IN BRIEF

Published: January 30, 2013 (Issue # 1744)

Born in Mid-Air

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — A female passenger gave birth on board a flight from St. Petersburg to the Kyrgyz city of Osh on Jan. 22.

Flight attendant Alexei Romanyuk delivered the baby on board the plane, which was flying on a route operated by Russian airline Rossiya, Interfax reported.

An hour before landing in Osh, Romanyuk reported to the senior flight attendant that one of the female passengers was in a critical condition. While the senior flight attendant informed the captain of the plane about the situation and announced a search for a doctor among passengers, Romanyuk prepared a space for the woman and gave her what help he could during the birth.

The parents of the newborn baby decided to name him Alexei in honor of the flight attendant, Interfax reported.

Olympic English

ST. PETERSBURG (SPT) — Employees of the OMON special forces unit from the northwestern Russian city of Veliky Novgorod who are to patrol the Olympics in Sochi in 2014 are embarking on a drive to learn English, Interfax reported.

Twice a week, soldiers and officers of the Varyag special service police unit will study English in lessons specially organized for them. The head of the unit has also joined the classes, the region’s police press service reported.