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CNN Live Saturday

Women Groups, Air Traffic Controllers Upset With Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah

Aired April 27, 2002 - 17:25   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.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush says he forged a bond with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah this week, but during his trip to Texas to meet with Mr. Bush the prince apparently didn't bond well with women's rights groups or some air traffic controllers. CNN's Kathleen Koch is in our Washington bureau with details. Hi there, Kathleen.

KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka. Well, this very bizarre incident apparently began Thursday morning before Crown Prince Abdullah even arrived in Texas. Regional and national aviation officials say that a representative of the prince approached the general manager of the Waco Airport, a privately run airport, used by President Bush and those visiting him at his ranch in nearby Crawford.

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MARK PALLONE, REGIONAL VP, NATL. AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS ASSOCIATION: That there was a request that no female controllers work the Saudi aircraft with the prince on board. It was insulting to the controllers that the request would even come through.

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KOCH: And we've spoken with members of the U.S. Congress and women's rights organizations who called the request "outrageous" and "demeaning." And meanwhile, Saudi officials say it never even happened.

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PRINCE SAUD AL-FAISAL, FOREIGN MINISTER, SAUDI ARABIA: I don't know where this news came from. I can say without going back to our people that it is absolutely nonsense that they would do something like that. Half of our plane is full of hostesses.

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KOCH: FAA sources say there may have been some conversations with its Texas facilities, but spokeswoman Laura Brown explains that the agency, quote, "didn't get any formal request from the Saudis," and that, quote, "there was no direction from the FAA to handle the plane any differently." Now, Brown, in fact, says that she has never heard of anything like this happening before. And for now, the White House itself has no comment.

So whatever actually happened, both countries seem content to downplay it and avoid any sort of dust-up between these two allies in the very important war against terrorism and also in those very serious efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East. Back to you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: So Kathleen, there are reports that not only Waco got that request but even Houston got that request? And that while there may have been a request, there actually may have been one of the airlines -- one of the towers that actually complied?

KOCH: Well, we only know of specifically the Waco Airport, that is an airport that's run under private contract for the FAA and that they indeed did comply, that there was a female controller in the tower -- however, she stepped back from her duties and she did not deal with the crown prince's plane. But we don't have any confirmation about how far up the line that request was passed, and certainly we haven't heard that anyone else other than, again, this privately run airport complied.

WHITFIELD: Thanks very much, Kathleen Koch out of Washington.

KOCH: You bet.

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