be comfortable and fully immersed in the experience, which is led by Jez Smith FRSA, a historical musician and qualified sound therapist, who has been practising for 35 years.

Lying in the space, eyes closed, eye mask on and cosy in my blanket, the session began. Gentle noise filled the room, within minutes I could feel my shoulders relaxing.

As the sound slowly builds – it never feels overwhelmingly loud but does fill the entire space – I could feel every muscle in my body slowly sinking into the floor.

Still awake but only vaguely aware of my surroundings, there was a moment where I felt my entire face and jaw relax – I had no clue I was holding so much tension there.

Advised by Jez to focus on the noise and try to push away thoughts as they popped into your head – something which became increasingly easy to do as the session progressed – I became totally unaware of time and before I knew it, our hour was up.

Brought back to full consciousness by the gentle sound of chimes, as we all slowly returned to sitting I was stunned to feel I not only felt relaxed but more care-free than I had for months.

Another slow stroll through Kew before heading home and I can firmly say sound baths are not only good for easing stress, they’re also good for the soul.

Sound baths at Kew Gardens

Kew is holding regular sound baths on selected dates between now and October.

For more information, visit the website.

April 4 (UPI) — On this date in history:

In 1841, President William Henry Harrison died of pneumonia after serving one month in office. He was the ninth President of the United States, and the first to die in office. He was succeeded by Vice President John Tyler, the first person to occupy the office without being elected to it.

In 1850, the city of Los Angeles was incorporated.

In 1887, Susanna Madora Salter was elected as the first female mayor in the United States — in Argonia, Kan.

In 1933, the USS Akron, a U.S. Navy airship, is destroyed during a major storm off the coast of New Jersey. The tragedy claimed the lives of 73 of the 76 crewmen and passengers.

In 1949, representatives of 12 nations gathered in Washington to sign the North Atlantic Treaty, creating the NATO alliance.

In 1968, civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated as he stood on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel in Memphis Tenn. He was 39.

In 1975, Microsoft was founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen.

In 1983, the space shuttle Challenger lifted off on its inaugural mission.

In 1991, Sen. John Heinz, R-Pa., and six others were killed in the midair collision of a chartered airplane and a helicopter that was inspecting the plane’s landing gear near Philadelphia.

In 2005, the president of Kyrgyzstan, Askar Akayev, officially resigned. He had been driven out by a coup a month earlier.

In 2013, Pulitzer Prize-winning Chicago film critic Roger Ebert died after a long battle with cancer. He was 70.

File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI

In 2014, the United Nations announced that the millionth refugee from war-torn Syria had entered Lebanon.

In 2017, Syrian government forces kill dozens of civilians in a chemical attack in the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun.

In 2019, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints reversed its policy denying the children of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender parents to be blessed as infants and baptized as members.

In 2024, a copy of Action Comics No. 1, which introduced Superman to the world in 1938, became the world’s most expensive comic book when it fetched $6 million at auction.

File Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

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BBC Breakfast’s weather presenter promised it wasn’t all bad news for this holiday weekend

One of the hosts of BBC Breakfast shared their own warning to viewers who might be planning an Easter egg hunt this weekend.

The morning show returned to screens on Saturday (April 4) for another regular instalment despite it being an extended bank holiday weekend. As usual, it delivered the day’s top stories from the UK and across the world, including the latest from Iran and updates over the Artemis II launch.

Today’s show was presented by Naga Munchetty and Charlie Stayt as they provided the latest on the headlines and more. One of the biggest stories of the latest edition of the show was weather updates ahead of the expected arrival of Storm Dave hitting the country.

Ahead of the latest update Naga had her own message for viewers at home. She told the audience: “It is Easter weekend. If you’re out on an Easter egg hunt, perhaps you may need to time it. I think Louise is going to tell us more about that.”

It seems that Naga was advising those at home they may have only a limited time to mark Easter Sunday before the effects of Storm Dave are felt. However, BBC Breakfast’s weather presenter Louise Lear began her report by saying: “I don’t want you all to think the weather is going to be hideous because of Storm Dave.”

She emphasised that it is later today that the storm is due to hit, addressing those who might be wondering when the worst of the weather is due to begin. She added: “There is some tricky weather out there, particularly overnight.”

Multiple weather warnings are currently in place across the UK over the weekend with gusts between 70 – 90mph from later today until tomorrow morning.

This could threaten many people’s plans for this Easter holiday weekend and, as Naga hinted, present limited time if you often take part in Easter egg hunts outside.

Storm Dave is due to hit parts of the UK over the weekend and could cause disruption to travel plans. It is expected to hit hardest on Saturday evening, before beginning to weaken on Sunday as it moves into the North Sea. Louise did end her report by predicting that Easter Monday will be the ‘better’ day of the three this weekend.

The Met Office’s forecast said: “A rapidly deepening area of low pressure, Storm Dave, will cross Scotland on Saturday night before clearing into the North Sea on Sunday.”

Those travelling during the warning period have been told there could be disruption on the roads as well as on rail, air and ferry services. There could also be dangerous conditions from large waves along the coastline as well as gusts of up to 90mph in exposed areas.

The Met Office also warned some areas could experience power cuts, while warning “injuries and danger to life from flying debris are possible”. Earlier, the RAC predicted it would be the busiest Easter on the roads since 2022.

BBC Breakfast airs daily from 6am on BBC One and streams on iPlayer.

Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre maintained his strong form with a round of 64 for a four-shot halfway lead at the Texas Open in San Antonio.

MacIntyre had four birdies in his last five holes with his playing partner and Ryder Cup team-mate Ludwig Aberg of Sweden his nearest challenger.

Starting on the back nine, the world number 11 put down a marker with an eight-foot eagle putt at the par-five 14th and followed that up with birdies at his next two holes.

The only blemish for the 29-year-old was a bogey at the 17th before he regrouped to finish with a flourish for a confidence boost ahead of the Masters which begins in Augusta on Thursday.

“I’ve been driving the ball nice,” said the Scot. “I’ve got a new driver in the bag. Iron play today was exceptional I would say.

“I hit a pure wedge shot on 17, I thought it was absolutely dynamite there. Approach play, hitting the number, hitting the targets. Got to finish off with good putting. Overall, just really solid.

“I didn’t play here last year, just went straight into Augusta. This was an adjustment for that reason. I wanted to be sharp – or sharper – going into Augusta.”

Aberg had four birdies over his first 14 holes before an eagle at the sixth, but he finished with a bogey.

“For me, golf is about putting yourself in situations where you can win tournaments,” he said.

“I feel like I haven’t really done that very well the last 12 months or so, but starting to see it now, which has been really nice. Starting to get back into that level, which is really nice for me to see. So I’m looking forward to one more shot at it this week.”

Among those one shot back are six-time PGA Tour winner Tony Finau who is chasing a first win since April 2023 and who needs a win to be invited to the Masters.

The 36-year-old American finished his round strongly with an eagle putt at the 18th.

“It was nice to make an eagle on the last,” he said. “I hit a really good drive, pushed my second shot a little, got lucky, covered the water and was able to roll that one in. Sometimes those are the small little breaks that you need to be towards the top of the leaderboard.”

A SMALL Spanish coastal city has been named one of the up-and-coming destinations to visit in 2026.

Airbnb has recently announced its 2026 Dupe-It List, with alternative holiday destinations to visit instead of the better known, busier hotspots.

And included on the list is swapping Marbella for Denia, Spain.

Airbnb said: “Situated on the Mediterranean coast of Spain’s Costa Blanca – Denia is a charming port city that might just be the country’s best sun-soaked secret.

“Offering vibrant marina life, tapas-fuelled evenings and Instagram-worthy sea views, travellers can meander through the old town’s cobbled streets, pop into local boutiques, or unwind on nearby beaches for a relaxed, authentic escape that’s every bit as picturesque as its flashier cousin, Marbella.”

The holiday accommodation platform also recommends that visitors stay in Casa Sol, which is an entire townhouse and that the best time to visit is between June and September.

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Denia sits on the Costa Blanca and often dubbed the pearl of the region by locals, according to WTG Spain.

Not only that, but in 1982, the World Health Organisation dubbed the climate as one of the best in the world.

This is because the mountains that back the city stop the cold air from cooling temperatures in the city.

As a result, the microclimate means the seasons don’t change harshly in the city and leads to around 320 days of sunshine a year.

High temperatures tends to sit around 32C during the summer and lows sit around 11C during the winter, though the average annual temperature is a comfortable 19C.

When it comes to making the most of the weather in the city, like many other Spanish coastal cities, Denia has a number of beaches to choose from – including six Blue Flag spots.

For example, Punta del Raset Beach has both soft golden sand and calm waters making perfect for families.

If you fancy heading somewhere a bit more spacious, then opt for Deveses, which is the longest beach in Denia.

One recent visitor said: “A quiet beach, ideal for going with children.

“You can spend all day there, and enjoy the Los Baños bar, both for an aperitif, lunch and even a cocktail in the middle of the afternoon – very clean beach.”

Overlooking the beach, up 60 metres high on a hill, is the famous Denia Castle and Archaeological – an ancient fortress and ruins with panoramic views of the sea.

Otherwise the marina, is where tourists can find some of the city’s waterfront restaurants.

For watersports fans, the marina is where you can head off jet skiing, paddle boarding, kayaking or even sailing.

You can hop even hop on a ferry to another destination such as Ibiza, just two hours away, which costs around €25 (£21.78) per passenger.

And of course, Denia has an Old Town known as El Barrio – here you will find narrow streets, the Assumption Church and lots of traditional Spanish homes.

Travel writer Amalia Maloney even called the charming destination a ‘goldilocks town’ because it is neither too big or too small.

Fancy leaving the city for some green space? You can also head to Montgó Natural Park.

The park is the ideal spot for keen hikers and wildlife lovers, as it’s home to over 600 plant species and 150 animal species including the Bonelli’s eagle and Peregrine falcon.

The peak of the park sits at a staggering 753 metres – so it isn’t a hike for the faint hearted.

One recent visitor said it was the “most impressive on the Costa Blanca”.

When looking for a bite to eat, visitors won’t spend too much with a mid-range three-course meal for two people likely to set you back €40 (£34.93).

And if you fancy a tipple, such as a beer, it will cost you around €2.20 (£1.92).

In fact, the city has been a UNESCO Creative City of Gastronomy since 2015 due to culinary traditions being kept up across the city’s 300 plus restaurants, with key dishes including rice-based meals and crimson shrimp.

You can get to Denia by flying to either Valencia or Alicante, where flights are around £14.

From Valencia to Denia it takes around 1hr19 by car, or just over an hour from Alicante.

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DAUBED on an ancient wall, the curt sentence “All tourists are bastards” isn’t exactly welcoming – but it sums up a growing problem with tourists in one of the world’s most beautiful cities.

In summer, it can be hard to move on Venice’s most popular streets, but visit in low season and discover quiet backwaters where life is much slower — and cheaper — and overall a much more pleasant experience.

My tour guide, Guiliano from Devour Tours, tells me: “Even the fish market, where I shopped with my mother as a child, is only open for traditional reasons these days and, of course, for tourists.”

Venice, some 1,605 years old, has long been one of Italy’s most visited and famous cities. Once known as the home of merchants, its business today is tourism — whether the locals like it or not.

It’s fair to say many of them don’t. Locals are particularly against short-term rentals, saying they have ­hollowed out neighbourhoods, pushing residents out.

Authorities have listened, responding with cruise ship bans, crowd controls and, most infamously, entry fees.

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The €5 fee — which rises to €10 for tourists who book fewer than four days in advance — typically only applies to weekends from April to July, so you won’t be charged on most weekdays.

But other residents understand that Venice needs tourism to survive.

Valentina, the manager at the historic Hilton Molino Stucky hotel’s rooftop Skyline Bar, is among that number.

As I sip on my Rising Tempest cocktail — a Venetian take on a Long Island Ice Tea — and nibble on focaccia, Valentina explains that while tourists can be “a little irritating in high season”, she appreciates they are now part of the city’s make-up.

At the bar — located in a former flour mill on pretty Giudecca island and with stunning views of the main city — she tells me: “Overall we love tourists and we do need them.”

The welcome at my hotel, the beautiful Maison ­Venezia, is warm and as impressive as its location.

In the Cannaregio district, the four-star resort has Murano glass chandeliers and decor featuring traditional Venetian decorative motifs. Just a short stroll to the iconic Rialto Bridge, it is incredibly peaceful.

My room was so quiet, with a balcony overlooking a small canal, it was almost impossible to believe I was in a city, let alone one of the most touristy in Europe.

Even out of season, it’s easy to see Venice’s draw.

It has no roads, just canals, gondolas and crumbling palaces rising straight out of the water. There’s hundreds of years of history, maze-like alleys and sunsets that light the whole lagoon — home to more than 100 islands — on fire.

People have been coming here for years for the romance, the cicchetti — the Venetian alternative to tapas — and a unique feeling of drifting through a city that has not really changed for centuries. Even in low season, tourist must-sees like St Mark’s Square, the Doge’s Palace and the Grand Canal are busy.

However, head just a few streets back and Venice is a totally different experience, even in high summer.

During my tour, we stop off in Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo, one of the city’s most beautiful squares.

Surprisingly, it’s very quiet, with just a few tour groups and locals milling about.

When I ask Guiliano for the ­reason, he says the square is a contradiction unique to Venice.

“It’s in the city centre, but off the beaten track — and it’s pretty much hidden even in the summer,” he says.

“In London, tourists go back and forth exclusively between Piccadilly and Leicester Square for their entire trip, and avoid places like Shoreditch. It’s the same here.”

While cafes in St Mark’s Square are notoriously pricey — think £12 for a cappuccino — more rustic spots off the main drag sell glasses of delicious Italian wine for about £3.50, cicchetti for £1.30 and pizzas from £7.

Venice in high season might lose a little of its magic, but overtourism is easier to dodge if you pick your moment.

Visit off-season and you’ll find a calmer, more authentic side. Crowds or not, though, there’s nowhere quite like it — and that’s why people keep coming back.

European Parliament member Rima Hassan says she’s facing “genuine judicial and political harassment” for her political opinions. She was detained in France on suspicion of “apology for terrorism”.

Iran claims responsibility for downing two US warplanes, as search under way for missing crewmember.

Iran has claimed responsibility for shooting down two US warplanes.

Two American crewmembers were rescued and one airman remains missing after a F-15E Strike Eagle went down over the Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad provinces and an A-10 Warthog crashed into the Gulf, according to US media reports.

Iranians took to the streets in Tehran to celebrate what authorities described as a major military success.

Iranian officials said the downing of the aircraft demonstrates that Tehran still has the capability to confront US and Israeli forces, despite the Trump administration’s claims that the country’s military infrastructure has been severely damaged.

The incidents mark a significant escalation in the conflict, with search and rescue operations under way for the missing US crewmember.

Here is what we know about the latest developments:

In Iran

• Major escalation: US forces are conducting search and rescue operations for a missing crewmember after Iran downed two American warplanes. A US Black Hawk helicopter involved in the search was also hit by Iranian fire but managed to remain airborne, according to US media reports.
• Defence system: Iran said a “new advanced defence system” downed the aircraft, contradicting earlier US claims that its air defences had been destroyed.
• Casualties and damage: The human toll continues to rise with at least 2,076 people killed and 26,500 wounded in Iran since the start of the war on February 28, according to Iranian authorities.

War diplomacy

• Diplomacy stalls: Iran’s semi-official news agency Fars on Friday reported that Tehran had rejected a US proposal for a 48-hour ceasefire. The US did not confirm or comment on the report, which cited an unnamed source.
• War of words: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian questioned whether the US is sincere about diplomacy, accusing Washington of hypocrisy and asking the world to judge “which side engages in dialogue and negotiation, and which in terrorism” after a recent attack that killed the wife of a senior Iranian official.
• Appeal to world: Pezeshkian said he consulted Finland’s president over US President Donald Trump’s threat to bomb Iran “back to the Stone Ages”, calling the remark a clear admission of intent to commit a “massive war crime” and warning the international community against remaining neutral.

In the Gulf

•  One killed at UAE gas site: An Egyptian national was killed and four others wounded after a fire at a gas complex in Abu Dhabi, caused by falling debris from an intercepted attack, the Government Media Office said.
• Kuwait reports strikes: Authorities said Iranian strikes hit an oil refinery and a desalination plant, though Tehran denied targeting the water facility.
• Drone interception in Bahrain: In Bahrain, the Ministry of Interior reported that four people were injured and several homes were damaged in the Sitra area after shrapnel fell from an intercepted Iranian drone.

In the US

• Trump briefed on downed plane, Iran hunts for pilot: Trump has been briefed about the downing of a military jet in Iran that has triggered a major search and rescue operation for a missing crewmember, the White House said. US media reported that another crewmember was rescued.

• Propaganda impact: Geopolitical analyst Phyllis Bennis said the downing of a US fighter jet and search for the missing airman could make it harder for the White House to maintain public support for the war, particularly among Trump’s MAGA base. The incident “changes the propaganda equation”, even if it does not change the military balance, she told Al Jazeera.

• Trump seeks $1.5 trillion defence budget: Trump asked lawmakers to approve a massive $1.5 trillion defence budget for 2027, as the US faces rising costs from its war with Iran and mounting global security commitments.

In Israel

• Strikes on Israel: Iran launched missile attacks on southern Israel, sparking a fire at an industrial site in the Negev region.
• Economic and societal toll: Simultaneous conflicts in Iran, Gaza and Lebanon have cost Israel an estimated $112bn, leading to significant cracks in the nation’s economy. Daily civilian life remains heavily disrupted, with schools across the country keeping their doors closed.
• Political shifts and public opinion: Despite the disruption, 78 percent of Jewish Israelis still support the war against Iran, though pollsters warn this backing could eventually erode. Amidst the ongoing conflict, the Israeli government has lurched further to the right, recently passing a record $271bn budget as well as a highly controversial death penalty law targeting Palestinians.

In Lebanon and Syria

•  Man killed in Syria: State media in Syria said Israeli fire killed a man in the Quneitra province in the country’s south near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.
• Lebanon Front: Israel destroyed two critical bridges in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, while Hezbollah claimed responsibility for multiple missile strikes against Israeli soldiers and artillery in southern Lebanon.

Oil, energy and food

• Australia faces petrol shortages: Australia’s government urged motorists to fill their cars at city petrol stations ahead of any long road trips over the Easter holiday. Energy Minister Chris Bowen said hundreds of service stations in rural towns had run out of diesel nationally.
• Food prices rise: The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said its Food Price Index, which measures the monthly changes in international prices of a basket of food commodities, rose 2.4 percent in March.
• Free bus rides in Pakistan: State-run public transport in Pakistan’s capital and most populous province will be free for the coming month, officials said Friday.

Emmerdale favourite Cain Dingle is hit by a car in deadly scenes next week with three possible culprits teased, but will he survive and does the driver leave him for dead?

A horrifying new clip for Emmerdale shows the moment Cain Dingle is left lifeless after being hit by a car.

Next week on the ITV soap, Jeff Hordley’s character is on the phone to his wife Moira Dingle when he is struck at speed. A clip appears to tease the identity of the mystery driver, with one of three characters behind the wheel.

Kerry Wyatt, Jacob Gallagher and Graham Foster are all seen emotional or distracted before they speed off in their own cars. Jacob has just faced more drama with his bullying boss Dr Todd, and we see him breaking down in his car.

Graham has a run-in with Paddy and Marlon Dingle it seems, after his near-kiss with Marlon’s wife Rhona Goskirk. Kerry is crying over something – but is it linked to Dr Todd, or Eric Pollard?

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As all three of them drive off, suddenly someone speeds towards Cain who is in the middle of a road. Slamming into him, Cain is left bleeding and unconscious as he hits the floor.

He’s not in a good way, but the clip ends there. So will Cain die and who runs him over? Whoever it is seems to leave Cain there as in another clip, it’s Cain’s young son Carl calling desperately for an ambulance.

Kyle confirms his dad isn’t waking up and is badly injured, as he tells the emergency services what has happened. The fact that Kyle is alone and making the call could suggest no one else is there, and it’s a hit and run.

All will be revealed soon in terms of who the driver is, but the clips certainly hint it will either be Graham, Kerry or Jacob. As for Cain’s fate, the spoilers do not reveal if he lives or dies.

It isn’t thought he will die given his huge cancer storyline that is ongoing. Cain has been diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer, with him deciding whether or not to have treatment, and only recently did he tell his family including his wife Moira.

So surely they wouldn’t kill Cain off in such a brutal way when there’s still a way to go with the cancer storyline. So it’s safe to assume Cain will survive being hit by the car, but it’s not certain.

It’s also not clear if he will be badly injured and if there will be any consequences. Fans will have to stay tuned to find out what happens to Cain and who is to blame.

Emmerdale airs weeknights at 8pm on ITV1 and ITVX. * Follow Mirror Celebs and TV on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .

Doncic is the NBA’s leading scorer this season with 2143 points for an unequalled average of 33.5 points per game.

However, having been sidelined for four games with a left hamstring strain earlier in the season, and missing two games to return to Slovenia for the birth of his daughter in December, Doncic is set to fall short of the minimum games threshold required to qualify for the NBA’s major end-of-season awards.

Doncic, who is one appearance short of the 65 required, will apply for an “Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge”, according to his agent Bill Duffy.

“This season, Luka Doncic has performed at a historic level, leading the league in scoring, carrying the Lakers to third place in the Western Conference and placing himself in the middle of one of the most tightly contested MVP races in memory,” Duffy told ESPN.

“To ensure Luka’s incredible accomplishments this season are rightly honoured and he can be considered for the league’s end-of-season awards, we intend to apply for an ‘Extraordinary Circumstances Challenge’ to the 65-game rule.”

Doncic was named March’s player of the month following 13 consecutive 30-point performances which helped the Lakers to 13 wins in 14 games prior to the defeat by Thunder.

NASA has unveiled the first images of Earth taken by Artemis II astronauts as they head towards the moon. The mission is expected to take humans farther from Earth than ever before, marking a major step in humanity’s return to lunar exploration.