WASHINGTON (AP) -- First lady Hillary Rodham Clinton and daughter Chelsea's 12-day trip to North Africa got off to a rocky start Saturday, including an engine fire.
The planned departure from Andrews Air Force Base in suburban Maryland was delayed an hour because the Air Force Boeing 707 jetliner carrying the president's wife and daughter, staff aides and journalists was found to be overweight with cargo and luggage.Then as the plane raced down the runway for takeoff, flames shot out the rear of the outboard engine of the left wing. The jetliner skidded to a stop and taxied back to the terminal, where a dozen Air Force personnel scrambled to repair what a crew member described a minor engine compressor problem.
The plane took off about two hours after its originally scheduled departure time.