IN BRIEF : Airline faces trial on 'emergency landing'

British Midland Airways will face a crown court trial over a holiday flight which was forced to make an emergency landing with 177 passengers on board.

The Boeing 737/400 suffered an oil leak after taking off from East Midlands Airport for Lanzarote on 23 February last year and the pilot had to land the plane at Luton Airport 13 minutes later. In the first prosecution of its kind, the Civil Aviation Authority has charged the company with negligency endangering life. Magistrates at Luton yesterday committed the case to the town's crown court.