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Onlookers watched with bated breath and emergency services braced for a fiery emergency as a small aircraft circled above Newcastle airport for hours today.
The aircraft – which had three people onboard, including the pilot – landed on its belly without significant damage at about midday, with the pilot and passengers walking away from the place.
Supt Wayne Humphrey said the 53-year-old pilot from Queensland realised there was a mechanical issue after taking off and began circling while he tried to resolve it. The pilot later determined the “landing gear would not come back down”. Initial indications suggested the issue was a mechanical failure and that “nothing untoward” occurred.
After about 90 minutes of burning off fuel, the pilot performed “a textbook wheels-up landing”, prompting applause from authorities. After the landing, all three passengers “jumped in a car and drove home”, Humphrey said.
Top news
Chris Dawson loved wife, court told as appeal hearing begins | A finding Dawson murdered his wife was unreasonable because he had loved her and tried to restore a relationship fractured as he pursued a teenage girl, a court has been told. The 75-year-old former teacher is appealing an August 2022 verdict that found he murdered his wife, Lynette, and disposed of her body on 9 January 1982 because he was infatuated with a schoolgirl.
Four Vietnamese people found near Broome as asylum boat policy strains | Australia’s policy of deterrence against asylum seeker boats is under strain, with three boat arrivals in the last week, including four people found near Broome. In addition to five Rwandans who arrived on Saibai Island and 33 people who landed on Christmas Island, four Vietnamese “unauthorised maritime arrivals” arrived near Broome on Friday morning.
Trial begins for man accused of murdering Charlise Mutten | Justin Laurens Stein, 33, is accused of killing nine-year-old Charlise Mutten on or around 12 January 2022, at Mount Wilson, in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney. A court has heard Stein had an ongoing drug issue and had previously spent time in jail. Stein has pleaded not guilty.
Teenager who fatally stabbed Queensland woman sentenced to 14 years in prison | The teenager who fatally stabbed Queenslander Emma Lovell late at night on Boxing Day 2022 has been sentenced to serve 14 years in jail.
Federal court ends injunction on X over videos of church stabbing | The federal court has refused to extend an injunction against Elon Musk’s X over 65 tweets containing video of the Wakeley church stabbing, ahead of a final hearing in the case. Last month, X was ordered to hide the posts of the stabbing attack on bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel while he was giving a livestreamed service at the Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church in the Sydney suburb of Wakeley.
Dingo killed with speargun on K’gari amid spate of sightings | A man is accused of killing a dingo with a speargun at a popular Queensland holiday spot. Wildlife officers said the man had used the speargun after the dingo lingered around a camp site at night on K’gari, formerly known as Fraser Island. It is the 11th dingo encounter reported in a matter of months on K’gari.
NRL investigates alleged racial abuse | The lead-up to this weekend’s Magic Round has been overshadowed by allegations of racial abuse targeting South Sydney players Latrell Mitchell (pictured) and Cody Walker. The alleged abuse from a fan occurred at Kogarah on Saturday in the NRL match won 28-14 by St George Illawarra.
Dozens killed in cold lava mudslides on Indonesian island of Sumatra | Heavy rains triggered flash floods and caused torrents of cold lava and mud to flow down a volcano’s slopes on Indonesia’s Sumatra island, killing at least 41 people and leaving more than a dozen others missing, officials have said.
In pictures
Southern lights ignite the sky in geomagnetic glory – in pictures
Aurora australis has proven to be the weekend’s must-see event, offering the most ‘extreme’ celestial display in two decades. While people flocked to viewing spots from Tasmania to Argentina to glimpse the out-of-this-world geomagnetic event, warnings came of some very real-world repercussions.
What they said …
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“The late, great Hannibal Lecter is a wonderful man.” – Donald Trump
In a campaign rally speech in New Jersey, former US president Donald Trump praised fictional serial killer Hannibal Lecter before segueing into comments disparaging people who have immigrated into the US without permission.
In numbers
Beyond Blue has released a new study regarding the mental health of primary school-aged children and their parents. Nearly 1 in 3 parents are extremely concerned (30%). The study also found cost-of-living pressures were the number one stress factor for parents (68%).
Before bed read
A dog in the dock and another doing red carpet interviews: why has Cannes gone canine crazy?
Once a celebration of arthouse raunch, the film festival has had to change in the #MeToo era. Is that why, on screen and off, pooches are everywhere this year? Our writer goes walkies on the Côte d’Azur.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: SEA. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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