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SYDNEY — Australia's air safety bureau is investigating the sudden altitude plunge of a Qantas airplane that left as many as 40 people injured, 20 of them seriously, during a flight from Singapore to the Western Australian city of Perth.

The A330-300, carrying 303 passengers and 10 crew, was forced to make an emergency landing Tuesday in Learmonth, Western Australia.

Two Air Transport Safety Bureau investigators were in Learmonth and five more were expected to arrive later Wednesday, the ATSB said.

Guatemala: Ex-leader extradited

GUATEMALA CITY — Former Guatemalan President Alfonso Portillo was extradited from Mexico on Tuesday to face corruption charges, and the ex-leader said he was confident he would receive a fair trial in his homeland.

Portillo, who governed from 2000 to 2004 before fleeing to Mexico, arrived in Guatemala on a Mexican government plane. He is accused of authorizing $15 million in transfers to the nation's Defense Department, where officials close to him allegedly pocketed most of the cash.

Iran: Plane forced to land

TEHRAN — Iran forced an aircraft carrying Hungarian military officials to land in a mix-up over whether it had permission to enter its airspace, Hungary's Defense Ministry said Tuesday. The plane was later allowed to continue to Afghanistan.

The ministry said the airplane, carrying a four-member Hungarian military delegation, had permission to fly over Iran, but that because of an "administrative error," characters in the craft's call signal were changed around and Iranian authorities did not recognize it.

Italy: PETA targets Armani

MILAN — The PETA animal rights organization is targeting Armani in its latest anti-fur campaign.

PETA senior vice president Dan Mathews said Tuesday that Armani has used rabbit fur in its winter collections now in stores despite a no-fur pledge.

PETA plans to launch an ad campaign before the Hollywood awards season next winter portraying the designer with a long Pinocchio nose.

Romania: Official fired

BUCHAREST — A Romanian Cabinet minister was fired Tuesday after he used a government helicopter to make it to his wedding on time.

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