U.S. & WORLD NEWS DIGEST | Plane returns after bird strike

Plane returns after bird strike

ORLANDO, Fla.

A plane headed for London returned to the Orlando-Sanford International Airport after it hit a bird during takeoff.

Airport vice president Diane Crews says the Thomson Airways flight turned around Wednesday evening after the pilot heard and felt the large bird strike.

The Boeing 767 landed safely, and no injuries were reported to the 269 people on board.

Crews say the passengers will spend the night at a hotel and take a different plane to London Gatwick Airport on Thursday.

The bird’s carcass was retrieved from an engine on the left side of the plane. The animal will be sent to the Smithsonian Institution, where experts will identify the species.

Arrest made in case of webcam death

TORONTO

A 29-year-old man has been charged with the murder of a college student whose frantic boyfriend in China watched through a webcam as she struggled with an attacker, police said Wednesday.

Brian Dickson was charged with first-degree murder, Toronto police spokesman Tony Vella told The Associated Press. Dickson was scheduled to appear in court this morning.

The body of York University student Liu Qian, 23, of Beijing, was found Friday in her apartment in Toronto a few hours after her boyfriend witnessed the attack, police said.

2 controllers fired for sleeping on job

WASHINGTON

The Federal Aviation Administration says it has fired air-traffic controllers in Miami and Knoxville, Tenn., for sleeping on the job.

FAA announced the firings in a statement late Wednesday.

The agency has said the controller in Miami was found sleeping around 5 a.m. Saturday at a regional radar facility that handles high altitude air traffic for portions of Florida, the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea. A preliminary review of air traffic tapes indicated he did not miss any calls from aircraft and there was no impact on flight operations.

Associated Press