Smoke forces plane to land in Des Moines

Over 100 guests at a downtown Des Moines hotel were forced out of their rooms for two hours last night when a fire broke out in a maintenance closet. Savery Hotel general A United Airlines 727 made an emergency landing in Des Moines shortly before noon today.The pilot saw a fire indicator light in the cockpit, and turned around shortly after take-off from Des Moines. A smoky fog settled in the cockpit and the rest of the plane. A chunk of ice in a vent caused the air circulation system to overheat. The plane was supposed to take off for Chicago at 8:10, but sat on the Des Moines runway ’til 11:30. It was de-iced three times. There were 96 passengers on board.