Smoke in Cockpit Forces Commuter Plane Back to Long Beach Airport
A commuter airliner returned to Long Beach Airport minutes into its flight to Sacramento on Sunday morning when the pilot reported smoke in the cockpit, authorities said.
United Express flight 3159, a twin-engine turbo-prop Brasilia, landed at 11:08 a.m. without incident, airline and Federal Aviation Administration officials said.
It was not immediately known how many passengers were aboard the plane, which holds about 30 people.
The aircraft left Long Beach Airport for Sacramento about 11 a.m. Minutes later, the pilot noticed smoke in the cockpit and decided to return, an FAA duty officer said.
The cause of the smoke was not immediately determined.
After mechanics checked the plane, it left Long Beach at about 1 p.m., and landed in Sacramento at 2:15 p.m., an airline information agent said.
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