"German Autumn" ("Deutscher Herbst"): RAF terrorists kidnap the president of the employers’ association, Hanns Martin Schleyer; his driver and three of his companions are murdered during the abduction. The kidnappers demand the release of all of their comrades from the Stammheim Prison in Stuttgart.
On 13 October, four terrorists hijack the Lufthansa plane "Landshut" and divert it to Mogadishu. During a stopover in Aden, the pilot Jürgen Schumann is murdered.
On 18 October, a "GSG 9" commando frees the hostages; three of the hijackers are killed. On the same day, Andreas Baader and Gudrun Ensslin are found dead in their cells in the Stammheim Prison in Stuttgart, while Irmgard Möller and Jan-Carl Raspe are found severely injured in theirs. Raspe dies a few days later. When news of the suicides in Stammheim gets out, Schleyer is murdered by his kidnappers.less
12 September
1977
After the SED Politburo reduces coffee imports because of the price rise on the global market in summer and restricts coffee consumption in canteens and restaurants, the Ministry for Security warns internally of a storm of protest from the population.more
The USA and the Soviet Union agree to extend the SALT I treaty (Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Agreement).more
30 September
1977
The GDR National Defence Council has been given a secret review, carried out by the SED Central Committee, of the effectiveness of border security measures.more