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Connect the World
Blinken Visits Middle East in effort to stop a Wider War; Missing Section of Plane the Blew Off Mid-Flight is Found; Relations Between India and Maldives have been Tense since Maldivian President Muizzu took Power in November; Boeing in Spotlight after Mid-Flight Emergency; Morocco Looks to Build on World Cup Success at Africa Cup of Nations. Aired 9-9:45a ET
Aired January 08, 2024 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[09:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Antony Blinken has just touched down in Saudi Arabia after a stop here in Abu Dhabi the U.S.
Secretary of State touring the Middle East in an effort to prevent a wider war. It is 5 pm in Riyadh, 6 pm here in Abu Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson. This
is "Connect the World" also ahead over the next two hours.
A school teacher has found in his backyard a crucial section of the Alaska Airlines plane that was ripped off a Boeing jet on Friday. A diplomatic
spat festering after three Maldives government officials mocked the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in online posts. And later this hour, we'll
look ahead to the Africa Cup of Nations with a very special interview.
Well, the markets in New York will open in about 30 minutes from now and the major U.S. Indices could remain in the red today. Although we've got a
little bit of a -- just a jump into the green there with the NASDAQ and the S&P, but ultimately, we've had a negative start to the year which snapped
the market out of strong gains.
All eyes today will be on those Boeing shares. Dozens of Boeing 737 Max-9 aircraft grounded after Friday's incident when a fuselage section blew out
on an Alaska Airlines Flight, more on that later this hour. Well as Israel's war against Hamas enters its fourth month America's top diplomat
is on a high stakes trip aiming to prevent a wider conflict from erupting.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken's latest stop is Saudi Arabia at a press conference in Doha in Qatar on Sunday Blinken criticized what he
called irresponsible and inflammatory statements by Israeli ministers and lawmakers who have called for Palestinians to be resettled outside Gaza. He
is set to meet with Israeli officials on Tuesday.
Nic Robertson joins us now from Tel Aviv with the very latest. And I have to start with some breaking news as Blinken is in region trying to effort
de-escalation. CNN is just alerted that a Hezbollah militant from the Iran- backed Lebanese group has been killed in an Israeli airstrike on Southern Lebanon, that according to a security source. What do we know at this
point, Nic?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah, Israel's not claiming responsibility for this strike. Wissam Tawil is the Hezbollah
Commander, a senior commander, by all accounts. The Islamic resistance the military front, if you will of Hezbollah have released a number of
photographs with him that show him with Qasem Soleimani, the top Iranian General who the U.S. killed in a drone strike four years ago.
Imad Mughniyeh another very senior figure in the pantheon of Hezbollah seniors and also Hassan Nasrallah, the spiritual leader of Hezbollah.
There's a photograph of him with Nasrallah as well. So, it does appear that this was a senior figure when it comes today when Israeli fighter jets,
helicopters and even drones have been flying over and targeting areas in Southern Lebanon.
The IDF said that those targets have included sites where anti-tank missiles have been fired across the border. But Israel has not so far taken
responsibility for the killing of Wissam Tawil. It is a potential escalation he does appear to be a senior Hezbollah commander.
But the escalation perhaps came two days ago when Hezbollah targeted with 62 missiles they said. And Israeli military outposts and our surveillance
station on the top of a hill near the top of a mountain actually near the border with Lebanon, which they said was in response for the killing of the
Hamas Leader Arouri, Saleh Al-Arouri in Beirut Wednesday last week.
Israel didn't take responsibility -- publicly take responsibility for that and the U.S. officials said they were responsible for that strike. So what
we're seeing here is a pattern of potential slow escalation. And that is exactly what Secretary Blinken is coming into the region to try to tamp
down, Becky.
ANDERSON: Meantime, this assault by Israel on Gaza continues around this region. Blinken will be hearing calls for an immediate ceasefire that
hasn't changed on any of his trips here. And this is now of course the fourth trip.
[09:05:00]
And we are hearing from some on the right wing of Israeli politics that Gazan residence, Palestinians should be moved out of Gaza once this
conflict begins. Antony Blinken making clear on this trip those Gaza residents is not and should not be going anywhere. That contrast of course
with the comments of Netanyahu's hardline cabinet, just explain if you will.
ROBERTSON: Yeah, the hardline members of the cabinet are saying that some Palestinians in Gaza, when they're talking about a large number should be
allowed to voluntarily leave and go and repatriate to other countries. And we heard from Israel's President, very clearly I've heard so over the past
24 hours very clearly saying that is absolutely not Israel's policy to force anyone to leave Gaza or the West Bank.
And Secretary of State Antony Blinken has also made that very clear that the United States is opposed to that, that kind of movement of people not
only out of Gaza but also the West Bank. And we did hear from King Abdullah of Jordan over the weekend. Secretary Blinken was there of course,
yesterday saying that he wants an immediate ceasefire.
Secretary Blinken is going to come here in to Israel and say look, all those displaced people in Gaza obviously they're not going to leave. But
what Israel needs to do is as soon as the conditions allow is to allow those people to get home 90 percent of the population of Gaza. And we're
talking about 1.9 million people here are displaced according to U.N. agencies.
So there is a vast displacement. Many of those people are crammed into the south. And particularly Blinken is calling them for -- calling for them
essentially to be allowed to go home back to their homes in the north of Gaza, where the fighting has subsided. And Israel has more of a control
above the ground. But of course so many homes are destroyed there.
It's hard to see how they can go back without a massive humanitarian support and influx. And of course, this is something that Israel has not
appeared willing to countenance that volume so far.
ANDERSON: Yeah. In fact, still dropping leaflets on residents in the south, telling them to move away from certain areas. Certainly there is no
suggestion on the part of the Israelis that people will be moving back home anytime soon. Thank you, Nic.
U.S. Secretary of State Blinken says he is and I quote him here, deeply sorry for the deaths of at least two Al Jazeera journalists killed in an
Israeli airstrike in Gaza over the weekend. Israel's military admitted to the strike saying it was targeting a terrorist.
One of those killed was the son of Al Jazeera's Gaza Bureau Chief who you see here, holding the hand of his son's body. He had already lost his wife,
two other children and a grandchild in an Israeli strike in October.
Well, the Committee to protect journalists says, 79 journalists and media workers are among the thousands killed in Gaza since war broke out in
October. Well, the Head of the World Health Organization says, Al Aqsa Hospital in Central Gaza must remain functional while multiple aid groups
pull out of the area saying it's too dangerous to stay.
CNN can't independently verify conditions inside the hospital. But I want to show you some pictures taken just inside yesterday. And I warn you that
some of these are very graphics. Let me just pause for a moment. After W.H.O. representatives toured the hospital, the Group's Director General
reported they saw quote, sickening scenes and blood street floors in chaotic corridors as well as at least one child lying dead and partially
covered by a sheet, while the injured lay on the floor.
There is another important story about this war that you can watch online. Nada Bashir shows us how in addition to the massive loss of life in Gaza,
the enclaves cultural treasures and landmarks are being reduced to rubble. That is cnn.com on your computer or click on the CNN app on your smartphone
to watch that report.
Well, new dramatic video from Japan shows an elderly woman being rescued five days after the New Year's Day earthquake. Rescuers can be seen here
rushing to pull a woman out of the wreckage. They say she was trapped under furniture in a two storied house in Sioux City. The woman is in her 90s and
was immediately hospitalized after the rescue. Well, as the survivors of that quake recover, the death toll continues to climb.
[09:10:00]
At least 168 people have now died in Japan and more than 300 are still missing. CNN's Marc Stewart joins us from Seoul, South Korea with more,
Marc, on the details if you will?
MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And Becky first of all it is so hard to believe that it's only been one week since this earthquake rocked Japan and
with so many people still missing. It may be a while before we truly know the size and the scope of this disaster. Yet as we are hearing there are
still some remarkable stories of survival.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEWART (voice-over): Under the night sky and pounding rain a moment of hope in the Japanese earthquake zone. A woman in her 90s is put into an
ambulance rescued from a two storied home in the rubble. She was stuck under furniture and a narrow space injured yet able to speak according to
Japan's NHK.
DR. MOTOTAKA INABA, MEDICAL DOCTOR, PEACE WINDS JAPAN: Really though it was a team effort the police department, fire department and emergency medical
team we were determined, we were saying almost there together.
STEWART (voice-over): But the optimism may be short lived. One week after the 7.5 magnitude quake struck there are signs of desperation in Central
Japan. With so many homes destroyed, people are trying to find a place to live.
YUKIO TERAOKA, RESIDENT OF SHIROMARU DISTRICT: We will have to stay at a shelter with everyone else for about three months or so. And then for two
to three years, we live in temporary accommodation because the whole of Ishikawa Prefecture is suffering from the disaster. Sooner or later we will
die before we're settling in one place. We're over 80 already.
STEWART (voice-over): The local supermarket is busy having just reopened. Demand is so high, there's a limit on rice. Just getting the basics is a
struggle.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Supplies are running out day by day. Every day I talk with my family about how we will survive for the day and the next day?
Worrying about life like this is terrible. The biggest problem is that we have no water. Nobody has any water for daily use. We cannot take a shower
and we cannot even wash our hands. We can only collect rainwater for emergency use.
STEWART (voice-over): The damage to Japan's infrastructure is tremendous. Electric crews work to restore power. Roads are cracked, getting in the way
of bringing help to hard hit areas.
KOUSAKU MUKAI, LEADER OF VOLUNTEER ASSISTANCE GROUP MARUGOMI JAPAN: The Self Defense Forces and people repairing the roads are doing their all to
establish a lifeline and get the roads reopened. But if they can't do this work then assistance supplies won't arrive.
STEWART (voice-over): Supplies that residents in these disaster zones desperately need to survive and rebuild their homes from this massive
quake, one that has shaken the ground and Japan's sense of security.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STEWART (on camera): Despite best intentions, despite all the preparation there are just some things that cannot be controlled including the weather.
Becky rescue workers are dealing with threats of snow, wind and rain. They've dealt with it in the past and perhaps in the days ahead.
ANDERSON: That's good to have you, Marc, thank you. In the United States a crucial section of an Alaska Airlines plane that ripped off the jet mid-
flight on Friday has been found in a school teacher's backyard in Oregon. Investigators are trying to figure out why the so-called door plug detached
from the plane leaving a gaping hole in the side of the jet in a terrifying scene inside the aircraft.
The airline says several passengers were injured. Friday's incident led to the nationwide grounding of certain Boeing 737 Max-9 Aircraft and a slew of
flight cancellations. Boeing's stock has taken a hit since the horrifying mid-flight blow up. CNN's Pete Muntean has more on the investigation.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JENNIFER HOMENDY, CHAIR, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: It was very violent when the rapid decompression in the door was expelled out of the
plane.
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New images from the National Transportation Safety Board showed the force of the failure
onboard Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 damaged and contorted seats from a 400 mile per hour rush of air through a refrigerator sized hole ripped in the
side of the plane.
HOMENDY: The head rests on 25 A and 26 A were gone. The extra oxygen mask was sheared off.
MUNTEAN (voice-over): NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy now says even the cockpit door flew open.
[09:15:00]
HOMENDY: The time there is a bang. The door flies open. It did eventually shut but it did blow open during the explosive decompression.
MUNTEAN (voice-over): Amazingly, no passengers were seriously hurt.
EMMA VU, PASSENGER ON ALASKA AIR FLIGHT 1282: I woke up to the plane just falling and I knew it was not just normal turbulence because the masks came
down. And that's when the panic definitely started to set in.
MUNTEAN (voice-over): The flight departed Portland International Airport at 5.07 pm on Friday. Six minutes in climbing through 16,000 feet passengers
described multiple banks and the loud rush of air audible as pilots radioed air traffic control to make an emergency landing back in Portland.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Alaska 1282 -- need to declare an emergency, descending down to 10,000, just depressurized.
MUNTEAN (voice-over): The plane a Boeing 737 Max-9 only months old, it took its first flight on October 15th and flew only 150 flights for Alaska
Airlines. Investigators say a pressurization warning light came on three previous times including the day before this incident and prompting Alaska
Airlines to restrict the plane from overwater flights.
HOMENDY: It's certainly a concern and it's one that we want to dig into.
MUNTEAN (voice-over): The Federal Aviation Administration has now grounded Max-9s until airlines can make new inspections. But the incident has once
again thrust Boeing under the microscope. Two fatal crashes grounded the 737 Max for 20 months in the U.S.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Thanks to Pete Muntean for that report. And later this hour here on "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson, I'll speak with Mark
Pierotti. He's an Aeronautical Engineer and Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society in the UK. I'm going to asked him about the warning
lights that illuminated on that jet in the days leading up to this incident, whether they should have been caused for more concern, that more
coming up.
Well, this year might as well be called the year of elections for all. According to "The Economist Newspaper" 4 billion people in 60 countries get
the chance to vote in 2024 in either national or local elections. You are watching Sheikh Hasina, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh casting her vote
presumably for herself. She duly won Sunday's poll there.
There are elections this year in Europe, India, China, Russia, Ukraine and of course the United States with a big decision to make in November. Well,
there are six days to go until the Iowa Caucuses, the kickoff as it were of this presidential campaign about an hour from now. Nikki Haley is hosting a
countdown to caucus event in Sioux City.
And like Haley, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis continues to attack Donald Trump hoping his message will get him an Iowa win. A third candidate Vivek
Ramaswamy is having his own rally called "Commit to Caucus" that is later today. So how big a deal is Iowa and are its voters? That is coming up.
Also ahead an elderly woman saved five days after a major earthquake. An update ahead on what are the mounting challenges that rescuers in Japan are
facing the scarcity of available resources. Plus three officials from the Maldives suspended from mocking India's Prime Minister on social media,
more on the escalating tensions between the two nations just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:20:00]
ANDERSON: Well, tensions between India and the Maldives deepening. One of India's top online travel sites is suspending flight bookings to the
Maldives which is a popular tourist destination of course particularly so with Indian tourists.
Now it comes after three deadly government ministers from the Maldives mocked Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in online posts calling him a
clown and a terrorist. The officials have been suspended. Relations between the two countries have been on edge since the Maldives President took power
in November.
Let's bring in CNN's Vedika Sud, who joins us now live from New Delhi. And Vedika for those who are new to this story just explain what's going on and
how this spat came about the context of course for this is that relations have been a little poor now for some time?
VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER: Good to speak to you today, Becky. Well, it's not a great start to the New Year for Maldives and India. And this goes back to
last week in fact, when Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was visiting the islands of Lakshadweep just off the southwest coast of India.
Now while he was there, he did upload a few pictures and videos promoting local tourism that doesn't seem to have gone down well with people back in
the Maldives because a huge number of tourists to the Maldives are from India. In fact, India topped that list last year in 2023.
Now as you mentioned, those officials did mock Indian Prime Minister Modi. There was a huge backlash on Indian social media after the comments they
made, which of course were insulting. And on Sunday the Maldivian Prime Minister did suspend these three officials indefinitely.
The pressure to sack them has been high in terms of you know people back in India supporting Modi asking for that, but for now they have been
suspended. Even Maldives Foreign Ministry came out with a statement I'm going to read an excerpt from there. The government of Maldives is aware of
the derogatory remarks in social media platforms against foreign leaders and high ranking individuals. These opinions are personal and do not
represent the views of the government of Maldives.
Now, this response from Malik (ph) comes after there has been a boycott called by many people within India to boycott visiting the Maldives as part
of the holidays and vacations. Now we all do know that it's not a secret that both India and China have been fighting to get more out of the
Maldives given its positioning in the Indian Ocean region. Here's what Michael Kugelman an Analyst had to tell us about the significance of
Maldives in the Indian Ocean.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL KUGELMAN, DIRECTOR OF SOUTH ASIA INSTITUTE AT THE WILSON CENTER: I would argue that South Asia has really become one of the biggest
battlegrounds for India-China competition. And Maldives is right in the middle of that. For many years India had by far been the most influential
external player in the Maldives. But things have changed in recent years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SUD: And here is how those things have changed. Usually Becky, you have other President of Maldives in fact a newly elected President Maldives
visiting India first, but in this case you will have the incumbent Maldivian President visiting China as we speak, he left for China last
night. And this many thing is a snub to the Indian government.
Meanwhile, of course India is not happy with the comments made against the Indian Prime Minister according to a senior official in the Ministry of
External Affairs here in New Delhi. The Indian High Commission in Maldives has taken this up at a very high level and has also condemned the remarks
made against the Indian Prime Minister. This is not the last week hearing off this route Becky, there's more to come in the days ahead, back to you.
ANDERSON: Thank you. Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now. And India's Supreme Court has reversed the
state government's decision to release 11 men convicted for one of the most heinous crimes in the country's recent history.
[09:25:00]
They have been ordered back to jail. The men were part of a mob that raped a pregnant woman during the Hindu-Muslim riots in 2002. They were sentenced
to life in prison for rape murder, but were freed in 2022.
Pope Francis has described attacks on civilians during wars including in Gaza and Ukraine as war crimes. During his "State of the World Address" in
the Vatican, the pontiff said regardless of conflicts reasons, there is no doubt they end up quote, indiscriminately striking civilians.
An apparent cyber hack resulted in screens in Lebanon's Beirut Airport displaying anti-Hezbollah messages on Sunday. The messages in Arabic
appeared on the departure and arrival screens on Sunday. One of the messages read Rafik Hariri Airport does not belong to Hezbollah and Iran.
Well coming up, I'm going to speak with an aviation expert about the terrifying mid-air emergency that left this gaping hole in the side of an
Alaska Airlines Boeing that coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: All right welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi, where the time is just about half hour 6. You are watching "Connect the World".
In the past several hours' dozens of Russian missiles pounded cities across Ukraine. Officials there say four people were killed more than 30 were
wounded.
These strikes blew out windows in this building in Zaporizhzhia and a shopping mall and homes were damaged in President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's
hometown of Kryvyi Rih but a moment of hope you can see a man being rescued in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine claim to hope as it moves into a New Year of
fighting. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen looks at 2024's deadly start where not even children are spared.
[09:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the New Year begins Russia's aerial assault on Ukraine continues. At least
11 civilians, including five children killed by missile strikes around Pokrovsk in the east of the country authorities say.
The buildings they were in reduced to nothing more than rubble. Two houses have been destroyed to the ground, this official says. 134 private houses
and 15 apartment buildings have been damaged. Search operations are ongoing. Ukraine says Russia has stepped up attacks both on the ground and
in the air in the past weeks, killing nearly 120 civilians and wounding almost 500 more since December 29th according to the U.S.
The U.S. claims Russia has even used missiles procured from North Korea to attack Kharkiv in North Eastern Ukraine. Moscow hasn't commented so far and
Ukrainian authorities investigating the wreckage say they haven't yet come to a final conclusion about the missiles' origin.
Most likely this missile was either supplied by North Korea or it was produced recently using blueprints and technologies supplied by Russia to
third countries or to North Korea, this official says. Russian President Vladimir Putin celebrating Orthodox Christmas as he escalates his assault
against Ukraine, meeting with families of Russian soldiers killed on the battlefield and vowing to support the loved ones of those entire he sends
to the warzone.
You know that many of our men our courageous heroic guys. Russian warriors believe in now on this holiday defend the interests of our country with
arms and hands he says. I want to assure you we will always have your back. But Kyiv says the Russian army is suffering catastrophic losses as it tries
to push forward in several sectors along the front lines.
Ukraine's ground forces releasing this video purporting to show Russian troops retreating after losing several tanks and armored vehicles in a
failed assault. CNN cannot independently verify the date and location of the video. An angry Ukrainian President condemning Putin's renewed
onslaught.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: In the new year as he tried again to bring Ukraine to its knees with airstrikes. Large scale protects,
special combined attacks aimed at overloading our air defense and striking critical infrastructure.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): And Russia's leadership shows no signs of backing off as Ukrainians gear up to defend their land in what could be another
year of tough protracted warfare Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: All right, it is the bottom of the hour or just past the bottom of the hour. And that means it's just past 9:30 in New York, which means
U.S. markets are open. Let's have a look. They've opened pretty much where they were on the futures, which is a very mixed trading day it has to be
said.
Major stock indices are still reacting to a forecast busting U.S. Jobs Report last week that of course dampened hopes of interest rate cuts. Not
off the table, but certainly didn't help those who had been hoping that it will be a slam dunk cut next time the Federal Reserve meet.
Oil prices down today also as Saudi Arabia announced price cuts a recent rise in OPEC output is offsetting supply concerns generated by Houthi
attacks on Red Sea shipping amongst other things. Going back to the stock markets a slump in the share price of Boeing, dozens of Boeing 737 Max-9
aircraft have been grounded since Friday when a fuselage section blew out on an Alaska Airlines flight.
And Alaska Airlines has canceled more than 100 flights today and warns of more to come following a terrifying ordeal involving one of its planes. And
on Friday a critical part of a Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out shortly after the jet took off from Portland, Oregon. Or federal officials say the plane's
door plug has been discovered in someone's backyard.
I wanted to get some insight now from Mark Pierotti. He's an Aeronautical Engineer, Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society in the U.K. He's been in
the aviation industry for nearly four decades 36 to be precise. I know you've been living out here for 32 of those.
We've seen these videos and we've all I mean, I have to say imagined ourselves flying in what is this nightmare describe would have been like
for those in the cabin first and foremost. What happened?
MARK J. PIEROTTI, AERONAUTICAL ENGINEER: Yeah, well an aircraft is pressurized so you're inside this pressurized tube and the pressure inside
the aircraft is greater than the pressure outside.
[09:35:00]
So a depressurization is when the air evacuated from that trip very quickly. So this block plug of the door would have opened up and air would
have exited immediately sucking everything out of the aircraft.
ANDERSON: How? What happened?
PIEROTTI: So the 737's an incredible aircraft has been around since 1966. This variant of the 737 is the Max-9. So it's a fairly new aircraft the
Max-9. But it is a variant of the original 737. So you have an option when you buy the 737, how many exit doors you have. Alaskan chose not to take
the exit door, the emergency exit door in this position and they put a plug in there.
So you have a choice either a door, a plug or a deactivated door. So somehow the plug that Alaskans had failed. Now it was a young aircraft it
was only two months old. So perhaps it wasn't installed correctly perhaps.
ANDERSON: The auto pressurization fail light had illuminated --
PIEROTTI: Yeah.
ANDERSON: -- three times in the past month. I just want to hear for our viewer's sake, what the NTSB Chief had to say about that piece of
information just hours ago on CNN. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HOMENDY: That alert that illuminated those three times certainly is very disconcerting to our investigators then we want to look at that. But it may
have absolutely nothing to do with what occurred in the cabin of the aircraft during that event.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Clearly being asked, how could this light fail three times and then this event are allowed to happen? She's saying there, they may not be
related. What's your sense?
PIEROTTI: OK. So this is a plug that prevents the pressurized air from leaking out of the fuselage around the frame. The indicating light
indicates when pressure is being lost. So while they might not be related that sounds though they're similar. But the light is saying we're losing
pressurization and the door perhaps wasn't sealing correctly or supposition, we're not sure we have to wait and see. But they could be
related.
ANDERSON: If Alaska Airlines made the decision, this plane should not have been flying over the ocean. That's what they said because of the failure of
those lights. They took that precaution, should have been flying anywhere, Mark?
PIEROTTI: So we would allow to fly aircraft. We have a document called the Minimum Equipment List the MEL. The MEL tells us as pilots as engineers,
when we can fly and when we can't fly. And if we can, what are the restrictions. The pilots will have been operating to the equipment list the
manufacturer's recommendation. The engineers will have dispatched the aircraft so I have no doubt it was illegal flight and they were flying in
the right way.
ANDERSON: Mark, this is very, very rare not to suggest that incidents like this haven't happened in the past but remind us. Because there will be
people watching who will be frankly pretty terrified from the images that they've seen. You know frightened the life out of me, I have to say.
PIEROTTI: 11,000 737's have been built since 1966, 11,000. That is a backlog of 7000 737's to be delivered. It's a fantastic aircraft, it's
popular and it has millions of hours of successful flying. It's one of the most reliable and most dependable aircraft there are. There's no reason to
be afraid, evolution of aviation as these things happen. We learn. We redesign. But we have to look at the root cause and work out what it is and
take action.
ANDERSON: It reminds me just very briefly of another air traffic light situation public available records appeared to suggest that warning lights
designed to stop pilots from erroneously taxing on the runway were out at the Japanese airport recently.
And that might have contributed to that crash between the Japan Airlines flight and the Coast Guard flight. Again just you know -- I mean the -- you
know that goes without saying these lights are there for a reason, right?
PIEROTTI: So commercial pressure, we talk about commercial pressure. Aviation the margins are so small. We're making -- so hard to make a
profit. We have to fly. We have to fly quicker. We have to find better, more efficient. We have to be careful that commercial pressure does not
make the industry unsafe. And sometimes pilots are forced. Engineers are forced to make decisions because of commercial pressure. We have to be
careful of this.
ANDERSON: It's good to have you sir.
PIEROTTI: Pleasure.
ANDERSON: Nice to see you. Thank you. We're back after a quick break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:40:00]
ANDERSON: We're just a few days away from the start of the Africa Cup of Nations. It is in Ivory Coast. Morocco considered one of the favorites
after the improbable, incredible run at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Amanda Davies joins me now. Amanda, what are you watching?
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yeah, you and I were there, where we Becky? And it was hard not to get swept up with the enthusiasm around Morocco and
that unprecedented success for an African side at a World Cup. But what does that meant to the expectations for Morocco, and this Africa Cup of
Nations?
Well, people are building it as unprecedented levels of expectation around this side looking to win this competition for the first time since 1976.
They have made the final one since then, but they were beaten in 2004.
And the man behind this unprecedented success Walid Regragui has been speaking to us. He has high hopes. I think it's fair to say and we've got
the interview with him coming up in just a couple of minutes in "World Sports".
ANDERSON: Great. Can't wait that is up after this short break. Good to have you. Amanda is back with "World Sport". We are back top of the hour for
you. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
END
