Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Sunday Morning
CNN Pays Tribute To Those Lost In Iraq And Afghanistan: Fisher House Offers Shelter To Families Of Wounded Soldiers As They Undergo Rehabilitation. Families Grieve, Remember, Reach Out To Others Coping With Loss
Aired May 27, 2007 - 07:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEESA PHILIPON, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: Unless you've lost a child, as in our case, it's hard to understand the pain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
T.J. HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR, CNN SUNDAY MORNING: New graves, new tears, this Memorial Day weekend. We remember our fallen soldiers as we take you, Section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery.
And good morning to you all from the CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. This is Sunday, May 27th. I'm T.J. Holmes.
MELISSA LONG, CNN ANCHOR, CNN SUNDAY MORNING: I'm Melissa Long, in today for Betty. Thank you for spending part of your long holiday weekend with us.
Also, this morning, coming up, we'll be talking more about CNN's Warrior One. No longer on the battlefield, this Hummer is on a new mission to help wounded troops home from Iraq. We'll show you how you can get involved this morning.
HOLMES: First a new development in the war on terror. An American citizen accused of supporting Al Qaeda is back in the U.S. to face charges. Sayed Hashmi is the first extradited to U.S. authority. Hashmi is accused of providing military gear to Al Qaeda terrorists fighting U.S. troops in Afghanistan.
LONG: He is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday in federal court in New York. Hashmi arrived in the U.S. late on Friday from the U.K.
HOLMES: Meanwhile, a somber milestone in Iraq, 101 U.S. service members have been killed during May. The military yesterday announced the deaths of eight more U.S. service members across Iraq. Three soldiers were killed in an explosion in Sala Adheen (ph) Province, another died in a roadside bomb outside of Baghdad. Also, a Marine was killed in Anbar Province, and late Friday a soldier killed in an ambush near Taji. Two others were hit by roadside bombs Wednesday near Baghdad.
More than two weeks of searching but still no sign of two U.S. soldiers missing in Iraq. They were taken during an ambush May 12, of their observation post. The U.S. military says it is holding 16 people directly related to the attack. The missing soldiers, Specialist Alex Jimenez of Lawrence, Massachusetts, and Private Byron Fouty of Waterford, Michigan.
Memorial Day, of course, is a time to honor our American heroes and nowhere is their sacrifice more evident than at Arlington National Cemetery and at Section 60, a special place set aside for the men and women who have fought and died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Here is CNN's Barbara Starr.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Arlington National Cemetery, this is Section 60, where the orderly solitude gives way to pictures, mementoes, teddy bears and toys, memories across the nearly 400 graves of troops killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, a constant stream of people stopping to pay their respects.
RAY PHILIPON, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: The most important precious gift they could possibly give, and this is the life of their child.
STARR: Ray and Leesa Philipon have found community here at the grave of their 22-year-old son, Lawrence, killed on Mother's Day, two years ago in Iraq.
LEESA PHILIPON, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: It's an unbearable pain, unless you've lost a child, in our case, it's hard to understand the pain. And so we come here.
STARR (on camera): Here at Section 60, there is utter heartbreak and grief, but there also is great love, from the buddies who stop by here to visit their friends, who didn't make it home alive from the war, to the families, especially the moms and dads who come here, to visit their children, many of whom died so very young.
(Voice over): More than 250 teenage U.S. troops, 18 and 19 years old, have died in Iraq and Afghanistan. Terry and Richard Clifton's son, Chad, was killed by a mortar in Iraq.
TERRY CLIFTON, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: Chad was 19. The last day I saw him was the day after his 19th birthday.
STARR: Richard remembers a teenager who listened to music from another war while he was on patrol.
RICHARD CLIFTON, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: This war didn't have it's own soundtrack. They kind of had to go back and adopt the soundtrack for Vietnam, and they listened to a lot of that retro-music.
STARR: But this teenage Marine, like his buddies, wanted to serve, but he had an old man's sense of destiny. Terry has compiled a book of Chad's e-mails and instant messages, his last letter home.
T. CLIFTON: "If you're reading this letter, it means I wasn't lucky this time. Everyone chooses their path and mine has led me here. I just want you to know that there's nothing I can write to express how sorry I am to have put this on you. I know you love me and this will hurt you."
STARR: At Section 60, the children walk, the parents grieve, and buddies remember. And one more time, from another war, another generation pauses to say thank you. Barbara Starr, CNN, Arlington National Cemetery.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: Tonight in this CNN "Sunday Spotlight", the only Republican presidential candidate to oppose the war in Iraq, Congressman Ron Paul, rose from the shadows and created quite a buzz. He challenged Rudy Giuliani in a recent debate and Rick Sanchez will challenge him, in a live interview tonight at 10 Eastern, in the "Newsroom".
HOLMES: Later today, in Washington, the Rolling Thunder motorcycle group holds its 20th Annual Ride for Freedom Rally. Saturday members of the group placed a wreath at Navy memorial. Thousands of biking vets are expected to take part in today's ride that will take them from the Pentagon to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. Their message each year, support the troops.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): You were always on my mind, you were always on my mind ...
HOLMES: This is last night's dress rehearsal for the National Memorial Day Concert. The real deal starts tonight at 8:00 Eastern on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. Now the golden country singer Josh Turner among the evening's performers.
And this thing here, has gone from the battlefield to the auction block. Now it's touring the country, all to raise money for wounded veterans.
LONG: The CNN Hummer known as Warrior One; it's making an appearance in Ohio this weekend, at the Chagrin Valley's Jaycee's Blossom Time Festival. I think about 50,000 people are expected to turn out.
Yesterday you had a little bit of rain on your parade. Bonnie, how does it look today?
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Today when we got here this morning it was raining, but the skies have cleared out. I think it's going to be a nice day for the festival. They did have a huge turnout yesterday.
One of the main attractions, right behind me, CNN's Warrior One Hummer. Folks could not get enough of the Hummer to see it up close and personal, knowing it went under heavy battle in Iraq in April, 2003, was refurbished, completely, from top to bottom, inside and out, just last summer. And now taking a look at it, it's just an incredible story and it tells a lot of what the CNN crew went through when they were there. And, of course, the Armed Forces as well.
We're going to show you a little bit more about the Hummer in just a moment.
(WEATHER REPORT)
We are here in Chagrin Falls, Ohio, a beautiful picturesque town where the festival is the big news. And I'll show you what else is, the CNN Hummer.
Come take a look at the some of the changes that TLC's "Overhaulin" crew did when they renovated this vehicle from top to bottom. I want to show you the inside, because it is really pretty cool on the inside. Four LCDs, there's CNN's own Chad Myers who participated on the restructuring of this vehicle. He is really good at this kind of stuff and you can see him working away there.
Listen to the sound system. I don't know if you can hear that bass but it is pretty intense. This is a new state of the art sound system, the four LCD players. Plus you also have illustrations, just to the bottom in the back there of the actual crew, the CNN crew, Joe Cane (ph), Richard Smith, Martin Savage and Scott McGuiney (ph). They are wearing hats down in the palace in Baghdad. They found them, themselves. This photo is based on one that was taken on the crew's last day in Iraq.
We definitely are seeing a little bit of the inside of what it was like for the crew that were there in Iraq in 2003. And now what it looks like today.
We're expecting a big crowd here at the festival. We'll keep you posted throughout the morning. In our next segment we'll talk to a career Army officer who drove one of these things, so he'll give me some tips on how to handle it. I'm very curious about it.
HOLMES: We're curious to watch you handle that Hummer there, Bonnie, maybe later this morning.
SCHNEIDER: Sure.
HOLMES: Thank you so much. We'll see you soon.
LONG: Thanks, Bonnie.
Well this Memorial Day weekend you can do your part. You can turn your frequent flyer miles into hero miles. What are hero miles? Fisher House will use those miles to transport servicemen and women, wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan, to their families, or also help move their families to treatment centers all around the country. Go online, fisherhouse.org, and again, donate your frequent flyer miles this weekend and participating airlines will match your contributions.
HOLMES: We have more tributes to fallen heroes ahead this Memorial Day weekend. We'll share one Marine's story, told by those who loved him most.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAURA LANDAKER, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: It makes you proud that he wanted to bring other Marines home so that their families aren't going through what we're going through.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Remembering Jared Landaker this morning and how he died saving others.
HOLMES: Also a combat of a different kind, fighting fires with military might.
LONG: Plus young, rich and running into some trouble. Actress Lindsay Lohan arrested in Beverly Hills. Get the lowdown coming up on CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: CNN wants to share your stories and tributes to military servicemen and women, who gave their lives fighting for this country. Send your photos and video of the loved ones your family has lost, from wars present, and past. Tell us about them and let us know how your family has coped. Two ways to reach us here, you can log on to CNN.com/ireport, or email us directly at ireport@cnn.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Of course, this weekend a time to remember, and for the family of Marine Pilot Jared Landaker this Memorial Day weekend is about honoring his memory.
LONG: He was killed in Iraq, this past February, just 25 years old when his helicopter crashed over Anbar Province.
HOLMES: His friends and family say they will always remember his spirit and his strength. This is their story, in their own words.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE LANDAKER, SON KILLED IN IRAQ: Jared was born in our home, a home delivery, and I delivered him. He was always small, small and whatever he did, he had to strive for. He really had to work for it.
LAURA LANDAKER, JARED'S MOTHER: He didn't let his tiny -- you know, the smallness of size stop him. He just always looked at it as a challenge, and he had a short man syndrome. He had a bad attitude, you know. If you said he couldn't do it, he proved you wrong.
9/11 did something to him. It irritated him that they had the ability to come over and do this on his ground, from then on, he did whatever he had to do to get into an air contract.
J. LANDAKER: But he wasn't a fighter, and when he opted for helicopters over other aircraft his opinion was, I'll take Marine in, but I want to take Marines out.
L. LANDAKER: I knew when he put his mind to it, I knew he was going to succeed. I just didn't know he was going to be as good as he was. J. LANDAKER: On August 18th of 2006, he deployed to Iraq. He was nominated for the weapons and tactical school in Yuma, which is the equivalent to what we all know as Top Gun.
Jared, as we found out later on, was on his final scheduled flight when the got shot down. He was to be home the following week.
JASON LANDAKER, JARED'S BROTHER: The day that we got the news of his death, we were standing out here, and the Navy chaplain asked me, how long was he a Marine? I said, since the day he was born.
SHANNON MEKETARIAN, JARED'S FRIEND: I used to joke with him and I'd say, "Oh, maybe you could be a Top Gun pilot someday. You could be like Maverick."
He said, "You know what, I'm not going to be Top Gun, but I'll not going to be Maverick. I'll be better."
I said, "Oh, right, how are you going to be better than Maverick?
He said, "Maverick can't hover."
L. LANDAKER: He was going out, getting wounded Marines and making sure they were going to go home to their families. That's all he cared about. It makes you proud that he wanted to bring other Marines home so that their families aren't going through what we're going through, you know? Like the last mission, where the Marine was on a ventilator and had to get to the hospital, and they got him there on time. And so maybe one day we could meet that Marine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Throughout the Memorial Day weekend, CNN pays tribute to the pride, sacrifice and service of America's military.
LONG: Coming up today 12:30 Eastern, you can see how CNN's Hummer is helping thousands -- "Warrior One For All", that's the name of the program. At 2:30, "Combat Search & Rescue" takes you behind enemy lines with the elite airmen and rescue troops, then at 3:00, travel with medics and pilots who bring wounded soldiers home from battle, in "Wounded Warriors".
Still to come, we're talking about the whale watches going on in California. Scientists trying something new now to help those wayward whales.
HOLMES: Also you might remember this horrible video. A 91-year- old man got beaten up by a carjacker. Now he gets to confront his alleged attacker in court.
LONG: Plus, young superstar Lindsay Lohan facing some charges today. What is she accused of doing? You're watching CNN on this Sunday morning.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) HOLMES: Prison time for a former White House official. That's the request from the man prosecuting Lewis Scooter Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney. Libby is awaiting sentencing for obstructing the federal probe of the CIA leak. On Friday, special prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald filed papers saying Libby shown no remorse and deserves to spend at least two and a half years in prison. Libby is the highest-ranking White House official convicted since the Iran-Contra affair 20 years ago.
And you'll remember this disturbing video. We were watching this a couple weeks back, a 91-year-old man savagely being beaten by a suspected carjacker. The victim, Leonard Sims, finally got a chance to confront his alleged attacker in court.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEONARD SIMS, BEATING VICTIM: That's when he started punching. He said he wanted a light for his cigarette. Before I could answer he started punching.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The suspect faces a potential life sentence if convicted on all charges.
LONG: Extraordinarily powerful, that's how many are viewing a new seat belt campaign.
HOLMES: Ads featuring New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine, a man who learned his lesson the hard way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. JON CORZINE, NEW JERSEY: I'm New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine and I should be dead. On April 12th I was critically injured in a car accident, where I lost over half of my blood and broke 15 bones in 18 places. I spent eight days in intensive care where a ventilator was breathing for me. It took a remarkable team of doctors and series of miracles to save my life, when all I need was a seat belt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The state trooper who was driving the governor was wearing a seat belt and suffered mild injuries. Corzine taped his blunt message for Memorial Day weekend, when so many of us hit the road, and all of us should be buckling up.
LONG: More trouble to tell you about for Lindsay Lohan. The 20- year-old actress arrested over the weekend, on suspicion she was driving under the influence. Beverly Hills police say it happened early Saturday morning.
And according to police, Lohan was slightly injured when her Mercedes struck a curve on Sunset Boulevard. A police spokesman says officers investigating the crash found a usable amount of what is being preliminarily identified as cocaine. Two other people were in the car with Lohan. The crash -- about her third now, in two years.
Now an update on those wayward whales with some new i-Report video to show you this morning. Those are scientists right there, shooting needles full of antibiotics into the two whales. They've been swimming around near Sacramento, the Sacramento River.
This is video shot by Ed Truthan, this is from Rio Vista, California, area.
The whales as you know, were injured by a ship's propeller. Those wounds are apparently getting worse, thus the antibiotics. The whales have been in freshwater Sacramento River for about two weeks. On Tuesday another attempt, rescuers will start driving them down river using high-powered water hoses. Of course, the efforts to get them back out to the Pacific Ocean, so they can be in the saltwater again, and back with their friends.
HOLMES: They have through it. Getting needles shot at them, water hoses, I think they're throwing rocks at them, I don't know.
LONG: That's something they've never done before, actually, been able to do that in the wild.
HOLMES: Hopefully they can get them back to where they need to be.
Meanwhile, firefighters using a Black Hawk helicopter to help fight flames.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Dropped 660 gallons of water on a huge fire and you look around behind you and see nothing but steam when you leave, that's very gratifying.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Our own Heidi Collins goes up in the air with the National Guard. She'll give us a bird's eye view of how they fight those wildfires.
LONG: And the loss of a friend, a loved one, how do you counsel someone in the middle of a war? We'll talk to an Army chaplain about his experiences in today's "Faces of Faith".
ANNOUNCER: CNN would like to honor all those who have served their country in the armed forces.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: That music, those pictures sent in by CNN i-Reporter, Marine Reserve Major Mike Corato. He has just returned from a year in Iraq, the war through his eyes -- and his music -- ahead on this CNN SUNDAY MORNING.
And welcome back to you all. I'm T.J. Holmes. LONG: Good morning, I'm Melissa Long on this Memorial Day weekend, in today for Betty.
HOLMES: Of course, this Memorial Day weekend a lot of Vietnam vets getting involved, and a Vietnam vet wants to return a favor.
LONG: Yes, actually, one vet to another; his cause the Fisher House to get help for the troops.
HOLMES: Brianna Keilar has the story of this man's crusade to raise awareness.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Bob Rodweller of Maryland is gearing up for the ride of his life.
KEILAR (on camera): You're starting in San Francisco.
BOB RODWELLER, VIETNAM VETERAN: In San Francisco.
KEILAR (voice over): A 52-day journey on his bicycle from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic.
RODWELLER: We wind up in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, July 25th.
KEILAR: It's a 3,836-mile joy ride for a worthy cause, veterans and their families. Rodweller is trying to raise awareness and money for Fisher House, the foundation that provides housing for military families near military hospitals, allowing them to stay close to a wounded family member, going through long-term treatment.
(On camera): Why Fisher House? Why not another charity?
RODWELLER: Well, because Fisher House looks at the veteran and their family as a total unit. It's not just the veteran. It's the family that's also sacrificing and going through these hard times. And they need to be there to help their spouses.
KEILAR: It's a chance for Rodweller, a veteran himself, to return a few favors.
RODWELLER: When I came back from Vietnam I had a lot of people help me readjust, back to civilian life. And they were former veterans, so I never forgot that.
KEILAR: Rodweller is nearing his $15,000 fund-raising goal and when he begins his journey next week, pedaling his way across the United States, he'll tell people along the way about Fisher House, and what the organization does for veterans' families.
RODWELLER: We need to really recognize and support their patriotism and their sacrifices for us.
KEILAR: Rodweller plans to do it one mile at a time.
Brianna Keilar, CNN, Silver Spring, Maryland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LONG: A call to arms in Iraq and a vow of support back home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Graduating Class of 2007, dismissed!
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Celebration at West Point, Vice President Dick Cheney delivers the commencement speech at the military academy. He told the Army's newest officers to provide the courage and leadership to troops overseas. And he vows they'll receive the support they need to win.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK CHENEY, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Last night, President Bush signed into law the war supplemental that we worked hard to achieve. As we look to the future, I want to say this to the graduates and to all the men and women of the Corps and to the families gathered in the stadium today.
Whatever lies ahead, the United States Army will have all of the equipment, supplies, manpower, training and support essential to victory. I give you this assurance on behalf of the president, you soldier for him and he will soldier for you.
(APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LONG: Also graduation at a time of war, the Naval Academy's Class of 2007, their commencement speech from Defense Secretary Robert Gates, he told graduating midshipmen they're being ask to, and I quote, "make the extraordinary expected."
CNN correspondents discuss Lebanon in the Middle East and the war plan for Iraq and the mental health of American troops, all that in today's "THIS WEEK AT WAR." Hope you'll join host Tom Foreman, tonight -- actually this afternoon, I should correct that, 1:00 p.m. Eastern for the program.
HOLMES: Well, we turn now to those massive wildfires in south Georgia and Florida, still not contained this morning. More than 500,000 acres already destroyed. Hundreds of firefighters have been on the front lines for more than a month attacking the blaze on the ground and in the air.
CNN's Heidi Collins takes an up-close look.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): They've trained for war, certainly not for a mission like this. But the checklist is the same, pilots and crew of a Black Hawk helicopter in combat of another kind.
Nearly 475,000 acres of land in southeast Georgia and north Florida smoldering. We get a rare chance to view the battle from inside a Black Hawk, flying along with the Georgia Air National Guard. It is their job to fight the fire from here while the U.S. Forest Service calls the shots.
LT. COLONEL JOHN TILL, GEORGIA AIR NATIONAL GUARD: Some of the fires that are burning down here, can't really put them out, but the forestry knows exactly how to control them and direct them. What we can do is try to channel those fires to burn in an area that's not so critical.
COLLINS: Lieutenant Colonel John Till heads up what he calls the "Bambi drop." That's the Bambi bucket hanging about 75 feet below the helicopter. Pilots and crew have to know exactly how to dip into their water source, usually just small farm ponds, pick up gently and get directly to the dump spot. And they do it 50 to 70 times a day.
(on camera): You can really understand how massive and how stubborn this fire has been by sitting above it in the helicopter. In fact, the Georgia National Guard has been fighting this thing since April.
They have dumped a total of nearly 3 million gallons of water on it and nearly 3,000 different times they've gone down and picked up those Bambi buckets just like you see here, carrying 660 gallons of water every time and, still, they're dealing with this massive smoke and flames.
(voice-over): Smoke and flames so thick, so hot, crew members must fight nausea and disorientation.
TILL: When you're down here, the wind can shift on you and the smoke just almost -- your visibility is down to zero at times. If you want to try to avoid those times where you flight through the smoke for a long period of time. You can't see where you're going, obviously.
COLLINS: To fire crews down on the ground, the Black Hawks and their precious freight act as the gift Mother Nature has lately kept all to herself.
TILL: When you look down at the fire, you've got a lot of forestry guys who are within 15 or 20 feet from 30-foot tall flames on bulldozers. And when you pick up a bucket of water, you know that the flames are just about out of control and the forestry lets you dump 660 gallons of water on a huge fire. And you look around behind you and you see that it's nothing but steam when you leave. That's very gratifying.
COLLINS: Heidi Collins, CNN, above the Bugaboo brush fire, Georgia/Florida state line.
(END VIDEOTAPE) LONG: And in Texas. residents there are bracing for more severe weather as people in the central part of the state are still cleaning up from tornados and flooding. Several people were injured by those twisters in Killeen, Texas.
Several other areas are being -- having problems this morning, flooding, causing possibly at least five deaths and more flooding could actually be on the way.
HOLMES: And it is time for to us check out the holiday weekend forecast now.
LONG: Yes. Meteorologist Bonnie Schneider is on the road this morning in Chagrin Falls, Ohio. Actually, she is there for a dual purpose, bringing us the weather and telling us more about Warrior One, which is making an appearance there as well at the festival.
Good morning, Bonnie.
BONNIE SCHNEIDER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, Melissa and T.J. I'm in Warrior One, as you can see, and the reason this vehicle is touring the country is actually raising money for wounded veterans and their families through the Sentinels of Freedom Foundation.
And that foundation provides scholarships for families for a period of four years to kind of get them back to their daily lives, including rehab, transportation, housing and education. So great causes. You can come see the vehicle here at the Chagrin Valley Jaycee Blossom Tome Festival throughout the weekend.
(WEATHER REPORT)
SCHNEIDER: Well, joining me now is Lieutenant Colonel Bob Bateman. He is a career Army officer.
You are based at the Pentagon, right?
LT. COL. BOB BATEMAN: Yes.
SCHNEIDER: But you are from Chagrin Falls?
BATEMAN: I'm from Chagrin, raised here my whole life.
SCHNEIDER: That's great. Well, we are glad to see you here because I don't know one thing about this Hummer as far as how to drive it. I know you have driven these a lot.
BATEMAN: Yes.
SCHNEIDER: OK. What can you tell us?
BATEMAN: Well, I mean, this is an incredible, although it doesn't much resemble the ones that I have driven in Iraq or...
SCHNEIDER: Yes.
(CROSSTALK)
SCHNEIDER: ... stuff, right?
BATEMAN: Yes. Yes, it's a little bit different.
SCHNEIDER: So talk about -- I know the height you said was different, too.
BATEMAN: Yes, yes. We don't have jacked up Humvees. And so you've got much more clearance here. I mean, you have to practically climb into this one. And the difference is well down underneath, you know, you have a very nice, clean drive-train and it's significantly different both from our armored Humvees that we have today as well as from the new vehicles we'll be getting.
SCHNEIDER: The ones that you're driving in Iraq are special underneath for mine resistance.
BATEMAN: The Humvees aren't -- we're buying new vehicles that have a boat-shaped hole underneath. One of the problems with a conventional Humvee, no matter how much armor you strap on from the outside, the vehicle is not strong enough to carry the extra weight beneath. So we're buying new vehicles that will deflect IEDs.
SCHNEIDER: Very interesting, all the changes. This vehicle actually was made in 1991, so there have been a lot of changes. Thank you so much, Lieutenant Colonel Bob Bateman, for joining us.
BATEMAN: My pleasure.
SCHNEIDER: Really appreciate it. It has been a wonderful experience in Chagrin Falls because we have seen a lot of people that are involved with the military that happen to live here or were from here and have stopped by and shared their experiences with us here in front of the CNN Warrior One -- Melissa, T.J.
HOLMES: All right. Well, Bonnie, thank you for sharing them with us as well. We'll see you again soon.
LONG: Thank you.
Army chaplains are sometimes the family's worst nightmare come true.
HOLMES: Yes, how do they cope with sometimes being the bearer of bad news. We're going to talk with one about how he relies on his faith to get him through some very difficult moments.
LONG: And cheating death to please a crowd. Stunt flying, it is a risky business. How safe is it to fly in an air show in the U.S.? We'll bring you a look from inside the cockpit.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Being there for the troops, offering guidance, support and spiritual comfort, that's the job of a military chaplain. Chaplains are also there for the families, especially in those heart- breaking times when a loved one is lost. And Lieutenant Colonel Scottie Lloyd is an Army chaplain, joins us now talk about his experience.
Sir, thank you for being here. And how tough -- how much tougher of an experience is it for chaplains these days in this rough, rough time of war?
LT. COL. SCOTTIE LLOYD, ARMY CHAPLAIN: Challenges are always there, because the same stresses that are on the soldier is on the chaplain, because the chaplain is there with the unit, with the soldiers, far forward, literally in the foxhole.
HOLMES: And like you said, you're right there with them, many chaplains are. But chaplains aren't armed. You're going to a lot of places with these soldiers but chaplains aren't armed, I understand, is that right?
LLOYD: That is correct.
HOLMES: Now what is that like for chaplains. I guess you depend on the soldiers that are around you for that protection and what not, but it's still -- it's dangerous work.
LLOYD: Actually we have a chaplain assistant. We do everything as a unit ministry team. One chaplain, one chaplain assistant. And the chaplain assistant is armed.
HOLMES: The chaplain assistant is armed, OK.
LLOYD: That is correct.
HOLMES: Well, tell me, what are the questions? What comes up with so many of the soldiers these days? Is it no doubt a struggle with their faith a lot of times?
LLOYD: Certainly so. It is the human dynamic that's true regardless of whether you're in the military or in a hospital room, or anywhere else. A moment of crisis, people go back to their basics of what they value the most, whether it be their religious faith, their philosophy of life or whatever.
And there's going to be that questioning when they're in a situation, particularly in war, where there's a lot of death and dying, and chaos.
HOLMES: And I guess it's almost impossible to get out of a situation like that and have your faith not changed or touched in some way. So have you certainly seen those cases where the faith can grow stronger among some soldiers and then in other cases, they abandon that faith, they go away from?
LLOYD: Certainly the many chaplains that I have had an opportunity to talk to from the war zone have said that they have seen some remarkable, positive changes, in soldiers' lives. And the fact that the worship services are full, and a number of life commitments are made is indicative of that.
Also, there is still the continuing struggle that goes on in people's lives, trying to filter through what does all this mean and what does it mean for me in my life? And so that's why, in the post- deployment period, we have a number of special programs, and that type of thing, to help work with soldiers and their families as they reintegrate together in trying to work through these different life questions.
HOLMES: What do you tell them? How can you comfort them when they say, this is my God, my loving God and how could he allow me to be in such pain, how could he allow such suffering that so many of these soldiers have seen up close, the bombings where civilians and children are killed? I mean, how do you comfort? What do you tell those soldiers?
LLOYD: First of all, we don't try and tell them what to think or what to believe, but to stand alongside them rather than try and lead them. And by standing alongside them we help them struggle with their particular values, with their particular religious beliefs and going back to whatever their holy scriptures happens to be.
And from that, wrestle with them, with the questions, because sometimes the chaplains don't have all of the ultimate answers either. We're struggling right along with them.
HOLMES: And I was going to ask that, you go through those struggles yourself. And we're about to have to wrap up here. I want to ask, are there enough of you all? I know -- I read somewhere that only one chaplain per every 500 soldiers or so. And certainly at a time now with war and so many more questions, are there enough of you?
LLOYD: Right now, we do have a very robust recruitment going on, because it takes a number of years for -- to go through all that's required to get a chaplain on-line. So we are always looking for more chaplains. And right now...
HOLMES: Always looking, but do you have enough?
LLOYD: We have a shortage in the Reserves and National Guard, and we're just barely making it right now with the number for active duty, and that's why we've got a lot of recruiting going on right now because we need all the chaplains we can get.
HOLMES: All right. It's busy work. I can't imagine, like you said, having to work through their faith and then trying to deal with some of the questions yourselves. Chaplain Scottie Lloyd, sir, thank you so much for the work you do and thank you for coming in.
LLOYD: Thank you, appreciate it.
HOLMES: And good luck to you, all right? We'll see you again, too.
LLOYD: Thank you. LONG: Still to come, making sure you please the crowd while staying alive, that's the job of stunt pilots. So just how dangerous is it in those cockpits and for those watching below?
Plus Veronica joins us with a Memorial Day tribute.
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Melissa. You know, it's hard to explain what a year in Falluja is like, so a Marine commander wrote a song to go along with the dozens of photographs that he took. We're going to share it with you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Good morning on this Sunday. We have received so many I- Reports, actually tributes to the men and women that are serving in the military and the holiday, but one in particular really caught your attention.
DE LA CRUZ: Yes, it is a very, very special tribute, Marine Corps Major Mike Corrado, pretty handy with a camera, he also knows his way around a guitar and his voice isn't too shabby either. So when he sent us dozens of photos of his tour of duty in Falluja, Iraq, along with an original song he wrote, we knew it was pretty special and we think that you will agree.
(MUSIC PLAYING, "ON MY WATCH," WRITTEN & SUNG BY MAJ. MIKE CORRADO, 24TH MARINES)
DE LA CRUZ: Now, if you have photos or video of a loved one that you would like to honor this Memorial Day, you can upload them at cnn.com/ireport. You can also e-mail them to ireport@cnn.com. And if you'd like to donate your frequent flyer miles to help the family of a wounded vet go to cnn.com/cominghome.
And I'll be back to explain more about that program in the next hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LONG: Good morning. Coming up on 8:00 in the morning Eastern time. We have been suffering for a couple of weeks now, especially this morning, from some smoke that has been hovering from the Florida wildfires.
HOLMES: Yes. We've been lucky, actually. Those fires have been going for a little bit and just depending on the wind, we've been blessed and we haven't had any issues. But certainly last week we had a couple of days and this is the issue, this is what it looks like here today.
We've got that wind heading in the right direction, our direction, sending some of that smoke and giving us that haze here in Atlanta. You can even smell it in our headquarters here in the building. That's smoke. It is... LONG: Yes, it's tough for anyone who has difficulty breathing, too. It is going to be warm day here too. I saw Bonnie said the forecast will be about 86 today.
HOLMES: Well, that's good.
LONG: Stunt pilots, I don't know you have ever done a story with a stunt pilot...
HOLMES: No.
LONG: ... or have the opportunity, great experience, well, they are a rare breed, turning and twisting above millions of amazed spectators.
HOLMES: Lately we've seen just how dangerous those stunts can be. But that hasn't stopped these high flyers taking to the air with little more than a wing and a prayer.
LONG: CNN's Miles O'Brien decided to ride along.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And we should roll again, one quarter roll, opposite roll.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A lot of people think I'm "loopy," maybe so. But from where I'm sitting now, that's a compliment.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Piece of cake, huh?
O'BRIEN: I'm flying in formation over New York with air show pilot John Clatte (ph), a man who cheats death for a living, or so it may seem.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We build trust, we work, we practice. What looks like it's reckless and unpracticed is practiced every day.
O'BRIEN: In the past month, Clatte and the rest of the air show community got a couple of tragic reminders of how narrow their margin for error really is. A Blue Angels pilot dead after a crash in South Carolina and a Canadian Snowbirds performer killed a few weeks later practicing in Montana.
SEAN TUCKER, AEROBATIC PILOT: This is not basket-weaving 101. We can't afford to have a bad day. This is serious business.
O'BRIEN: Sean Tucker has been performing at air shows for 30 years. Closest call he had came in practice last year, when his controls broke.
TUCKER: I was able to get it up to a safe altitude, get it away and put anybody in danger, and I had to leave my baby, which is an airplane I love very, very much. O'BRIEN: Sean lived to smile and tell the tale, thanks to the parachute every aerobatic pilot and passenger must wear, snugly, as I discovered.
But what about the millions of spectators? We've all seen the horrifying images. Five years ago, in Ukraine, a Russian fighter cart wheeled into a crowd, killing more than 80. And in Germany in 1988, a midair collision by the Italian Air Force Demonstration Team killed more than 70 spectators.
JOHN CUDAHY, INTL. COUNCIL OF AIR SHOWS: The regulations and the safety program that we have here in the United States is by far the most aggressive in the whole world.
O'BRIEN: John Cudahy heads the International Council of Air Shows. He says in the U.S., the planes and the crowd are kept much farther apart.
CUDAHY: We also make sure that when the pilots are flying aerobatic maneuvers, they are not directed at the crowd.
O'BRIEN: As a matter of fact, air shows in North America have an amazing safety record. The last time a spectator was killed as a result of an air show crash in the U.S. or Canada was 1952.
O'BRIEN: Still, every year on average, two or three air show pilots lose their lives, giving it their all in the air. Risky business indeed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your wives tell you, you know, couldn't you have chosen like being a banker or something?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, she knows it's in my blood.
O'BRIEN: The show must go on. Enjoy the thrill knowing they are the ones taking the risk.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a beautiful thing.
O'BRIEN: Miles O'Brien, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.voxant.com.
