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American Morning
Some Passengers Leave Hijacked Plane in Cuba
Aired April 01, 2003 - 09:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We turn our attention to another story. Breaking news out of Cuba at this hour. We turn to a tense hijacking situation that has been taking place in Cuba. A man hijacked an airliner, demanding to be flown to the United States.
For more on this, we are joined on the phone by Lucia Newman, our bureau chief there in Havana, Cuba.
Good morning, Lucia. What's the latest?
LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
At this very moment, a large number of passengers aboard the Cuban Antinoch (ph) 24 passenger plane that was skyjacked last night are getting off the plane. They're being loaded on to buses and taken to Havana Airport's transit lounge. Now this is happening just a few hours after a fuel tanker approached the plane, apparently to refuel it in order to meet the skyjacker's demands to be taken to the United States. That's at 9:30 last night Eastern Time. The pilot of the plane radioed in that he was being skyjacked by a man carrying two hand grenades.
The plane, however, was forced to land in Havana, because it didn't have enough fuel to make it across the Florida Straits.
According to the Cuban government, there are six children and 40 adults, including the crew aboard the plane, or at least there were. We can't tell you right now, Paula, how many people have gotten off, and whether or not the fuel has -- the plane has been loaded with fuel in exchange for the release of most of, if not all, of the passengers on board -- Paula.
ZAHN: Lucia Newman, you'll be our eyes and ears down there. Keep us posted on those tense negotiations going on at this hour. Thanks for that update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired April 1, 2003 - 09:34 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: We turn our attention to another story. Breaking news out of Cuba at this hour. We turn to a tense hijacking situation that has been taking place in Cuba. A man hijacked an airliner, demanding to be flown to the United States.
For more on this, we are joined on the phone by Lucia Newman, our bureau chief there in Havana, Cuba.
Good morning, Lucia. What's the latest?
LUCIA NEWMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
At this very moment, a large number of passengers aboard the Cuban Antinoch (ph) 24 passenger plane that was skyjacked last night are getting off the plane. They're being loaded on to buses and taken to Havana Airport's transit lounge. Now this is happening just a few hours after a fuel tanker approached the plane, apparently to refuel it in order to meet the skyjacker's demands to be taken to the United States. That's at 9:30 last night Eastern Time. The pilot of the plane radioed in that he was being skyjacked by a man carrying two hand grenades.
The plane, however, was forced to land in Havana, because it didn't have enough fuel to make it across the Florida Straits.
According to the Cuban government, there are six children and 40 adults, including the crew aboard the plane, or at least there were. We can't tell you right now, Paula, how many people have gotten off, and whether or not the fuel has -- the plane has been loaded with fuel in exchange for the release of most of, if not all, of the passengers on board -- Paula.
ZAHN: Lucia Newman, you'll be our eyes and ears down there. Keep us posted on those tense negotiations going on at this hour. Thanks for that update.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
