NEW YORK -- An engine tailcone fell off a Delta Air Lines jet shortly after takeoff Thursday and plunged thousands of feet before landing harmlessly on a lawn in a Long Island neighborhood.
Apparently, neither the pilots nor anyone on the ground immediately noticed the mishap when it happened. The Boeing 777 doesn't need the 20-pound part to fly and carried on safely to its destination, Tokyo, officials said.
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Silent movie "The Artist" had a night to shout about Sunday, winning seven prizes including best picture at the British Academy Film Awards. 
Greece's parliament early Monday approved harsh new austerity measures demanded by bailout creditors to save the debt-crippled country from bankruptcy, after rioters in central Athens torched buildings, looted shops and clashed with riot police. 
Authorities in Italy say pumping operations have begun to remove some of the 500,000 gallons of fuel aboard the cruise ship that ran aground off Tuscany. 
Peruvian troops captured on Sunday the badly wounded leader of a remnant of the once-powerful Shining Path rebel group, effectively dismantling a well-armed faction that lived off the cocaine trade, President Ollanta Humala said. 
The Arab League will call Sunday for the U.N. Security Council to create a joint peacekeeping force for Syria, the latest effort by the regional group to end the 11-month old crisis that has killed more than 5,000 people. 
Someone in the smallest state in the country is the biggest winner among the people who hold 2,777,232 winning tickets from last night's Powerball drawing – $336 million worth. 
A day after Mitt Romney regained some momentum in the Republican presidential contest, his rival Rick Santorum went on the attack, calling the front-runner "desperate" while promising to compete aggressively to win the state where Romney grew up. Keep up with the latest stories with our free local news e-mail newsletters, delivered straight to your inbox!
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