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American jet makes emergency landing at LAX

An American Airlines plane carrying 180 passengers made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport on Monday after a pilot reported smoke and the smell of fuel in the cockpit, and officials said there were no injuries.
/ Source: The Associated Press

An American Airlines plane carrying 180 passengers made an emergency landing at Los Angeles International Airport on Monday after a pilot reported smoke and the smell of fuel in the cockpit, and officials said there were no injuries.

The flight, from San Francisco to Miami, was diverted after pilot declared an emergency and landed shortly after 2 p.m., FAA spokesman Ian Gregor said.

The passengers were taken off the Boeing 757 while officials investigated, according to airline spokesman Tim Wagner. There was no fire on the plane, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles Fire Department said.

Maintenance crews recently worked on a hydraulic unit aboard the plane, and that sometimes causes excess fluid to spill in flight, Wagner said.

Firefighters responded to the emergency because the plane was carrying an aircraft part, which is classified as hazardous because it might contain residual oil, jet fuel or other chemicals, Wagner said. It wasn't clear whether the aircraft part was involved in the emergency declaration.