Denver-bound flight makes emergency landing in Illinois

A United Express flight from Pittsburgh to Denver made an emergency landing in Moline, Illinois Thursday morning when the pilots reported smoke in the cockpit and electrical problems.

The Embraer 175 aircraft was roughly 40 miles of Moline when the pilot declared an emergency shortly before 8:00 a.m. Mountain Time. United Express Flight 7559 immediately turned around and landed safely at Quad Cities airport 10 minutes later.

There were 67 passengers and 4 crew members on board.

Fire officials said there was never a fire on board the plane, just the smell of smoke in the cockpit. Everyone exited the aircraft safely as it sat on the runway.

Passengers were taken to the terminal in vans and were making alternative arrangements to travel to Denver.