September 11, 2006 11:10 AM PDT
Unclaimed BlackBerry diverts United flight
The Houston Chronicle is reporting that a United Airlines jet bound for San Francisco was diverted to Dallas on Monday because an unclaimed BlackBerry was found onboard. The device turned up inside a backpack that did not belong to any of the 50-odd passengers on the Airbus 319 jet. Authorities described the diversion as a precautionary measure--after all, Monday is the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
The BlackBerry, however, proved harmless. As it turned out, a woman who had been on an earlier flight on the same plane had left it there by mistake.
Last month, a "World of Warcraft" player inadvertently caused an airport panic in Ottawa, Canada, when his iPod fell into a plane's toilet.
Caroline McCarthy, a CNET News staff writer, is a downtown Manhattanite happily addicted to social-media tools and restaurant blogs. Her pre-CNET resume includes interning at an IT security firm and brewing cappuccinos. E-mail Caroline. 
