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Martin wades into abortion debateAs the Dáil committee hearings continue on the abortion bill, Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has waded into the debate saying it is important that Christian believers "be, and seen to be, on the side of life, especially when life is most vulnerable".
Payment cuts see families pay rent shortfallLimits on rent supplement payments set by the Government are forcing thousands of families to make undeclared top-up payments to landlords to secure places to live.
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Anger as North Korea launches another missileNorth Korea fired a short-range missile from its east coast, a day after launching three more of these missiles, a South Korean news agency said.
How Star Trek predicted the futureWHEN Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry first dreamed up the concept of a television show based in the unexplored universe of Outer Space in 1964, the world was a very different place.
- BUSINESS
Warnings over future of eurozoneThe eurozone is heading towards a break up unless there are moves towards much closer political and fiscal union, according to chief economist with State Street Global Advisers, Chris Probyn.
Bruton defends corporate tax rateIreland will be able to maintain its current corporation tax code in the face of international pressure to prevent multinational corporations avoid paying their fare share of tax, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton said yesterday.
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Mayo’s statement of intentGalway 0-11 Mayo 4-16 Five minutes to go in Salthill yesterday and James Horan was still cajoling his men to sew it into Galway.
Wilkinson inspires Toulon to gloryASM Clermont Auvergne 15 Toulon 16 Not for the first time this season, a matchday performance and the result have made a mockery of the statistics.
- LIFESTYLE
What Lenny did nextLENNY Abrahamson has directed three feature films: Adam & Paul, Garage and What Richard Did.
Clothes maketh you madTrying on clothes, said Ewart, produced "sensations which bring deep peace and perfect contentment" to the female mind.
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Breaking stories
Stunt pilot avoids disaster after bird strike on plane
A stunt plane which, but for the skill of the pilot, could have crashed into spectators at an air show, was probably hit by a small bird, a report has found.
By Catherine Shanahan
Accomplished pilot David Bruton, whose father Tommy died in a plane crash some years ago, narrowly avoided disaster by bringing his plane down in a field, despite substantial damage to the upper wing. An investigation into the accident, which occurred during the Foynes Flying Boat festival in Jun 2011, found evidence of “a possible bird strike”.
Sections of the fabric on the upper wing of the Steen Skybolt biplane were torn loose, resulting in serious control difficulties. The aircraft subsequently went into rapid descent at a rate of 200ft-300ft per minute.
Mr Bruton, from Co Longford, told investigators he considered use of a parachute, but was too close to the ground and that spectator safety was also an issue.
He made a distress call to Shannon air traffic control, who offered an immediate landing, but believed the performance of the aircraft meant he would not have time to reach the runway.
He considered the beach, but the shore was “not suitable due to visible and submerged rocks”.
The report said the 41-year-old Mr Bruton “selected the best available field for a forced landing”, which he completed successfully, “narrowly clearing a stone wall” before touching down.
The inspector, Leo Murray, from the Air Accident Investigation Unit of the Department of Transport, said the pilot “was fortunate in having considerable aerobatic flight experience, a factor which no doubt led to the successful outcome of this event”.