'Miracle on the Hudson' plane departs for museum

The U.S. Airways airplane that made a splash-landing dubbed the "

Miracle on the Hudson" more than two years ago began a road trip on Saturday to Charlotte, North Carolina, its original, and final, destination.

The Airbus A320 airplane, which had sat in a New Jersey warehouse since it was salvaged from the icy Hudson River after the January 2009 water landing, was loaded onto a trailer earlier this week.

All 155 passengers and crew survived the incident that made pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger an American hero for his quick-thinking decision to land in the river when the airplane struck a flock of birds just after take-off from New York's LaGuardia airport and lost power in both engines.

The plane will make its way over several days to Charlotte, where it will become a permanent exhibit at the Carolinas Aviation Museum.

The museum was tracking the journey, originally announced to begin on Monday, through the streets of New Jersey and beyond, on Twitter at @CarolinAirMusem.

"Today (Saturday) we will stop in New Brunswick," a midday posting said.

Museum president Shawn Dorsch, who called the plane "a major international aviation icon," said it would take several months to reassemble the aircraft.

Sullenberger will be on hand for a special event at the museum on June 11, which sold out on Friday.

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Baby girl born on Malabo-Madrid flight

An airline passenger gave birth to a baby girl Friday while flying to Madrid from central Africa, helped by a midwife, paediatrician and doctor who were all aboard, Iberia said.The three-kilogram (6.6-pound) baby was born healthy after a quick delivery during an Iberia Airbus A319 flight from Malabo, capital of Equatorial Guinea, the Spanish airline said in a statement."The birth occurred during the flight at 3.30am Spanish time (0130 GMT), just over two hours after take-off," it said.

A midwife, paediatrician and doctor happened to be aboard and were able to help with the delivery of the girl, whose name was not known.The flight continued without a detour. The mother, who lives in Madrid but had gone to Malabo to attend a funeral, was taken to hospital with her baby on arrival in the Spanish capital."It is true she was very lucky," said an Iberia spokeswoman when asked about the presence of qualified medical personnel aboard.Iberia recommends pregnant women not fly but cannot ban someone, the spokeswoman said. There were special circumstances in this case because the mother had to attend a funeral, she said.Some airlines prohibit women who are more than seven months' pregnant from boarding a plane without a medical certificate.

The girl was the fifth baby to be born on an Iberia flight.Asked whether she would get any benefit from her high-flying origins, the spokeswoman said stories about airlines giving away free tickets in such cases were an urban myth.But the airline was considering a "small gift" for the mother and daughter, she added.

Undated handout photo of the Iberia Airbus A340-600. An airline passenger gave birth …

Police Dog Lost In Budget Cuts

EAST HAVEN, Conn. - The East Haven Police Department is losing its one police dog to budget cuts.

Sgt. John Miller, the police union president, tells the New Haven Register that acting Chief Gaetano Nappi decided to retire the 5-year-old German shepherd named Paro after the town council cut the department's budget.

Paro has been working with Officer Dave Cari, who was informed by letter Thursday that the K-9 program was being eliminated and that he could choose to have Paro retire as his pet.

Nappi has declined to comment on the decision.

Miller says it would cost about $3,500 a year to keep Paro in service.

Cari has been on disability since Dec. 30, when he broke three ribs, but is preparing to return to active duty.

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