Amerikai Magyar Hírlap, 2005 (17. évfolyam, 2-50. szám)
2005-09-30 / 38. szám
Hungarian Journal Crippled JetBlue Airliner Makes Successful Emergency Landing at LAX Plane with 145 people on board makes an emergency landing with its nose gear turned sideways. The twisted wheel emits sparks and flames before the craft comes to a controlled stop. (LOS ANGELES) A JetBlue flight with 145 passengers and crew made an emergency landing at LAX on Wednesday, after a broken front landing gear forced the pilot to abort a transcontinental flight. Shortly after the plane left, the pilot discovered he may have a problem with the landing gear. He first tried to land at Long Beach, where jetBlue has a hub, but when the airport personnel .saw the twisted wheel up close, it became clear that the plane had to land at a large airport equipped with all kinds of emergency services, such as LAX. The safe landing at 6:19 p.m. ended the drama that had viewers riveted to their TVs for several hours. After flying out over the ocean to burn off fuel, the pilot balanced the craft on its rear landing wheels, keeping the damaged front gear away from the ground for as long as possible. Then, the tires shredded and the twisted wheels gave off sparks from the friction. But the plane held steady and moments later the Airbus 320 stopped on the runway as emergency vehicles approached. “It was a very, very safe landing,” Los Angeles Fire Dept. Battalion Chief Lou Roupoli said. “The pilot did an outstanding job. He kept the plane on its rear tires as long as he could before he brought it.” Within minutes, passengers left, walking down a mobile ramp to the tarmac. Many talked on cell phones as they boarded waiting buses. No injuries were reported. Passengers cheered at the end, but they were tense during the flight as they watched the crisis on live television. JetBlue prides itself on providing satellite TV for each passenger. More than 20 fire companies as well as 20 rescue ambulances and evacuation teams were placed along Runway 25L, where the plane landed. There were 139 passengers aboard and a crew of six. According to flight safety officials, as many as 7 Airbus jets had trouble with their nose landing gears over the last decade, including a JetBlue aircraft that had a similar problem to last Wednesday’s in New York in 2002. The airline has 77 Airbus A320’s and it is not clear yet whether the nosegear problem is a design flaw or just isolated incidents. Mayor Villaraigosa Called In for Jury Duty Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was cooling his heels in the dingy downtown criminal courthouse Wednesday morning, just another Joe Schmo with a jury summons. It didn’t matter that he had meetings scheduled with the president of United Airlines and the mayor of Busan, South Korea. As many of us may have experienced already, to the Los Angeles County court system, “indispensability at work” is no excuse for skipping out on jury duty — even if you’re the head of the nation’s second-largest city. And so, for what seemed like the first time in his 2 1/2 -month tenure, the mayor who prides himself on kinetic energy was engaged in that defining act of jury service: waiting around. Sitting on a bench in a crowded hallway, Villaraigosa was making phone calls, tapping his shoes and waiting to hear if he’d be assigned to a nearby courtroom. His secretary, Cathy Finley, stood at his shoulder with a stack of binders stuffed with official city business. Members of his security detail briefed him on developing police matters. But there was time to kill. A steady trickle of fans stopped by, and Villaraigosa talked to them, as well as to reporters and other nonfelonious citizens who had been called to fulfill their civic duty. Villaraigosa said he hoped his presence would send a message about the importance of jury duty. He said this was the third time he had been summoned in the last five years. The mayor said his last summons came about a year and a half ago, when he was serving as a City Council member. He was nearly tapped to serve on a jury but was eventually dismissed because he knew the judge, the public defender and the prosecutor, raising potential conflict of interest concerns. “Look,” he said, “I tell people that serving on a jury is an honor and one of the most important obligations of citizenship.” Villaraigosa is not the only L.A. mayor to be ordered to report for potential jury duty. James K. Hahn was called a couple of times during his four-year tenure but was never chosen to serve on a jury. Richard Riordan was summoned in 1996 and spent two weeks on call in a courthouse. He read a few books, helped a prospective juror with a jigsaw puzzle and took at least one nap. (L.A. Times) Mexican Security Minister, Police Chief Killed in Copter Crash MEXICO CITY — Mexico’s top federal law enforcement officer, a longtime ally of President Vicente Fox who led the war against a rising tide of national violence, was killed Wednesday along with eight others in a helicopter crash. Ramon Martin Huerta, secretary of public security, was traveling to a ceremony for new prison guards at Mexico’s maximum-security La Palma prison when the Bell 412 helicopter crashed into a mountain about 30 miles west of the capital, authorities said. “I profoundly regret the terrible accident,” Fox said in a nationally televised address Wednesday night. “I have lost an associate, .but above all, a dear friend.” Bad weather reduced visibility, causing the pilot to crash into the rocky hillside, said government officials in a preliminary assessment. The helicopter did not carry cockpit voice or flight data recorders, officials said. It took several hours to find the wreckage in the wooded area. Also killed in the crash Wednesday were federal Police Chief Gen. Tomas Valencia; public security staff members Francisco Javier Becerra Gomez, Jose Antonio Martinez Ramirez, Silvino Chavez Hernandez and Jorge Alberto Estrella Romero; Jose Antonio Bernal of the National Human Rights Commission; and pilots Habacuc de Leon Galicia and Rafael Esquivel Arreguin. China Names Condom for Bill Clinton A Chinese company is honoring ex-president Bill Clinton by naming a new line of condoms after him - along with a companion line of condoms that will be named after his ex-girlfriend, Monica Lewinsky. Reports Britain’s Sky News: The Guangzhou Haokian Bio-science company has registered their names as trademarks for the contraceptives. The condoms will display Chinese spellings: Kelitun and Laiwensiji. A 12-pack of Clintons is expected to cost $5.00, with Lewinskys selling at a discounted price of just over $3.00. The manufacturer’s general manager, Liu Wenhua, told Sky News that naming his condoms for Clinton was perfectly legal, explaining that “trademarks of two foreign surnames and can’t be seen as a violation of rights.” Clinton is the only U.S. president to be honored with his own condom brand line. Szeptember 30,2005 © Grand Birthday Party at the Csardas Dr. John Brasch Celebrated in Style Dr. John Brasch and Miss Midori Masui at his birthday party Guests outside on the patio Attila Kocs sings, with Gyula Bodrogi at the piano Andy Fisher and Miklós Pereházy (standing), Éva Pereházy and Elizabeth Fisher (sitting) Andy and Elizabeth Fisher raise their champagne glasses Dr. Brasch, who was celebrating his birthday in the company of many good friends, and Miss Midori Masui talking to guests Csardas owners Susan and Julius Jancso (top left). Guests dancing on the floor (bottom left). The entertainers seem to enjoy their job (above). DUNA Travel 8530 Holloway Dr. #102 W. Hollywood, CA 90069 SPECIÁLIS ÁR LAX-BUD-LAX $361 •“ +TX. Információért hívják ZSUZSÁT TEL: (310) 652-5294 FAX: (310) 652-5287 1-888-532-0168 Dr. Robert Győri telling a story Father and son together AMERIKAI r I« I n H/fagyarHírlap | English Page
