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American Morning
Obama's Third Day in India: Expected to Address Parliament in Next Hour; A Tour of Obama's Boyhood Home; The Cost of Thanksgiving Dinner; Sword to Plowshares; Safety in the Skies; Rescue at Sea; Walk This Way
Aired November 08, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and thanks so much for joining us on this AMERICAN MORNING, on this Monday, the 8th of November. I'm John Roberts.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Kiran Chetry. Thanks for being here. A lot to talk about this morning, so let's get you caught up.
President Obama delivering a big speech this morning in New Delhi, India. The second stop in his 10-day trip to Asia. And in addition to focusing on creating jobs, here at home the president is also answering questions about the new political reality in Washington. We're live in New Delhi with more.
ROBERTS: More problems with the world's largest passenger plane. Qantas Airlines continues to ground its fleet of Airbus 380 jumbo jets this time because of oil leaks in three engines. We'll talk with the former managing director of the NTSB about just how serious a problem this could be.
CHETRY: And the civilian surge in Afghanistan. America's dirt warriors, as they're called, pitching in to boost the country's agricultural industry teaching old farmers some new tricks. It's the first part of our special series "The Other Afghan Offensive."
ROBERTS: But first, day three of President Obama's 10-day swing through Asia. This morning, he's in New Delhi where in about an hour's time, he's going to deliver a highly anticipated speech to the Indian parliament.
CHETRY: Yes, the president's chief focus has been to drum up business for American companies. But he also showed off some fancy footwork yesterday after being dragged on to the dance floor by some school children in Mumbai.
Our senior White House correspondent Ed Henry is traveling with the president. We also have Sara Sidner live in New Delhi along with Ed. And let's start with Ed.
So the president is going to be speaking before the Indian parliament in the next hour. What can we expect?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's going to be a lot on international affairs for sure. A lot of people here in India watching the president closely to see whether or not he endorses India's bid for a permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council. We're expecting the president to weigh in there so we need to watch that closely.
On Pakistan, there have been people here in India frustrated that this weekend the president has been finessing the issue and basically saying that he thinks Pakistan has made progress in cracking down on extremists, but they need to make more progress sort of straddling that line.
Here in India, they think Pakistan is a state sponsor of terror and they want to hear tougher talk from the president. Then I think as you mentioned the biggest issue of all, the economy, jobs back home. The president very sensitive to the idea that he's out globetrotting so quickly after that midterm election. He's really trying to frame this whole trip as bringing jobs back home. He's announced $10 billion of new contracts just in the last couple of days here in India for American companies like Boeing and General Electric. And so he wants to really say, look, we're bringing jobs back home. But at the same time, a lot of Americans back in the U.S. wondering about outsourcing of jobs here in India.
The president this weekend made some news by all of a sudden saying that he believes this whole notion of outsourcing, being a bad thing is sort of an outdated stereotype. That might strike a lot of people as odd back home. I asked Robert Gibbs if it's a 180 from the 2008 campaign when the president really beat up on outsourcing. Gibbs insists the president's position hasn't changed, but that all the president is saying is, look, with these increase of U.S. exports here in India, on balance, more jobs are going back home even if some jobs here are being outsourced. But there may be some people back in the U.S. not so happy about that, John and Kiran.
ROBERTS: Ed, before the president left for India, he sat down with Steve Kroft from "60 minutes" for an interview. It aired last night. Talked about the midterm elections, his responsibility, the evolution of the presidency over the last couple of years and looking ahead. What's the response to that?
HENRY: Well, it's been interesting, because that whole shellacking, as the president called it, followed him all the way to India. It wasn't even the U.S. press that asked him about it first. It was a university student here in India at a town hall meeting who said, look, you won on change in 2008. Now it looks like change is coming against you. What's going on? And the president this weekend said, look, maybe there'll be some mid-course corrections that need to be made. In that interview with "60 Minutes," he was also asked point- blank, have you lost your mojo? The president had an interesting answer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We were so busy and so focused on getting a bunch of stuff done that we stopped paying attention to the fact that leadership isn't just legislation, that it's a matter of persuading people and giving them confidence and bringing them together and setting a tone. We haven't always been successful at that, and I take personal responsibility for that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Some big issues for the president to deal with. Tonight may be a little more, you know, a little less urgent. But there's a big state dinner here, the social aspect that Prime Minister Singh and his wife are throwing for the president and first lady. Remember last year there was the state dinner the Obamas threw for the Singhs where you had those party crashers, the Salahis. It was a big international incident. You bet tonight, here in India, security is going to be pretty intense as Sara knows better than anyone.
CHETRY: Who knew it would spawn the "Real Housewives of D.C."?
Sara, I want to ask you on the economic front, as well, some of the deals that President Obama made during this trip and what India is expecting in return.
SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Really, Ed touched on some of those. We're talking about a $10 billion deal with companies that will benefit, GE, Boeing, for example. And the president says, look, if we're able to make these trade deals with India, that will create jobs at home. He's saying about 60,000 jobs from the deals that were made and announced on this trip.
India wants something completely different. Obviously they do like to have close trade ties with the U.S. but they really want a couple of things, and they're very adamant about this. They really want the U.S. to give a strong backing for India to get a permanent seat on that U.N. Security Council, something that India is really pushing for here. They also pushed the U.S. to lower the very strict restrictions that have been put on them to get a hold of advance nuclear technologies for creating energy. The U.S. announced that that did happen. India very happy with that. But again, they want that permanent U.N. Security Council seat. And we may hear something about that. The president alluded to this tonight when he makes his speech in parliament.
CHETRY: All right. Sara Sidner for us as well as Ed Henry. Thanks to both of you this morning. Appreciate it.
Well, Qantas Airlines fleet of A380 jumbo jets will remain grounded at least for the next three days. The airline's CEO says there are new problems with the plane's engines that were discovered during an investigation into that engine blowout that forced one of its jets to make an emergency landing last week in Singapore.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALAN JOYCE, CEO, QANTAS: Oil leaks have been discovered in the turbine area of three engines. We have removed these engines from the aircraft for further testing. We are now planning that the A380 fleet will remain out of service for at least the next 72 hours.
(END VIDEO CLIP) CHETRY: Meanwhile, Emirates Airlines is announcing its super jumbo A380s will make their much anticipated return to New York today, just days after the airline launched daily flights to Houston and Los Angeles.
Stay with us. In about 30 minutes, we're going to be examining just safe it is to fly after this incident and the other emergency landing here in the U.S. Sunday. Peter Goelz, a former managing director of the National Transportation Safety Board, will join us live in just about 30 minutes.
ROBERTS: Also new this morning, more rumbling from Indonesia's Mount Merapi volcano. One hundred and fifty-six people have died since the volcano began erupting two weeks ago. People living at the foot of the mountain are now on the run fearing yet another eruption. Concern over ash in the air led to the cancellation of flights to Jakarta just ahead of President Obama's visit to Indonesia.
CHETRY: And in Haiti, they're trying to clean up after another natural disaster. Heavy rains from Hurricane Tomas causing damage to the earthquake-ravaged country. Severe flood damage. At least six people have died. And now there is concern that the storm could make Haiti's deadly cholera outbreak even worse.
ROBERTS: And a family of four lost at sea for nearly a week is safe this morning. They were rescued on Saturday, some 2,300 miles from Haiti by the Coast Guard in a New Zealand Air Force crew. The family, two adults and two children were discovered drifting in a 13-foot boat. Coast Guard officials say they were dehydrated but had suffered no injuries.
CHETRY: Amazing. The coast of Hawaii there.
Well, it's seven minutes past the hour right now. We have a check of this morning's weather headlines. Rob Marciano in the extreme weather center. I saw everybody tracking in with their down jackets on, with their down winter coats officially.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it's that time of year. And if you live up near Boston or parts of northern New England, guys, you're looking at winter weather right now, at least.
A mixture of rain, some sleet, even some snow across parts of New England as a storm system which is going to be fairly slow to leave, continues to wind itself up just off Cape Cod and throw in Atlantic moisture across the I-95. Mostly west of I-95 is where you're going to see things begin to mix in as far as the colder air is concerned.
Right now, temperatures are well above freezing in Boston so it shouldn't mix in there. But you go out into Worcester County up in through parts of the Berkshires and southern parts of Vermont, temperatures are close enough to freezing where you'll probably see a little bit of glazing on the roadways this morning. So beware, winter driving skills necessary for those spots. But the major cities, including Boston, should be OK with the exception of rain. Mostly dry in New York and warm in Colorado Springs and a decent storm rolling into the Colorado Rockies.
John and Kiran, we'll see you in about 30 minutes. Back up to you.
ROBERTS: Sounds like it could be a powder day. Rob, thanks so much.
MARCIANO: OK.
ROBERTS: Still to come, President Obama lives in the most famous house in the world, but our Suzanne Malveaux takes us on a tour of another home where he once lived while growing up in Indonesia. Stay with us for that. It's coming up on nine minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Pretty shot this morning of the capitol. Sun's coming up a little earlier because of daylight savings being over.
Well, things are getting nasty between Meghan McCain and Ryan Seacrest. A little bit. The feud began last week when President Obama taped an interview with Seacrest for his radio show. Then McCain on her Twitter account called the president's appearance, quote, "desperate and sad" and questioned why the president would even talk to, quote, "the producer of the Kardashians." Well, Seacrest responded by noting that McCain has appeared on his radio show twice at her request.
And you call it Washington's version of musical chairs. Now that the speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, plans to run for minority leader position, there's only one spot remaining for her two fellow Democratic leaders, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and Majority Whip James Clyburn. Friends for decades are now fighting for the position of minority whip -- John.
ROBERTS: Well, despite a lot of rumbling from the Mount Merapi volcano, President Obama still plans to visit Indonesia tomorrow. It's the world's fourth largest country. It will be a homecoming for the president. He lived in Jakarta as a child.
Our White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux got a look at his boyhood home and she joins us now from his other house, the one on Pennsylvania Avenue.
Good morning, Suzanne.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, John and Kiran. It's a rare treat actually to take an intimate look at President Obama's home. Back then, he was Barry Soetoro (ph). We went back there in March when everybody was expected the president to show up. He had to cancel. The Jakarta post here showing a little Obama here when he was just a kind. And then, of course, the next day when they found out that the trip was canceled, the palace plays off delay as preferable. There are a lots of folks that we talked to, some friends, some teachers, as well as the guy who lives in President Obama's old home when he was a kid living in Indonesia. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MALVEAUX (voice-over): The two-bedroom Dutch-inspired House was built in 1939. Sario Rosali (ph) lives here now and was gracious enough to show us around. But since he doesn't speak English, we thought we'd give you the tour.
(on camera): OK, let's go inside. This is the sitting room and this is the original furniture from the Obama family here. You can see it is a typical, original teakwood. And this is where they actually would just kind of hang out.
Now, this room is the room where reportedly Ann Dunham, Obama's mother, used to teach English to the kids who would come over from the neighborhood.
All right. So let me take you to the next room here. This is the master bedroom. This is where Lolo Soetoro, Obama's stepfather, and his mother, Ann Dunham, this is their masters bedroom where they stayed. And as you can see, this is pretty much a shotgun house. So we don't know too much about the president's bedroom at the White House, but this is Barack Obama's bedroom when he was about 8 or 9 years old. This is where he used to sleep and study. And there are two beds here now, but there was just one back then. This was his own room as a young boy.
Outside his bedroom, he was under the stars, a complete outdoor garden with plants, birds. He even had a pet rabbit and a little dog.
(voice-over): Since Barack Obama became president, hundreds of visitors have come to his Indonesian home. Sario (ph) was proud to show us his photos and let me sign the guest book.
(on camera): Great. I guess we're not the first, many people before us. Yes. Thank you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: John and Kiran, there are hundreds of people who stopped by his home. And interestingly enough, it's not a museum. It's not closed off in any kind of way. But we anticipate because the president is going to be coming to Jakarta, very likely to visit his old home, that there's going to be a lot of security around that house in that neighborhood.
But surprisingly, it's very understated. You can walk up. We introduced ourselves. We're able to get a good couple of hours with the gentleman who lives in that home. A lot of people right now very excited for Barack Obama to return.
ROBERTS: And I'll tell you, Suzanne, it's not many people get the opportunity to be in the president's current house and go visit his boyhood home, as well. Thanks for the inside look.
MALVEAUX: What a treat.
ROBERTS: Appreciate it.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, guys.
CHETRY: She also got to check out Hawaii too, so she's -
ROBERTS: Not bad.
CHETRY: Not -
ROBERTS: She's hitting all the hot spots.
CHETRY: -- not too shabby. Yes.
Sixteen minutes past the hour. Coming up, if you're running late for work today, you're probably not alone. Some say you can blame your iPhone. We'll explain.
ROBERTS: And a rescued Chilean miner, Edison Pena, crossing the finish line at the New York City Marathon. We'll tell you how he did, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Nineteen minutes after the hour now. And time for some of the stories that had us talking in the newsroom this morning. And this one really had us talking.
If you use your iPhone as an alarm clock, check the time. A glitch in the phone software means that it wouldn't recognize the end of Daylight Savings Time. That means that a lot of folks will be getting an extra hour of unwanted sleep unless, of course, they backed up their iPhone with their BlackBerry and the BlackBerry's alarm went off.
CHETRY: See, it's weird. We - we're laughing about it because I have an iPhone as well. I use it as my alarm and it was fine. It recognized Daylight Saving Time, went - and fell back an hour and the alarm I didn't change it and it went off. I'm lucky.
ROBERTS: And - and I have an iPhone4, and it didn't go off.
CHETRY: Yes. And I have the 3, so -
ROBERTS: There you go. See, the older technology is better, yes.
CHETRY: Well, there -
ROBERTS: That's why I continue to use a typewriter and send handwritten notes.
CHETRY: You just dictate and someone writes in shorthand.
Well, there's a reason that they're called laptops, of course. But researchers now say men who repeatedly put their laptop computers on their lap could be risking their fertility in the future. It's because laptops generate a significant amount of heat and it could actually damage the quantity and quality of sperm.
ROBERTS: Got to look after your boys. It's important.
The wait is just about over. Conan O'Brien's return to late night just hours away now. His new show debuts tonight on our sister network TBS. Last night, Conan tweeted "Just tried on my suit for tomorrow night's premiere. I've got 12 hours to lose 35 pounds." Again, Conan's comeback tonight, TBS at 11:00 P.M. Eastern.
CHETRY: If he lost 35 pounds, you wouldn't be able to see him if he stood sideways.
ROBERTS: Can you imagine? He looks like he's not overweight in the least (ph).
CHETRY: Well, 45,000 people hit the ground running in the 41st New York City Marathon yesterday. And Edna Kiplagat from Kenya finished the first - in first place for women. She did it in just two hours and 28 minutes crossing the finish line. She don't even look like she was out of breath. Amazing.
Well, just 20 seconds behind in second place was Oregon's Shalane Flanagan. She is the first American woman to finish that high since 1990.
ROBERTS: Good for her.
CHETRY: Also, Ethiopia's Gebre Gebremariam - OK, there you go - won the men's race in just two hours and eight minutes. And by the way, it was his first ever marathon. Congratulations.
ROBERTS: Go big or go home, right? Well, if I'm going to get in this marathon, I think I might as well win.
Chilean miner number 12 though, Edison Pena, stole the show at the big race. Pena's been called the running miner because he ran through dark tunnels in his boots while trapped underground for 69 days. He was nearly sidelined yesterday by knee pain but he stuck it out. He finished in five hours and 40 minutes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDISON PENA, CHILEAN MINER (through translator): Yes, I did think about dropping out especially around Mile 18 when the pain in my knee was particularly intense, but I said to myself I didn't come this far. I didn't travel so many thousands of kilometers to drop out, and so I kept going.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Good for him. They had a big bag of ice on his knee afterwards, so he'll probably be fine. But, I mean, you can just imagine. The guy's never run a marathon in his life, though. He ran a few miles and then - boom, he's out there. He's like the guy from Ethiopia, right.
CHETRY: I know. Amazing, though, that he finished. And, I mean, he thought he was going to do it in six hours, so he actually bested his own time by 20 minutes.
ROBERTS: Yes. Terrific.
CHETRY: Not bad.
ROBERTS: Way to go.
CHETRY: Well, still to come, better stuff your wallet before you head out to buy your Thanksgiving dinner. We'll tell you why. We talked about commodity prices being on the rise. Well, you may really feel the pinch at the Thanksgiving table. Christine Romans is "Minding Your Business" in just a moment.
Twenty-three minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Twenty-five and a half minutes after the hour, and Christine Romans here this morning, "Minding Your Business".
And if you have noticed that the prices of things, including food, have been going up, you're not wrong, because they have.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I mean, we've been talking about it here just about every week, talking about commodity prices rising and - and that continues. And the latest news is I think that gas prices are going to go up maybe 10 or 15 cents a gallon. So watch for that.
ROBERTS: Yes. They're creep - they're creeping up.
ROMANS: Creeping up because, you know, the Fed injecting all that money into the system is making commodities go up, and they already had been going up.
I want to talk about Thanksgiving, though, because you better stuck your wallet. It sounds like - sorry. You better stuff your wallet.
ROBERTS: See? There's a problem with your microphone. So you can't leave us. You - you're tied - you're tied to us.
ROMANS: I was going to walk to the Wall, but -
CHETRY: Where is your microphone?
ROMANS: I don't know.
ROBERTS: Oh, are you sitting on it?
CHETRY: The problem is, she doesn't have one on.
ROMANS: Well (INAUDIBLE) John and Kiran, then I can fish out my microphone and tell you about turkey prices going up.
CHETRY: All right. Go fishing. Go for it.
ROMANS: No. Look, we're looking for turkey prices, up about 32 percent so far this year. We're expecting them to continue to rise.
Aha! We found it.
CHETRY: Voila!
ROBERTS: What was it doing in your ear?
ROMANS: No, it wasn't in my ear. It just fell down the - anyway - alas (ph).
ROBERTS: OK. Now you can go.
ROMANS: Let's talk about turkey prices. They're up about 32 percent so far this year, about $17 (ph) a pound. That means you're looking at about a $17 -- $70 (ph) price for a - a 16-pound turkey. And why? It's because the feed prices have gone up.
I told you about these commodity rallies. We've been talking about it a lot. The feed prices for turkeys is up. That means the price for you to feed your family turkey is likely to go up. Fewer turkeys produced also. That's - that's part of the problem here.
Corn and wheat prices are up. They have been rallying sharply all year. This means bread, meat, the things that you use corn and wheat to make or to feed, are also going up. That's going to result in higher prices for meat, pasta, and bread.
One thing here, there's some other staples that are costing less, though. Celery, green beans - the consumer price index that the government puts out shows that some of these vegetables actually are - are not going to cost you more.
But the price for your Thanksgiving turkey is going to be bigger this year. Your turkey dinner is going to be bigger this year. And comes, you guys, at a time when everything is going up.
Oil and gas - I told you about that. We've got coffee prices going up. Coffee is at a 13-year high. McDonalds has said it's going to raise prices. Gas prices expected to rise 10 or 15 cents a gallon. Home heating bills should be another $124 extra this year.
So all of this is - is - it's your pocketbook, but it's an international issue. It's because all of the money rushing into the system is going into hard commodities, in many cases, and because it's safe. The dollar is weak, commodities have been rising.
My mike still sounds a little funny, doesn't it?
ROBERTS: No, no, no. It's fine. It looks a little weird, but it sounds just fine.
ROMANS: All right. So, there you go.
ROBERTS: Does anybody (ph) know that the economy is still bad out there? I mean, people can't afford to pay more for things. ROMANS: I know, but you're just going to have figure out - you have to dig deep and figure out how - and the irony here is that the senior citizens are not going to get a social security increase (INAUDIBLE).
ROBERTS: If you dig any deeper, we're not going to have to worry about trade with China, because you can just drop your stuff down the hole and it will come out the other side in China.
ROMANS: Right. There you go.
ROBERTS: All right. Thanks.
CHETRY: But people on fixed incomes, it is going to be tough.
ROMANS: It is going to be tough. That's right.
CHETRY: Christine, thank you.
ROBERTS: Well, we're crossing the half hour now. It's time for this morning's top stories on this Monday morning.
President Obama about to deliver a message to more than a billion people. In about 30 minutes, he'll be speaking with India's parliament. He's expected to focus on America's partnership with the Asian nation.
Stay with us because we're going to bring you the president's remarks live when they happen.
CHETRY: And a fleet of Qantas Airbus 380 jets will stay grounded for at least another 72 hours. Oil leaks discovered in the engines of three planes. This was during an investigation into what caused last week's mishap that forced a Qantas flight to make an emergency landing in Singapore when one of the engines blew.
Meanwhile, Emirates Airlines is announcing its superjumbo A380s will make their much anticipated return to New York today just days after the airline launched those daily flights to Houston and Los Angeles.
ROBERTS: And Vice President Joe Biden reaffirming America's support for Israel. In a speech on Sunday to the Jewish Federations of North America, Biden said ties between the two countries are, quote, "literally unbreakable."
Biden addressed the group in New Orleans, where he met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, looking for ways to get Mideast peace talks going again.
CHETRY: Well, the U.S. effort to win hearts and minds in Afghanistan is much more than just a military strategy.
ROBERTS: This morning, in the first part of her special series "The Other Afghan Offensive," CNN foreign affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty takes a look at what the United States is doing to help Afghan farmers rebuild a critical part of the country's infrastructure, and she joins us now - You wouldn't think that farmers would have a big role in bringing stability to that country, but they do.
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: But they do. And it's an interesting story. We saw in these imbeds that we went on in Afghanistan.
And, you know, over and over, John and Kiran, you hear it in Afghanistan that the war can't be won by bullets alone. We've all heard of the military surge, but there's also a civilian surge happening as well -- experts of law, government, economic development, agriculture, working with Afghans through the State Department, USAID, and other agencies. And as we saw during our imbed there, it's a very different kind of battle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED SOLDIER: All right. Integration (ph) team, I'll be with you guys.
DOUGHERTY (voice-over): We're in Wardak province, eastern Afghanistan, with advisers working for the U.S. Agriculture Department.
Eighty percent of Afghans are farmers -- so boosting the country's agriculture industry is crucial to the U.S. strategy here.
GARY SOISETH, USDA: And I'm an orchard manager for my folks back home.
DOUGHERTY: Twenty-four-old Gary Soiseth, he's far from his farm in Turlock, California.
SOISETH: That's kind of my real life job. But for right now, I'm focused right here.
DOUGHERTY: He's teaching old farmers new tricks.
SOISETH: The elders get a little rambunctious sometimes. They kind of say, hey, kid, what can you teach me? And you know what? You know, I know this stuff. And I say, you know, I agree, I defer.
One main solution just to make sure your orchard floor is clean, keep your weeds down and to also make sure all of your fruit that is infected is removed.
DOUGHERTY (on camera): Did you learn something today?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Limit the outflow (ph).
DOUGHERTY (voice-over): Some new ideas on how to keep insects at bay this man tells me.
SOISETH: A lot of times, you know, the father passed on to the son. Well, if this father is a mujahedeen or the father, you know, died in some war, that knowledge doesn't get passed down. DOUGHERTY (on camera): Why would you pick up from sunny California and come to sunny Afghanistan?
SOISETH: I just kind of had to look at myself and say, what do I really want to do? As an American, as a farmer, where can I serve?
DOUGHERTY (voice-over): Gary's dream is to help Afghan farmers to move from living off their crops to selling them, in Kabul, Pakistan, maybe even India or Dubai. It could take a while, he says. So he's signing up for another year in Afghanistan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DOUGHERTY: Helping farmers grow enough crops also helps wean away from poppy, and that is an industry, as we all know is controlled by the Taliban who makes millions of dollars from it.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: So, these civilian programs to teach them how to farm more effectively and away from opium -- is it making a measurable difference? I mean, is this something they're taking to?
DOUGHERTY: You know, in all of these programs that we saw throughout the country, they make a difference in the local area. But the question is, can you knit these all together throughout the country? Because otherwise, you know, it's a little here, a little there. And that's the question.
And it's really crucial because if the people of Afghanistan don't believe that they can get something from their government -- and that's the key thing -- then they are going to turn to the Taliban for a lot of stuff.
CHETRY: Amazing. Well, it's very interesting.
And tomorrow, we're going to get to see part two of Jill's series.
DOUGHERTY: Right.
CHETRY: She's going to be taking a look at how some Afghan women are really trying to make the most of their situation, new opportunities to work and earn a living.
So, we'll see you back here tomorrow. Jill, thanks.
ROBERTS: Good to see you, Jill. Thanks.
Coming up next on AMERICAN MORNING: a series of high-profile plane mishaps as we head into the busy travel holiday season might have you asking the question: Is it really safe to fly?
We'll ask aviation analyst Peter Goelz coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Thirty-seven minutes after the hour. New concerns this morning about safety in the skies. Qantas Airlines continuing to ground its fleet of Airbus A380s -- that's the world's largest passenger plane -- after oil leaks were found in three separate engines. The discovery comes after a midair engine failure forced one of the double-decker jumbo jets to make an emergency landing in Singapore last week.
Also on Saturday, an in-flight scare for passengers on board an AirTran flight, the jet had to make an emergency landing in Memphis because of smoke in the cockpit.
And then also last week, a Cuban airliner crashed, killing all 68 people onboard.
Joining me now is Peter Goelz. He's a former managing director of the National Transportation Safety Board, now an aviation consultant. He's live in Washington.
Peter, let's talk, first of all, about the Qantas Airline and this Airbus A380. How concerned are you that there appears to be a problem with these new Rolls Royce Trent 900 engines and that they're leaking oil?
PETER GOELZ, AVIATION ANALYST: Well, it is concerning. Qantas did the right thing by grounding their fleet and, in fact, you know, all the carriers who fly the A380 put their engines through a check. And it is disturbing that Qantas found three more engines that need to be looked at. That's a total of four.
This is a relatively, you know, young aircraft. These engines have probably less than 200,000 total hours. So, it is an issue that we need to be concerned about.
ROBERTS: You know, the joke in the military is, as long as it's leaking oil, it's fine. It's when it stops leaking oil that you've got a problem. But these Trent engines, and there's a whole line of them on everything, from the new Dreamliner to some of the older Airbuses -- I mean, they've got millions and millions of air miles on these things and hours in the air. So, does it sound like it could be just an isolated problem or potentially a problem with the line?
GOELZ: Well, I don't think it's a problem with the line, as you said. Rolls Royce is really one of the premiere names in the aviation business. And they have been producing quality engines for decades. But I think there is some concern -- this is a new engine design for a new aircraft. You're going to have to look very carefully at it. People have to have confidence that these planes are going to be reliable.
ROBERTS: You know, we saw the pictures, obviously, of it sitting on the tarmac in Singapore, and you can see part of the engine cowling is gone. But the Australian National Transportation Safety Administration apparently is looking for a piece of a turbine, which would indicate that this was a pretty serious failure of this engine.
GOELZ: That is the most disturbing part of this accident. You know, engines are designed to contain a failure such as this. That's one of the certification requirements before it's put into service. If a turbine or fan blade comes undone, that it's contained inside the engine casing.
When it exits like that, boy, big trouble can occur. You know, it can sever the control lines of the airline as it did in the famous Sioux City crash. It's very disturbing if it was an uncontained failure.
ROBERTS: And we remember what happened with the French Concord when a piece of debris went up into the fuel tank and the wing as well.
This AirTran incident, smoke in the cockpit. It's something that's not -- I mean, it's rare, but it's not uncommon. But they took emergency precautions. The flight was going from New Orleans to Milwaukee, they sat down in Memphis. Why so cautious about this?
GOELZ: They did the absolutely correct thing. You know, there is nothing more precarious or dangerous than having smoke in the cockpit. And if you're trained not to hesitate, put the plane down, could be nothing more than a circuit, you know, breaker going off. But, you know, the catastrophic consequences of not doing that are well-documented. Swiss Air 111 was a terrible tragedy.
ROBERTS: And we also remember the Value Jet that went down in the Florida Everglades. What about the Cuba crash? It was an ATR -- and we all remember back to when that ATR went down in heavy icing conditions in Indiana. That's when many of those aircraft were sent to the Caribbean where you don't get icing.
So, what could potentially be the cause here?
GOELZ: Well, we don't know. And, you know, unfortunately, we don't have much communication with the Cuban aviation officials. The French will be investigating that. We'll find out soon.
But you're right. After the 1994 October accident, almost all of the ATRs, the 42s and 72s were shifted south. And there's not a great number of them flying in the U.S. anymore.
ROBERTS: All right. Well, perhaps, we'll get some results from the crash investigation in the next few days if not the next few weeks.
Peter Goelz, thanks so much for being with us. Good to talk to you this morning.
GOELZ: Thank you, John.
CHETRY: And still to come on the Most News in the Morning, it's 42 minutes past the hour, Rob's going to have a travel forecast for you right after the break.
And also, you know the feeling, you're walking down a busy sidewalk and just want to yell, get out of the way. Well, London has come up with an interesting solution for those who like to take their time and those who like to get there fast. It's actually an idea that started almost in jest here in the U.S.
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CHETRY: It's 41 degrees right now in New York City. A little bit later, it's only going up about 6 degrees to 47, but, at least, it'll be sunny.
ROBERTS: Of course, that's one of the great viewing areas too for the Annual Thanksgiving Parade, which is still a little ways away yet, but it looks like it's all system go for the two additions to this year's Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade here in New York City. The two new balloons, Kung Fu Panda, there it is, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. There it is.
Greg Heffley were tested for parade (INAUDIBLE). It appears the king pull through with flying colors. The Greg Heflley balloon was lazy and manipulative just like the character. It's going to be perfect. Next time you're going to see them will be in the air for the 84th Annual Macy's Parade on Thanksgiving Day.
CHETRY: Pretty cool. Family of four lost at sea for nearly a week is safe this morning. They were rescued Saturday, 2,300 miles from Hawaii by the coast guard and a New Zealand air force crew. The family, two adults and two children were discovered drifting in a 13- foot boat. Coast guard officials say they were dehydrated, but other than that, suffered no injuries.
We're going to find out more about the family's ordeal and the amazing rescue at the top of the hour when we're joined by Captain James McColly of the U.S. coast guard.
And it's 46 minutes past the hour. We had a check of the morning's weather headlines. Our Rob Marciano is in the Extreme Weather Center. Pretty amazing that they were able to survive that just drifting in a 13-foot boat, no less.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, that is amazing stuff. If they were off the (INAUDIBLE) coastline right now, I don't think the news will be as good. Pretty decent storm, guys. That's kind of winding itself up here across the Gulf of Maine, and it's going to sit here probably for another 18 to 24 hours. So, you're going to see it across the I-95 corridor almost all the way down in New York. Some of this rain trying and get to New York, but I think it's going to have a tough, tough time doing that.
But closer in, in places like Boston where it's 37, 38, 39 degrees, and it's blowing sideways, it's nasty. You go west into interior sections, Western (ph) County seeing a bit of a mix upwards of Southern New England for Southern Vermont and New Hampshire, maybe seeing a little bit of snow mixing as well as the Berkshire.
Might see a light accumulation of a freezing rain and snow mix before all the warm air begins to mix in here. Winter weather advisories in the highlighted purple areas, definitely going to be a slick go if you're traveling there by car, traveling by plane, Boston, some wind and, yes, the rain. So, you'll see over to hour delays there. New York metro, maybe a little bit of rain, but I think the wind is going to be the big issue, wind in Philadelphia 30 to 60- minute delays.
When you go up storm out west, so winds in Las Vegas and maybe mix of rain and snow across maybe Salt Lake City. Meanwhile, the cold air remains in trench across much of the southeast. Records falling yesterday morning in Charlotte, North Carolina, 26 degrees, Jackson, Kentucky, 27, Victoria, Texas, 35, and Miami, Florida, 53 degrees. Key West only got up to 71 yesterday. So, you can't even go down to the western tip of Florida there to get into some warm air.
Seventy-three in Dallas, not too shabby today, 71 degrees in St. Louis, 45, kind of a nasty day in New York, but not quite as nasty as Boston, 41, you'll be completely dry maybe even sunny in D.C. with 60, but only climbing up to 69 degrees in Atlanta, another chilly start across the eastern third of the country today. Certainly, feels more like the beginning of December rather than the beginning of November. John and Kiran, back up to you.
ROBERTS: All right, Rob.
CHETRY: Those wild swings. So, it was 99 in L.A., now it's 68. Just a couple of days.
MARCIANO: It's a wonderful time of year.
ROBERTS: It's a crazy weather. Rob, thanks so much.
MARCIANO: All right, guys.
ROBERTS: This morning's top stories just minutes away now including President Obama's highly anticipated speech in India. It's about to begin. Plus, new details on why the president is calling Washington's relationship with India one of the most defining partnerships of the 21st century.
CHETRY: Also, KFC's double down better watch its back. We're going to show you the latest heart-clogging sandwich. This one packs on 5,300 calories. Wow. We'll have those stories and more at the top of the hour.
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CHETRY: Fifty-two minutes past the hour right now. You know, in London, pedestrian travel is hitting critical mass on the west end of the famed Oxford Street. One company has a plan to give foot traffic the boot. It's a solution that was actually first hatched in New York City as a joke. Atika Shubert joins us live from London this morning with an "A.M. Original," something you'll see only on AMERICAN MORNING. So, Atika, these passing lanes, if they work on highways, I guess, you can say they work on sidewalks too, right? Why not?
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. That's the whole idea, basicallys a fast lane and a slow lane. Here's how it's supposed to work.
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SHUBERT (voice-over): Every year, 200 million people walk Oxford Street, one of the busiest shopping streets in Europe, but of course they don't just walk. Some stroll, some hurry past, some stop to chat or just figure out where they are. It makes for a strange dance along London's busiest avenue, and every now and then, pedestrians collide. Enter the New West End Company representing businesses in London's busiest shopping area. Their solution, walking lanes.
JACE TYRRELL, NEW WEST END COMPANY: We have an idea that you've got your slow walkers, those browsers, perhaps our tourists that want to spend a bit more time going up and down the street. And of course, those people who are Londoners. They know where they're going. There were on a purposeful visit, out on the outside lane, walking five (ph), so we can actually split that. And that's the whole idea, and hopefully, we can try and it will all lead to great success.
SHUBERT: Actually, it's been done before. As a joke. This YouTube video separating New Yorkers from tourists on 5th Avenue was a hit. But the New West End Company says Oxford Street's foot traffic is no joke.
SHUBERT (on-camera): So, just how bad is the traffic on Oxford Street? Well, to find out, I'm bringing this little camera for a walk.
SHUBERT (voice-over): As any Londoner knows, you need to speed up, slow down, dodge, and sidestep your way to your destination. But do London street smart pedestrians really think walking lanes are the answer?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't really know. I'm a tourist here. But too busy, you know, in comparison with the previous years, it's a nightmare.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's a great idea because people switching each way and you're bumping into people. So, I think it's a very good idea.
SHUBERT: Do you think people actually stick to those guidelines?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're English. They'd do that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I know I'm being slightly ridiculous, actually.
SHUBERT: So, what's your strategy for walking on Oxford Street?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE) going fast and hard.
SHUBERT: Maps with walking guidelines will be available next year, until then, practice your Oxford Street dance steps.
(END VIDEOTAPE) SHUBERT (on-camera): Now, this is just at the proposal stage, but what basically the new West End Company is hoping is that they'll have the maps ready. They'll be able to put these lanes in place by next year, and the whole idea is to get the area ready for the Olympics that are coming up.
ROBERTS: I like that, you know, one fellow was suggesting, the one place in the world where this could possibly work would be England.
SHUBERT: It could be. There's a fondness for cuing and following the rules here. So, it just might work, but the question is, are the tourists going to follow these guidelines?
CHETRY: Yes, I wonder if they could actually parlay that into Time Square because -- or, you know, trying to walk down the street to see the Rockefeller Center tree during the Christmas season 5th Avenue, forget it. It can't even move. So, just give it up. So, maybe that will work. Atika Shubert for us this morning. Thanks so much.
ROBERTS: Six minutes now to the top of the hour. Top stories coming your way right after the break. Stay with us.
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