Sure been a lot of these smoke in cockpit incidents.

Emergency Landing Made in Manila MANILA, Philippines (AP) -- An Air Philippines jet carrying 62 people made an emergency landing Friday in Manila after smoke suddenly filled the passenger cabin, officials and witnesses said.

No one was hurt aboard the Boeing 737-200, which carried 56 passengers and six crew members.

It was the second safety incident involving an aircraft of that type operated by Air Philippines in just over a week.

On April 19, another of the planes plowed into a coconut grove on a hill near Davao in the southern Philippines, killing all 131 people aboard in the country's worst ever air disaster. The cause of that accident is still under investigation.

In Friday's incident, the plane, which took off from central Cebu province, was about 10 miles from Manila when dark smoke suddenly filled the cabin, prompting the pilot to ask air traffic controllers for an emergency landing, said Rene Mailom of Air Philippines.

A statement by the Air Transport Office said one of three hydraulic systems in the plane malfunctioned, but the problem ''did not jeopardize the safety of the flight.''

Lita Castro, 51, a passenger sitting in the middle section of the plane, said smoke smelling like burning rubber started coming out of the overhead air vents, she said.

Oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling and passengers were instructed to wear them. The crew also asked the passengers to brace their heads with their arms, Castro said.

''I asked a stewardess beside me if we would crash. I was so frightened,'' Castro said. ''She told us to stay calm and everything will be all right.''

Air transport officials said an investigation was under way.

Air Philippines, which began operations in 1996, is one of a number of recently created airlines flying older planes. Its operating permit was temporarily suspended in 1998 because of lapses in safety and maintenance.

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-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), April 28, 2000