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The Situation Room

NTSB Reveals Causes of Alaska Airlines Door Plug Blowout; Trump En Route to The Hague; U.S Strikes Impact on Iran Facilities; Federal Chair Testified on Capitol Hill. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired June 24, 2025 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR:

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Happening now, the NTSB is set to determine probable cause of the Boeing 737 door plug blowout. Right now, the NTSB is holding a public hearing to present its findings on the matter. It's been a year and a half since the door of that Alaska Airlines flight blew out at 16,000 feet in the air. The findings could put to rest one of the biggest questions around the terrifying incident, who is to blame. Here was NTSB chairwoman just moments ago speaking out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENNIFER HOMENDY, CHAIRWOMAN, NTSB: The truth is there was a long chain of events that led to the door plug departure. Problems were identified in numerous Boeing internal audits across production lines, employee speak up reports, quality alerts, and regulatory compliance issues. In other words, the safety deficiencies that led to this accident should have been evident to Boeing and to the FAA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Joining us now to discuss CNN Aviation Analyst Miles O'Brien. Miles, thanks for joining us. What are you expecting? What else are you expecting to learn from today's very important hearing?

[10:35:00]

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST AND SCIENCE CORRESPONDENT, PBS NEWS HOUR: Wolf, we're going to get a lot of detail. There probably will be a few nuggets of new information, but much of the basic story we know. The through line through all of this, Wolf, is a company, Boeing, desperately trying to ramp up the production of its 737 Max product, trying to answer the competitive threat from Airbus, and all the while trying to cut corners on safety, reducing the number of on floor inspectors, cutting corners to save costs along the way.

And in the midst of all of this the company received a fuselage from its subsidiary in Wichita with a door plug in it, which means instead of an emergency exit, it had been permanently or semi-permanently sealed off, they had to remove the door to do some work, put it back on, and the work was never laid out properly or documented. And that's the nub of the issue.

But what you have here is a company that really wasn't putting safety first as it tried to ramp up its production speed, and that's going to be the takeaway, I think, from this hearing.

BLITZER: Those preliminary findings, Miles, about the four missing bolts. The NTSP found they were missing when Boeing delivered the plane to Alaska Air. What do we know -- what do we not know about it yet about who was responsible for that? Could we learn that today?

O'BRIEN: Well, you know, one thing about the NTSB and one thing about the accident investigation process in the U.S. it is not so much a finger pointing game at individuals as it is at the processes. The idea is to make the system safer and not be in a sense punitive, I guess I should say.

We do know individuals who were involved in that actual process of removing and putting that door plug back in were, quote/unquote, "sidelined" for a time. And the NTSB doesn't look too kindly on that because it does raise the specter of punitive action. And the concern is that over time, that would stifle whistleblowers or honest concerns from rising to the surface out of concerns for recrimination.

So, the idea here is to come up with the systemic problems and try to address those, not necessarily point the finger at individuals.

BLITZER: The NTSB already revealed interviews with the several Boeing employees who said they felt pressured to work too fast to avoid mistakes. Boeing said it has taken steps to improve the quality and the safety of its planes. Do you feel confident that Boeing has done that?

O'BRIEN: Well, there's a new CEO, a new sheriff in town, Wolf, and his rhetoric is strong and talks -- he's talking a good talk, put it that way. It's a big organization, lot of moving parts, quite literally. They're trying to ramp up that production line once again after it was slowed down as a result of this and some other issues, including the two crashes of the 737 Maxes, which were attributed to software problems.

So, the company is trying to get back in the game and increase production doing that while simultaneously redoubling its effort on watching the -- that safety and making sure that work is properly documented and done in proper sequence and there are safety and inspection checks along the way. That's a lot to do at once. So, I'm certain that'll be a big focus today at the NTSB as to whether the company is delivering on those promises right now.

BLITZER: Miles O'Brien, thanks so much. We always appreciate your expertise. And we'll get back to our breaking news. Coming up, President Trump is doubling down that U.S. strikes destroyed Iran's nuclear facilities, but Iran says it planned ahead. We'll speak with an expert when we come back.

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[10:40:00]

BLITZER: Right now, President Trump is on his way to The Hague for the NATO Summit. Before departing Washington he said this about the U.S. airstrikes on Iran. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Iran will never rebuild its nuclear. From there? Absolutely not. That place is under rock. That place is demolished. The B-2 pilots did their job. They did it better than anybody could even imagine. They hit late in the evening, it was dark with no moon, and they hit that target with every one of those things and that place is gone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Joining us now is Daryl Kimball. He's the executive director of the Arms Control Association, a non-partisan organization based here in Washington, dedicated to promoting public understanding of effective arms control policies. Daryl, thanks very much for joining us. President Trump is insisting that Iran's nuclear program has been completely destroyed. Given what we know right now, can you make that determination or is it still too early to tell?

DARYL KIMBALL, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ARMS CONTROL ASSOCIATION: I think it's far too early to tell. Clearly military action cannot by itself eliminate the knowledge that Iran has, the nuclear material it had accumulated, including the highly enriched uranium. We were very worried about. The IAEA does not know what the situation is.

BLITZER: The International Atomic Energy Agency.

KIMBALL: International Atomic Energy Agency. They were there safeguarding these sites, looking over the material until they return. And it's a big question about whether Iran will allow them to return. We're not going to have eyes on the ground. I mean, American soldiers, American officials are not going to be underground at Fordow. It is the IAEA that needs to do this.

[10:45:00]

So, if this tentative truce holds between Israel and Iran, it does provide, as the president said, an opportunity to return to diplomacy to deal with a central problem, which has been Iran's sensitive nuclear activities. Its uranium enrichment program, which still exists. So, we need to think about a strategy, and I think that begins with beginning the formal talks again between the U.S. and Iran. Iran said they would do that if Iran -- if Israel stopped striking Iran. So, I think that's possible.

But then one of the first things, the two need to agree is to get the IAEA back in there. And while they examine Iran, and there are a lot of sites to look at, Iran should pledge that we are not going to resume enriching uranium. After all, after these strikes, you know, Isfahan, Natanz, Fordow, they have been severely damaged at the very least? So, they're not in a position to resume enrichment. BLITZER: The Iranians have always insisted they want to continue to enrich for peaceful purposes.

KIMBALL: Well, exactly. I mean, they insist upon the right they have in the nuclear nonproliferation treaty to pursue the peaceful use of nuclear energy. They insist that involves uranium enrichment, but they don't need to do that to -- for nuclear power production for producing medical isotopes. So, this is where -- what -- where the nub was before the Israeli strikes. This is going to remain an issue.

So, I think President Trump is going to have to give the Iranians an out, a way in which they can say, we retain the right, but we're not going to exercise the right. And in the meantime, we're going to allow the IAEA back in so that we can track the material that's out there.

And one thing I would just note, Wolf, is that the Iranians said that they were going to remove the 400 kilograms of uranium enriched to 60 percent if they were attacked. I think we just -- we should assume that has happened. And that is the material the IAEA doesn't know where it is, the U.S. government doesn't know where it is. It could be used at other locations if enriched further to produce the raw materials for 10 to 12 bombs. So, the problem is not completely solved.

BLITZER: So, if Iran's nuclear facilities have been completely destroyed, as the president and other U.S. officials have insisted, how long could it take for Tehran to rebuild its program as well as potentially make a nuclear weapon, a bomb?

KIMBALL: Well, it's impossible right now to assess what their current breakout timeline is because we don't have a good damage assessment. The IAEA is not on the ground. But before the Israeli strikes in June 13th, as the U.S. Intelligence Community assessed, Iran had enough material, if further enriched, to produce about the raw material for 10 to 12 bombs, but that is not an arsenal. They would've needed several more months to produce a crude device and a year or more to develop a light enough -- a small enough nuclear warhead to deliver on a ballistic missile.

So, there wasn't an imminent threat, but this was still extremely worrisome. They are clearly further back than that today. How much further back? We will not know for some time.

BLITZER: Daryl Kimball, thanks very much for coming in.

KIMBALL: Thank you.

BLITZER: All right. We're going to continue our breaking news coverage of the Middle East. But there's other important stories we're following as well. Happening now, Jerome Powell is testifying up on Capitol Hill, doubling down on his plan to hold off on interest rate cuts in the short-term as President Trump continues to slam him this time in a brand-new tirade overnight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:50:00]

BLITZER: Happening now, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is back up on Capitol Hill updating lawmakers on monetary policy as President Trump turns up the heat over Powell's decision not to cut interest rates, writing on Truth Social this morning, the president said this, "I hope Congress really works this very dumb hardheaded person over," end quote. Then he added, quote, "We will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come," close quote.

Let's go back to CNN Business and Politics Correspondent Vanessa Yurkevich in New York. Vanessa, the Fed chair is pushing back on that pressure he is getting from the president. Very strong words from Trump. Tell us what the chair is saying.

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jerome Powell is essentially making the case in front of lawmakers that in this next Federal Reserve meeting in July that the Federal Reserve Committee should hold rates steady. That would be the fifth time in a row that the Federal Reserve would decide not to adjust or lower interest rates. And of course, as you mentioned, President Donald Trump, just this morning, calling for a two to three-point cut in interest rates.

Jerome Powell essentially telling lawmakers that, yes, if you look backwards, the economic data looks pretty good. But he says that there is still so much uncertainty with tariffs and the trade war. They have not shown up in the data just yet in a really meaningful big way. But he says that they want to wait and see if these tariffs really do make a significant impact on the economy. He does say though, in the short- term, he expects inflation to rise. Here's more of what he said to lawmakers just moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEROME POWELL, FEDERAL RESERVE: Near-term measures of inflation expectations have moved up over recent months as reflected in both market and survey-based measures. Respondents to surveys of consumers, businesses, and professional forecasters point to tariffs as the driving factor. Beyond the next year or so however, most measures of longer-term expectations remain consistent with our 2 percent inflation goal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

YURKEVICH: So, he does go on to say there that in the long-term, in the next year or more, he does expect inflation to fall back closer to the Federal Reserve's 2 percent target. He also mentioned sort of consumer sentiment, how consumers have been feeling. Well, we just got consumer confidence numbers from the conference board.

[10:55:00]

Consumer confidence in the month of June dropping 5.4 points from May, may actually saw an uptick as consumers were feeling really good about the deal reach between the U.S. and China. But in June, reversing course, erasing nearly half of all the increases that we saw in the month of May. And, Wolf, guess what the consumers are reporting to as the biggest concerns this month. It is inflation and it is tariffs and the trade war. The two key things that Jerome Powell and the Federal Reserve are watching very, very closely. Wolf.

BLITZER: And let's be precise what President Trump said about Jerome Powell, that he's very dumb, a hardheaded person over, and he added that the American people will be paying for his incompetence for many years to come. A blistering attack on Jerome Powell from the president of the United States. Vanessa Yurkevich, thank you very much for that report.

We'll go back to our breaking news out of the Middle East, that's coming up. And President Trump's anger at both Israel and Iran for violating the new newly agreed upon ceasefire is clearly on full display. His change of tone, especially toward Israel. Very strong words condemning Israel from the president. That's next.

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[11:00:00]