A Russian passenger plane made an emergency landing yesterday in a cornfield near Moscow after striking a flock of birds. Emergency officials said, at least 74 people were injured in the incident, which saw the plane land with its engines off and landing gear retracted.<br />'' <br />'' The Ural Airlines Airbus 321 was travelling to Simferopol in Crimea when it hit the flock of gulls shortly after take-off, disrupting its engines.<br />'' <br />'' The Kremlin hailed the pilots as heroes for saving people's lives and landing the plane. <br />'' <br />'' The plane had more than 230 passengers and crew on board when the birds were reportedly sucked into its engines and the crew immediately decided to land. An unnamed passenger told state TV the plane started to shake violently after take-off.<br />'' <br />'' <br />