Grease star Susan Buckner, who played Patty Simcox in the classic musical, has died aged 72.

The American actress died peacefully on Thursday 2 May surrounded by her loved ones, publicist Melissa Berthier has said.

A cause of death has not been given.

Buckner was best known for her role in Grease where she played the Rydell High cheerleading pal of Sandy – played by Olivia Newton-John.

In a memorable scene, Bucknell gives a rallying cry for the school when she says: “Do the splits, give a yell, show a little spirit for Old Rydell! Way to go, red and white, go Rydell, fight, fight, fight.”

Bucknell’s daughter Samantha Mansfield said after her mother’s death: “She was magic. She was my best friend. And I will miss her every day.

“I was lucky I had such a lighting rod of a mother and now I have her as an angel.”

Born in Seattle, Buckner made her name on the pageant circuit, being crowned Miss Washington in 1971 before representing the state at the Miss America competition the following year.

She channelled her experience into the entertainment industry, becoming a member of the singing and dancing group The Golddiggers, which featured on The Dean Martin Show.

She also made appearances on The Mac Davis Show, Sonny And Cher, and The Brady Bunch Variety Hour.

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Following her appearance in Grease in 1978, Buckner starred in TV shows including The Love Boat, BJ And The Bear, The Hardy Boys/Nancy Drew Mysteries, and When The Whistle Blows.

She also starred in the 1981 Wes Craven horror film Deadly Blessing alongside Sharon Stone, as well as in Police Academy 6: City Under Siege in 1989.

Buckner later took a step back from Hollywood and became a mother to her two children, Adam Josephs and Mrs Mansfield.

She is also survived by her grandchildren Oliver, Riley, Abigail and Ruby as well as her sister Linda, daughter-in-law Noel Josephs, son-in-law Adam Mansfield and longtime partner Al.

Federal air safety regulators have opened a fresh investigation into the Boeing 787 Dreamliner – after the firm said several employees had committed “misconduct” by falsely claiming tests had been completed.

The probe will look into whether Boeing completed inspections to confirm adequate bonding and grounding where the wings of certain 787 Dreamliner planes join the fuselage, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.

The investigation will also look at “whether company employees may have falsified aircraft records”, the US federal government agency added.

The FAA said Boeing is “reinspecting all 787 airplanes still within the production system and must also create a plan to address the in-service fleet” while the investigation is taking place.

Boeing shares were down 1.5% at $177.03 late on Monday afternoon.

‘Several people not performing required test’

In an email from 29 April, Scott Stocker, who leads Boeing’s 787 program, said that an employee saw what appeared to be an irregularity in a required 787 conformance test.

Mr Stocker wrote that after receiving the report “we quickly reviewed the matter and learned that several people had been violating company policies by not performing a required test, but recording the work as having been completed”.

In the email, addressed to employees in South Carolina where the 787 is assembled, Mr Stocker said Boeing promptly informed the FAA about what it had learned and said it is taking serious corrective action with “multiple” employees.

He added that “our engineering team has assessed that this misconduct did not create an immediate safety of flight issue”.

‘They are putting out defective airplanes’

It comes weeks after a Congressional investigation in April heard evidence on the safety culture and manufacturing standards at Boeing.

Sam Salehpour, a quality engineer at the company, told members of a Senate subcommittee that Boeing was taking shortcuts to bolster production levels that could lead to jetliners breaking apart.

He said of Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner, which has more than 1,000 in use across airlines globally including at British Airways, that excessive force was used to jam together sections of fuselage.

He claimed the extra force could compromise the carbon-composite material used for the plane’s frame.

“They are putting out defective airplanes,” he concluded, while adding that he was threatened when he raised concerns about the issue.

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The engineer said he studied Boeing’s own data and concluded that the company is “taking manufacturing shortcuts on the 787 programme that could significantly reduce the airplanes’ safety and the life cycle”.

Boeing denied his claims surrounding both the Dreamliner’s structural integrity and that factory workers jumped on sections of fuselage to force them to align.

Two Boeing engineering executives said this week that its testing and inspections regimes have found no signs of fatigue or cracking in the composite panels, saying they were almost impervious to fatigue.

Boeing has been grappling with a months-long safety crisis since a panel blew out of a Boeing 737 MAX 9 plane mid-flight in January.

The Justice Department is conducting a criminal investigation into the mid-air emergency.

The National Transportation Safety Board has said four key bolts appeared to be missing from the plane.

Boeing has said it believes required documents detailing the removal of the bolts were never created.

A US soldier was detained in Russia over the weekend while on a private trip, according to officials.

The soldier, who hasn’t been named, has been accused of stealing from a woman, Sky News’ US partner network, NBC News, reported, citing four US officials.

The White House is aware of reports of an American soldier being detained in Russia, national security spokesperson John Kirby said on Monday.

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The soldier was arrested in the port city of Vladivostok on 2 May, “on charges of criminal misconduct,” US army spokesperson Cynthia O Smith said.

He had reportedly been stationed in South Korea and travelled to Russia for a personal trip and not on official duty, according to the US officials.

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“The Russian Federation notified the US Department of State of the criminal detention in accordance with the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations,” Ms Smith said.

“The army notified his family and the US Department of State is providing appropriate consular support to the soldier in Russia.

“Given the sensitivity of this matter, we are unable to provide additional details at this time.”