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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Reports: Germanwings Pilot Locked Out of Cockpit; Saudi Arabia Launches Airstrikes in Yemen; Bowe Bergdahl Charged with Desertion. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired March 26, 2015 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[04:00:24] CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Locked out of the cockpit. Reports claiming one of the pilots of Germanwings 9525 could be heard desperately trying to get back in before the plane crashed into the Alps.

This morning, the mystery deepens. What was the other pilot inside the cockpit doing? This, as we learn new information about those onboard.

We are covering all angles of our big story right now.

Good morning. Welcome to EARLY START.

I'm Christine Romans. It is Thursday. It is March 26th, 4:00 a.m. in the East. John Berman is in Washington, D.C. this morning.

Breaking overnight, folks, a blockbuster revelation that puts investigators one step closer to figuring out just what cause the Germanwings jetliner to crash into the French Alps. Media reports say that one of the pilots onboard Flight 9525 was locked out of the cockpit as the plane flew straight into the mountain. And this chilling disclosure: a senior military official telling "The New York Times" the pilot can be heard on the cockpit voice recorder knocking, tapping first and then knocking, and then trying to smash down the door to get back into the cockpit.

Turning now to CNN's Erin McLaughlin live at the staging area for recovery efforts in the French Alps.

First, this reporting by "The New York Times", since matched by AFP, Agence France Presse -- what do we know about what could have been on that cockpit voice recorder, Erin?

ERIN MCLAUGHLIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Christine.

Well, the mystery certainly deepening here in France. What we don't seem to know or what authorities don't seem to know is why one of the pilots left the cockpit and why the other pilot didn't let him back inside.

Now, so far, French authorities have declined to comment on these reports. Publicly what they said about the contents of the cockpit flight recorder is that they are analyzing noises and voices on the file.

Meanwhile, a critical piece to the puzzle still missing, the flight data recorder. Now, we know they managed to recover the casing, but the recorder itself still missing. No doubt a subject to this ongoing recovery search that's happening in the Alps. It kicked off again this morning. The first helicopters landing in the staging area just behind me.

We're also expecting today the arrival of the friends and families of the victims, according to local media reports. Some 400 expected. They are being brought here to be as close to their loved ones as possible -- Christine.

ROMANS: So, on that data recorder, the flight data recorder, they are still looking for I guess essentially the memory card of that. That's going to give the technical details of what was happening -- the speed, the flight, the pitch, all of that. That's what is on that memory card. They haven't found it yet.

MCLAUGHLIN: That's exactly right, Christine. It's going to give them a clearer picture of what was going on in terms of the operation of the plane and the moments before that crashed. French President Francois Holland saying that they have managed to find the casing. They have not found the recorder itself. The CEO of Lufthansa Airlines saying that he believes there is a high probability they will eventually find that recorder. The question, of course, being, what condition will that recorder be in?

ROMANS: Combing the rocky slopes of that mountain side.

Thank you so much for that, Erin McLaughlin, at the staging area, after the recovery efforts.

New details emerging this morning about the victims, the 150 victims of the Germanwings crash. Passengers from all over the world, including, we have learned, three Americans.

Two were a mother/daughter, Yvonne and Emily Selke of Nokesville, Virginia, near Washington. Emily was a recent graduate of Drexler University. Her mother, Yvonne, a long time employee of the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton. Officials have not identified the third American. Our thoughts are with their families.

We are also learning more this morning about other passengers presumed dead in the crash. The number is still in flux as Germanwings and officials in least 18 countries keep updating those numbers. But we can now tell you, they came from the Middle East, Asia, North and South America and all across Europe. By far, the largest numbers come from Spain, the origin of Flight 9525, and Germany, its destination.

Joining us now from Haltern, Germany, home of 16 students and two teachers who are on that flight, CNN's Diana Magnay.

Diana, what's the latest?

[04:05:04] DIANA MAGNAY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Christine, there were 72 people from Germany who lost their lives according to the latest toll. And as you say, 18 of them from this town, Haltern am See.

I'm in front of Joseph-Koenig gymnasium where you see the memorial to the pupils who lost their lives. All day, yesterday, all day this morning, so far, classmates have been coming to pay respects to the friends they lost. There are signs up saying things like "why." Why did this have to happen?

This is a town in mourning. If you go to the church, there is a similar memorial inside the church, and a book of condolences. The children at this school have special trauma counselors and psychologists on hand to try to get them through this time. There will also be a moment of silence held at the exact time that the plane went down in schools across this region of Germany, North Rhine- Westphalia, later this morning.

And also, Christine, the relatives of those who died have been contacted by Lufthansa and are at the moment flying from both Dusseldorf and Barcelona to a special crisis center there where they will be taken as close to the crash site as possible. All part really of the process to help them come to terms with their grief as the investigation continues -- Christine.

ROMANS: All right. Diana Magnay for us in the hard broken town of Haltern, Germany, this morning.

Six minutes past the hour.

The weather in the French Alps set to cause problems again today for the recovery efforts.

Pedram Javaheri tracking the forecast this morning -- Pedram.

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hey, good morning, Christine.

Yes, you know we all have seen the footage of the steep terrain over here, generally, 60 degree to 70 degree slopes there across this portion of the canyon. When you go in to a closer perspective, the canyon itself is quite narrow. In fact, 820 feet wide when you get into the closer zone of the canyon. And what officials have done is placed a grid line, because they've got to be very organized with the little room they have to work with.

You know, some 10 helicopters in the area, one of them kind of going around the perimeter and directing other helicopters within each of those grid lines. That's to drop personnel to the floor, and also the mountainsides there. But the concerns are the winds the next couple of days, Thursday, and especially come Friday.

Now, the prevailing winds like to stay at the ridge tops, but when you get down within the valley itself, within the mountainside itself, turbulence at this form, now with a narrow grid line and also a lot of personnel across this region. We know that is going to be a major concern when it comes to the hazards with the storm system as it pushes its way across the Central Mediterranean. The forecast could bring in winds gust up as high 50 miles per hour on Friday afternoon across the region of the Alps -- Christine.

ROMANS: That makes for tough going. All right. Thanks for that, Pedram.

So, how safe are European airlines? Now, despite a spotlight in concerns this week, the answer is very safe. This week's Germanwings crash was the first major crash since the Air France jet was lost over the Atlantic in 2009. And according to the European Safety Agency, the 28 countries that make up the E.U. have the lowest rate of fatal accidents, 1.8 per million commercial flights.

The Germanwings disaster follows a shocking year for airline fatalities, though. There were 641 deaths in 2014. That's more than three times the number for 2013, according to the International Air Transport Association.

It doesn't include the 298 lives when Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-17 was shot down over Ukraine, which is not considered an accident.

Breaking overnight: Yemen erupting. Arabia, backed by 10-nation air coalition, launching air strikes against Iranian backed Houthi rebels. The U.S. on the sidelines now providing logistical and intelligent support. Now, this fight to stabilize Yemen, a key U.S. ally, threatening to escalate into an all-out war.

CNN's Becky Anderson monitoring the offensive live from Abu Dhabi this morning.

The players, some of them are not historically friendly to each other, but all of them are turning their attention on the same goal here in Yemen.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is very interesting. This is a coalition with teeth. Let's just get through exactly who is all involved going forward in these airstrikes, 100 Saudi Arabia war planes deployed and ready, 30 from the UAE, 15 from Kuwait and Bahrain and 10 from Qatar. This GCC coalition members here and you have Egypt and Jordan saying they will also get involved as well.

We have seen air strikes on Houthis militia strongholds, that of Sana'a, the capital city. Overnight, reports of heavy bombing there. The Saudis say they have also bombed two of the air bases that have taken over in recent days by Houthi militia.

Again, this is a sheer minority believed to be backed by the Iranians which Saudi Arabia is as you can imagine very concerned about.

[04:10:06] There are two complications here, Christine, I think. We have already seen al Qaeda and ISIS capitalizing on the power vacuum in the country, with deadly attacks over recent days. For example, on mosques in Sana'a.

The other consequence, of course, is what happens to the U.S./Iranian talks at present. The U.S. backing President Hadi who fled the country we believe yesterday, as this Houthi militia surged toward Aden, towards Aden, where he was hauled up, we believe, that he has fled the country, along with a number of the regional diplomats who were based in Aden, having left Sana'a.

But consider this -- the Saudis incredibly concerned about Iranian influence in the country which is on the state of chaos on its southern border. Its great foe, Iran, of course, and the influence it has there, of critical importance to the Saudis. As I say in the background, you have the U.S. talks going on with Iran as well.

So, what happens next in this country is going to be incredibly important, not just for Yemen and for this region as a whole, but going forward for the world. I mean, this is a critical situation. It couldn't be anymore important at this point.

ROMANS: All right. Again, Saudi Arabia launching airstrikes in Yemen. Becky Anderson following that for us from Abu Dhabi -- thank you, Becky.

In Iraq, U.S. warplanes are now launching airstrikes on ISIS positions in Tikrit. Iraqi forces joined by Iranian-backed militias, have been fighting to retake the city for weeks. But ISIS fighters, they have been holding their own. The Pentagon seizing the opportunity to resume a leading role in the offensive.

In the Iraqi city of Mosul, U.S. planes have begun dropping leaflets, urging citizens to cooperate with an impending military operations to force ISIS out.

The U.S. soldier rescued from the Taliban, five years in captivity, now charged with desertion. The punishment Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl could face.

Plus, a deadly tornado tearing through Oklahoma, dramatic video of that overnight storm. That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:15:30] ROMANS: After investigating the circumstances surrounding his disappearance in Afghanistan, the Army has charged Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl with desertion and misbehavior before the enemy, an accusation he ran away from a battle station in a time of war. If convicted, he could face life in prison. Bergdahl, if you recall, was held for five years by the Taliban before his release in a prisoner exchange, a controversial prisoner exchange last May.

CNN's Martin Savidge following developments for us from San Antonio, Texas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christine.

Despite the charges against him, it is expected, at least according to the U.S. military, that this is another typical day for Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. In other words, he's not been taken into custody. He is not being held. You will remember that he came to San Antonio last May, shortly after

he was released from captivity for two purposes. One to get him medically fit again. And then the other one was to put him through what's called a reintegration program. It's a program that they specialized on down here, and it helps POWs, former POWs, sort of come back to normal life.

Once he completed that program, then he was given a desk job at Fort Sam Houston, in fact, working in the building directly behind us here. And that's pretty much been his life. The U.S. military will say that he is treated no differently than any other soldier. He has the same freedoms, the same privileges with maybe one exception, and that they say is whenever he leaves post, he is escorted by two soldiers, the military maintains that that is for his own protection.

As to what's come next, that will be the Article 32 hearing that will also take place here in San Antonio. And it will be then that it's determined whether or not the evidence is sufficient enough to move forward with an actual court martial. No date has yet been announced for that -- Christine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Martin Savidge for us in San Antonio -- thanks, Martin.

It's day 14 in the trial of accused Boston marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. And the prosecution is close to wrapping its case. In court Wednesday, more testimony, about evidence recovered from Tsarnaev's dorm room. Jurors also heard about bomb making parts found in his brother Tamerlan's Cambridge apartment. An FBI agent described the apartment as almost looking like a construction site.

Testimony resumes this morning in the Aaron Hernandez trial. The judge says prosecutors are about a week away from resting their case against the former NFL star. He is accused of murdering his friend Odin Lloyd. She also ruled some jailhouse phone calls made by Hernandez and others connected to the case will be allowed as evidence despite objections by Hernandez's defense team.

Martese Johnson, the University of Virginia student whose bloody arrest was captured on video will be in court today. His attorney says Johnson plans to plead not guilty to charges of public intoxication and obstruction of justice. His arrest sparked protests and allegations of police brutality. Johnson is expected to meet later today with Virginia state police investigators who are looking into that case.

Reverend Jesse Jackson says it is a day of joy. His son, former Illinois Congressman Jesse Jackson, Jr., about to be released from federal prison in Alabama. He will serve out the remainder of his time for misusing $750,000 in campaign money, he'll serve out a remainder of his time at a Washington, D.C. halfway house. A month after Jackson's sentence ends, his wife Sandy begins serving a year in prison for her role in that crime. A swarm of tornadoes swept across Oklahoma Wednesday leaving wreckage

in their wake. Stunning video shows that a twister touching down in Sand Spring suburb of Tulsa where one person is reported dead this morning. Reports of severe damage also in Moore, Oklahoma. You'll remember in Moore, Oklahoma, a 2013 tornado killed 24 and injured more than 300. Yesterday, trees toppled, homes caved in, cars overturned, power lines snapped. Officials say at least 20 people were treated at that area hospitals.

New questions this morning, this questions into why Germanwings 9525 suddenly crashed. We are examining the plane's crash compared to others and what that could tell us about what was happening inside that cockpit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: This morning, investigators are trying to piece together the final seconds of Germanwings 9525. Overnight, we learned from media reports that the cockpit voice recorder shows one of the pilots was locked out of the cockpit as the plane descended and then slammed into the mountainside. Investigators already have evidence besides the voice and data recorders. For example, radar tracking of course and altitude that can be compared to other crashes for hints of what might have happened.

CNN's Tom Foreman has more from our virtual studio.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Investigators are looking at the final minutes of the flight in the Germanwings plane, and comparing to it to other cases that they may know about and where they may know the cause.

For example, if you look at what happened with Alaska Air Flight 261 some years ago, they had a massive mechanical problem on this plane. So, let's bring in a timeline of the last 15 minutes of that flight and look at what happened. They lost the ability to pitch the plane, whether it went up or down.

If you look at the flight pattern of the end of that flight, you can see what happened. It was pitching around. They were trying to do something with it, but they reached a cataclysmic spot where they can longer do anything and the plane plummeted some 18,000 feet, in about 81 seconds and it crashed with all lives lost, very distinctive pattern.

Now, let's look at another one here. How about this flight by Swiss Air near Nova Scotia. They noticed some smoke in the cabin, then it broke into a full fire. They kept trying to deal with that as they continue trying to head the plane toward to what eventually be an attempt of an emergency landing. It did not work.

But if you look at the flight pattern if this plane, you could see basically that they are trying to wrestle with the plane that doesn't want to do what they want it to do. And eventually, they can't do anything about it, they crash also. All lives lost there.

[04:25:04] And now, let's look at one more here. This was a Greek airline called Helios Flight 522. In this case, the crew did suffer from hypoxia. Basically, they lost pressure in the cabin. They had not enough oxygen. They passed out. The plane flew for a long time on auto pilot.

There was one attempt at the end by a flight attendant who was able to rise enough to try to fly the plane, did not succeeded. So, it essentially sort of coasted and went in on auto pilot to the ground. Look at that flight pattern, very different than the others, very smooth and regular.

Now, let's add the Germanwings flight pattern and you can see that it, too, has that same smooth pattern. Does that mean that this was a case of hypoxia? That the crew simply could not operate the plane? We don't really know that.

But investigators have to look at these patterns, along with the voice recorders and everything else, to come up with their hypothesis about what happened.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Thanks, Tom, for that.

Again, this new reporting on the voice recordings, that you could hear one of the pilots locked out of the cockpit, tapping and then knocking and then trying to break down the door to get back into the cockpit. What we are learning new this morning about just what might have caused that plane to crash. Now, search crews combing the mountains for remains of victims. We've got live team coverage of these new developments, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROMANS: Breaking news this morning, new clues into what may have caused Germanwings Flight 9525 to crash into the Alps. Reports claim one of the pilots was locked out of the cockpit, heard on the cockpit recorder desperately trying to get back in.