Crap From The Sky

An engine tailcone fell off a Delta Air Lines jet shortly after takeoff Thursday and plummeted thousands of feet before landing harmlessly on a lawn in a Long Island residential neighborhood.

Apparently, neither the pilots nor anyone on the ground immediately noticed the mishap when it happened. The aircraft, a Boeing 777, doesn't need the part to fly and carried on safely to its destination, Tokyo, aviation officials said.

Delta personnel reported the engine part missing following an inspection after the plane landed following its 14-hour flight, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Arlene Salac said.