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A Hawaii-bound United Airlines flight returned to Los Angeles today after there was smoke detected in the cabin, prompting an emergency landing shortly before noon. The plane landed at LAX, with all 143 passengers on board safe. The source of the smoke has yet to be determined.
United Flight 1296 was Kona-bound when about a half hour into the flight passengers noticed smoke in the cabin. A passenger Ed Mertz told KNX that the flight "might have a fighter escort, and that we were going to land on some island off the coast instead of LAX," and that passengers were told to put their life vests on. Fire trucks and ambulances awaited the jet when it landed at LAX, but none of the passengers on board required medical attention.
Mertz told KNX reported that a fire fighter had radioed in that the jetliner had experienced a hydraulic issue while over the Pacific Ocean. The Boeing 757 will undergo a thorough inspection, said United Airlines spokesman Charles Hobart.
