TEXAS

Mental exam ordered for JetBlue pilot A federal judge in Amarillo has ordered the JetBlue Airways pilot accused of disrupting a New York-to-Las Vegas flight with rants about religion and terrorists to undergo a psychiatric exam. The order means pilot Clayton Osbon will undergo tests to determine whether he was legally sane -- and thus able to stand trial -- on March 27, when passengers subdued him after he allegedly sprinted through the plane shouting about Jesus and Al-Qaida.

OHIO

3 Guardsmen were killed in Afghanistan Three U.S. soldiers killed in a suicide bombing this week in Afghanistan were from Ohio, the Ohio National Guard said. The soldiers killed in Faryab Province were from the Guard's 37th Infantry Brigade Combat Team and included Sgt. First Class Shawn Hannon, 44, who also worked as chief legal counsel for the Ohio Department of Veterans Services. Also killed were Capt. Nicholas J. Rozanski, 36, and Sgt. 1st Class Jeffrey J. Rieck, 45.

MONTANA

Probe says Mortenson mismanaged charity "Three Cups of Tea" author Greg Mortenson, a native of St. Cloud, Minn., mismanaged the nonprofit group he co-founded to build schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan and spent charity money on personal items, vacations and charter flights, an investigative report said. His control of the Central Asia Institute went largely unchallenged by its board, which consisted of himself and two people loyal to him, the Montana attorney general's office said. Mortenson must reimburse the charity more than $1 million. Nearly half has already been repaid. He will remain the face of the charity and is barred from being a voting member of the board of directors as long as he is still employed by the organization.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Americans working for NDI briefly held United Arab Emirates authorities temporarily detained members of the U.S.-funded National Democratic Institute (NDI) as they tried to leave the country after their office was ordered closed, U.S. officials said. The local NDI director was briefly held and left the country and another staff member was apparently held longer and later released, remaining in the UAE, a State Department spokesman said. The NDI was ordered closed last week along with other similar foreign groups, a move reminiscent of events in Egypt.

BRITAIN

Sky News admits hacking two e-mails Sky News, part-owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., acknowledged that its journalists had hacked e-mail messages at least twice in search of news stories, suggesting for the first time that Britain's hacking scandal has spilled into TV broadcasting. A journalist for the network was authorized "to access the e-mail of individuals suspected of criminal activity," said John Ryley, the head of the network, referring to one incident in 2008 and another on an unspecified date. "We stand by these actions as editorially justified and in the public interest," he said.

AUSTRALIA

It wasn't a movie: Live snake on a plane A pilot said he was forced to make a harrowing landing reminiscent of a Hollywood thriller after a snake popped out from the instrument panel and slithered across his leg during a solo cargo flight. Braden Blennerhassett -- unsure whether the snake was venomous -- said his heart raced as he maneuvered the plane back to the northern city of Darwin. The snake was seen by others after the landing Tuesday but hadn't been caught as of Thursday. A wildlife ranger said a nonvenomous golden tree snake was the likely intruder.

NEWS SERVICES