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New Search for Missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 Underway; Russia Repeats Claim of Ukraine Drone Attack; Channel Tunnel Services Partially Reopens After Power Failure. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired December 30, 2025 - 14:30   ET

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

[14:30:00]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: A new deep sea search for MH370 is underway more than a decade after it vanished from radar. The Boeing 777 disappeared in 2014 shortly after takeoff from Kuala Lumpur with 239 people on board. Malaysia's transport ministry says the search is being carried out by a private marine robotics firm over the next several weeks.

Ocean Infinity signed a new no-find, no-fee contract with Malaysia's government in March and will be paid $70 million only if wreckage is discovered. I'm joined now by Sarah Bajc.

[14:35:00]

She is the partner of Philip Wood, an American who is on board MH370. Sara, thank you so much for being with us. I know you're watching this with so many emotions and this same firm carried out a search in 2018. Their CEO says their tech has improved since then. How are you feeling about this new search?

SARAH BAJC, PARTNER OF MH370 PASSENGER PHILIP WOOD: Well, first of all, thank you for being part of keeping the story alive. It's amazing that we're 12 years into it and still don't have any concrete evidence of what happened or even where the plane is. So it's a mixture of cynicism that I don't really think the plane is where they're searching anyway and hope that I might be wrong and that they'll find something.

KEILAR: I know there's been acceptance for you. You've talked about this for Philip's family that he wouldn't be coming back years ago. At least he wouldn't be coming back alive.

You've held a memorial for him. If there are some new details that emerge, what does that provide for you? What are you looking for?

What do you need?

BAJC: Well, some details, some facts of not only what happened but why would help with closure. Because it's hard enough to say goodbye formally without a body. That is hard by itself. But without even understanding why or what happened, it's nearly impossible.

So I think most of the families would agree with me on this that we would like closure and we'd also like some accountability because this was a terrible thing that happened. And the people who caused it and or allowed it to happen and remain a mystery need to be held accountable for that.

KEILAR: You said you don't think they're looking in the right place. Why is that?

BAJC: Well, they're looking at a tiny space in the southern Indian Ocean where a set of ping signals that may or may not actually have been coming from the plane indicated it could be. Now this is in a very deep, very rough sea area. So the likelihood that the pings were accurate and that they've tracked them properly to go to the place where the plane could have been and that it's still there is just so small.

Like the chances of it being correct are very small. Plus there's quite a few theories by experts who hold that the plane never went there to begin with.

KEILAR: Yes, and a lot of curiosity around those theories. You mentioned accountability. Malaysia's government has greenlit the renewed effort.

Ocean Infinity, as I mentioned, signed this no-find-no-fee contract. They don't get money if they don't find it, but $70 million if they do. How do you assess the country's handling of this search over the last 12 years?

BAJC: Well, I wouldn't say that Malaysia gave a green light. They had their arm twisted so hard that they capitulated, OK. The government of Malaysia has been nothing but an interference in the process of finding the truth.

They disappeared all sorts of information early on. They failed to release information until it was past the point of being helpful anymore. There's no question to me that that obfuscation has been there to protect people who were guilty of either extreme incompetence or outright bad behavior.

There's no question that that's the case. So, you know, even with a new political party in power, there's a lot to be seen of what will happen.

KEILAR: I think it's important also, as we think about this so many years later, I know there's so many people are looking at this. They want to know what's going to happen. They want this aircraft to be found.

At the heart of this are more than 200 people and all of the people around them affected by this. You, Philip's family members, just so many people. Can you tell us a little bit about him before you go?

BAJC: Well, Philip was an amazing man. Extremely competent, very kind, creative, and with just a huge zest for life. And so, you know, losing him was hard enough.

But then there was also all the trauma around it.

[14:40:00]

So for the -- for six to 12 months, there were sightings and there were theories. And so, it was a constant roller coaster. So for those people who have lost loved ones, they know how painful that void can be.

But now, you know, you have to think about all the other chaos that went on around this. And the one thing I know for sure is that Philip would not have wished that on his family or any of the other families for anything. And that he would also want us to have closure at this point.

KEILAR: Yes, you've had to reconstruct your life in the middle of all that chaos. And that's what so many family members have been through. Can you talk about what that has been like, kind of reconstructing things as you're grieving under really just unusual and traumatic circumstances?

BAJC: Well, I think, at least for me, it took me about two years to be ready to even move forward. There was a vicious cycle of trying to build a life again, but also to try to find out what was happening. So I was at the center of a small group of families who were actively involved in trying to find information.

Because the Malaysian government was literally interfering in the process of trying to figure out what happened. And so for two years, not only was my life on hold, but it was dedicated to what ultimately proved to be an impossible task. Because two years of focused effort and the input of hundreds, if not thousands, of experts in aviation crashes, in oceanography, and all trying to contribute to figuring out what might have happened.

And in the end, we're still 12 years -- we're almost 12 years later, and we still don't really know anything for sure.

KEILAR: Yes, and it's so important to remember that as we are covering this renewed search. Sarah, thank you so much for being with us and talking to us about Philip and about your concerns and thoughts as we do look at this unfolding.

BAJC: Thank you very much for having me.

KEILAR: And we do have some sad news just into CNN. Tatiana Schlossberg, an environmental journalist and author who was also a granddaughter of President John F. Kennedy and daughter to Caroline Kennedy, has died today at the age of 35.

Her family making that announcement just a short time ago. Just last month, she revealed that she had a terminal cancer diagnosis and an essay in The New Yorker. She is survived by her husband, George Moran, and their two young children.

We'll be right back.

[14:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: For the first time, Russia releasing video of what it calls the deployment of its nuclear capable hypersonic missile system, a weapon that President Putin describes as impossible to intercept. Reportedly capable of missile speeds more than 10 times the speed of sound.

Moscow says it's being positioned in Belarus, which of course shares a border with Ukraine and three NATO countries. The video's release comes as Russian officials double down on claims that Kyiv launched a drone attack on one of Putin's residences. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls that allegation a complete fabrication.

CNN senior international correspondent Fred Pleitgen is with us now from Berlin. Fred, what else are we hearing from Moscow about these developments?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the Russians were actually asked specifically whether there was any evidence that this alleged drone strike by the Ukrainians actually took place. And this was the spokesman, Dmitry Peskov. And he essentially scoffed at the idea of even having to provide any evidence saying that this attack definitely took place.

It was a big attack and that all the drones were taken out by Russian air defense systems. He called any sort of denials by the Ukrainians insane claims, as he put it. The Ukrainians, of course, are saying that this attack definitely did not ever take place, that they weren't behind it if one did take place.

And they also accuse Moscow of trying to use this as a pretext to hit Ukraine with more missile strikes and even harder than they have been before. One of the real things that this could have an impact on is, of course, the possible negotiations to try and end the conflict in Ukraine that the Trump administration has been undertaking. The Russians right now are saying that they're going to continue to negotiate with the Trump administration, but at the same time, take on a harder line towards the Ukrainians.

So that certainly is something that could have an impact, even as the diplomacy seems to be moving forward, at least between the U.S., Ukraine and America's European NATO allies -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Amid all of this, are European leaders still optimistic about peace talks?

PLEITGEN: I think that they are actually. I think one of the things that we saw today was a phone call initiated by the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, in the so-called Berlin format, where they were talking about next steps. And one of the things that we actually heard about an hour ago from the Ukrainians was the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy coming out and saying that there has indeed been another call between his chief negotiator, Rustem Umerov, and the U.S.'s negotiator, Steve Whitkoff, also on trying to find the next steps.

[14:50:00]

One of the things that I think is a big deal for the Ukrainians is something that the U.S. floated called the Prosperity Package, essentially telling the Ukrainians that if they do enter in a deal to end the conflict in Ukraine and cede territory after a referendum, that the U.S. would not only help provide security guarantees, but would also see to it that Ukraine becomes a prosperous nation, which means more jobs, more investment. That's something that Volodymyr Zelenskyy talked about at length towards journalists today, and certainly something that the Ukrainians say would obviously be very important for them.

Zelenskyy was saying that he believes that some of these documents, especially as far as that Prosperity Package is concerned, could be signed as early as January. But of course, Brianna, we always have to caution that this is all the U.S., the Ukrainians and the Europeans. It's not exactly clear to what extent Moscow is going to be on board.

And one of the things that the Russians have already said is that they are completely against a temporary ceasefire, which the Ukrainians say is necessary if there is going to be a referendum on a possible peace deal.

KEILAR: All right, Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much for the latest there.

And still to come, a New Year's travel nightmare, a power failure paralyzing traffic in Europe. We're going to take you live to London next.

[14:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KEILAR: A very close call for a family in Florida. Take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CAR CRASHES THOUGH A FENCE INTO A BACKYARD)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: That is terrifying video of a speeding Corvette as it ran off the road right into a home's backyard. You can see it there smashing through the fence. And thankfully, no one was hurt because the homeowner says her kids were outside just moments before the driver, who also was uninjured, walked away with a traffic ticket.

Rail traffic is slowly resuming through Europe's Channel Tunnel after a power failure suspended services for most of the day. The disruption brought trains linking Britain and continental Europe to a standstill, causing chaos for thousands during one of the busiest travel weeks of the year. CNN's Anna Cooban is live with an update on this. All right, Anna, how

long could travel be set back here?

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: Well, Brianna, we've already seen some resumption of service. But even then, Eurostar is warning passengers to postpone your travel plans, expect severe delays, expect last-minute cancellations. And to give you a sense of just how important this tunnel is, it's actually two passenger tunnels that run under the English Channel between London and Paris, one going one way, the other the other.

It transported last year around 20 million people over the course of the year. And so when something happens, when a power supply issue in this instance happens, it does not go unnoticed. I was at King's Cross station in London earlier today speaking with affected people.

One of them said that he had been on a train that was stuck just at the mouth of the tunnel for about six hours and had to be ferried back to London. Another woman said that she's thinking she might have to cancel plans to visit friends in Rotterdam for New Year's Eve. So an episode like this couldn't have come at the worst time during the busy holiday travel period.

But also it highlights just the extent of the bottleneck that can be created when issues like this occur.

KEILAR: Anna Cooban, thank you so much. We'll be keeping an eye on that.

And Europe isn't the only place dealing with travel woes. Here in the U.S., the winter storm that impacted a large portion of the country has moved on. But lake effect snow, gusty winds, and that colder air behind it is threatening to snarl some holiday travel.

Over the last few days, a storm system brought a little of everything from blizzard conditions to tornadoes. In Detroit, the snow caused whiteout conditions, leading to a major pileup involving dozens of cars. Then in Buffalo, the wind's so powerful, they're pushing Lake Erie's waves onto the shore.

Meteorologist Chris Warren is with us now. All right, Chris, who's feeling the brunt of all of this right now?

CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, right now, Brianna, it is where the snow is coming down. It is where the wind is absolutely howling right now. And it's cold air for just about everybody.

So it's the wind and the snow that's making it that much worse for a lot of people coming off of the Great Lakes, with the dark purple showing some of the heavier snow that can be blinding snow if you're driving. Here are some of the winds in Binghamton, New York, up to 51 mile per hour wind gusts, still windy in Buffalo at 47 miles an hour. And the threat for more impactful snow is with us here for the next couple of days.

Really, with this lake effect snow in pink, those are the winter warnings that are in effect. The amount of snow that's expected here will be anywhere from about eight inches to a foot in some of the heaviest snow bands. Otherwise, some shovel-able snow throughout the Great Lakes region, not quite to the big cities for the most part.

What is widespread is that bone chilling cold. When you factor in the wind, when the wind is blowing that warm air right at your certain surface of your skin away from you, that's the wind chill. And it feels like single digits right now in Chicago and in Buffalo.

It feels like 12 in Boston. Looking ahead to New Year's Eve, there is a chance, there is a chance there could be a few snowflakes, nothing major, but maybe just a bit to make it interesting in New York City at the time that the ball does drop. So here's a look now at the forecast.

Again, it's the combination of cold here on New Year's Eve and the wind to make it feel even colder. Temperatures right around freezing, not quite getting above freezing leading up to midnight in 2026. When you factor in the wind gusting to 14, 17, even 23 miles an hour, it will feel like the lower 20s.

Meanwhile, on New Year's Day for the Tournament of Roses parade here in Los Angeles in Pasadena, it is going to be wet. We have escaped about 20 years without rain, but now that changes. Looks like about 100 percent chance of rain for the parade.

And then the forecast going forward, and Brianna, keep in mind, these are high temperatures in New York Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, so ringing in the New Year ...

END