joan rivers. >> can we talk? >> if we can just talk like this. guys, thank you. have a good weekend. thank you, everyone, for watching. it's been great to have you with us. stay tuned. my friend wolf starts right now. right now, the nato summit concludes in wales with fighting words from president obama. he says now is the time to dismantle, degrade and destroy isis. right now, reports that iran's supreme leader has signed off on a plan to cooperate with the united states to confront the threat of isis in the middle east. and one minute she was a loving british teenager. the next, a bride to an isis fighter. now, her parents fear she will never return. hello, i'm wolf blitzer reporting from washington. we start with the breaking news. from north africa, about another u.s. operation targeting terror leaders in somalia. our global affairs correspondent

elise abbott is joining us from the state department. i understand a top al shabab leader in somalia was killed by a u.s. air strike. >> the pentagon announced moments ago the leader of al shabab ahmed godane was killed by a u.s. air strike on september 1st. the u.s. had been looking for him in some time. in january, there were drone strikes trying to kill him. one of his top commanders was killed but he was not. so this week the u.s. government was trying to be very clear, wanted that dna evidence that, in fact, he was killed. and they're calling this, wolf, a major symbolic and operational loss for this group. >> the president at his news conference in wales just moments ago, he specifically mentioned that this top al shabab, al qaeda-related terrorist was killed by the u.s. was this a separate strike or the strike we had been reporting on over the past few days?

>> it's the same strike we've been reporting about all week. it was this major meeting of top commanders of godane and his top commanders of the group. u.s. officials said they had a target of opportunity that doesn't come along very often, and they went for it. and so the question has been all week, wolf, why al shabab and not isis, for instance. the answer was, look, we can walk and chew gum at the same time. we had this target of opportunity. and we went for it. and now the leader of this al qaeda-related group is killed. wolf, the question now is, what happened to al shabab. even in recent months, there's been a kind of debate in the group. while godane was instrumental in moving al shabab towards al qaeda, that affiliation, trying to expand its reach outside somalia, some of his deputies, including one of the gentleman they suspect could be his replacement who goes by the name karauti.

now that isis is the favor of the month, the question is, will al shabab move more towards an isis-type ideology. clearly, u.s. officials will watch closely. >> did they say how many other al shabab terrorists were killed in this latest u.s. air strike? >> they only talked about godane but we understand from u.s. officials it would have been several. i think they wanted that dna of godane to make sure. they said they wanted to go after the head of the group. there is some reporting indicating some of his lieutenants were killed as well. >> all right, thank you. let's get now to that nato summit. it has just wrapped up. the next moves by the allies to confront the terror group isis was unfolded as was the crisis in ukraine. the united states lining up nato allies to form what's called a core coalition against isis. nato agreeing to form a spearhead force to protect member countries. all this in response to russia's

aggression in ukraine. at a news conference right at the end of the nato summit, you saw it live here on cnn, president obama said the dismantling of isis will be systemic and methodical. >> we're going to achieve our goal. we're going to degrade and ultimately defeat isil. the same way we've gone after al qaeda. the same way we've gone after al qaeda affiliate in somalia where we released, today, the fact that we had killed the leader of al shabab in somalia and consistently worked to degrade their operations. we have been very systemic and methodical in going after these kinds of organizations that may threaten u.s. personnel and the homeland. >> let's go to our white house correspondent michelle coskin

zi. she's joining us from cardiff wales. did the president, michelle, achieve what he is hoping to achieve as far as lining up a coalition to fight isis, to deal, i guess, in a unified manner with ukraine as well? >> yes, i mean, they got that done. they were saying that was one piece, you know, when critics were pushing and pushing president obama to lay out a strategy, and, by the way, those calls are still out there. i mean, secretary of state john kerry's being called before the house armed services committee this month to lay out a strategy because people feel like there's been some back and forth. the president said, well, step by step, here's what we're going to do. at the nato summit, let's organization this coalition among our european partners. that's what they did today, through secretary of state kerry, also chuck hagel, with these ten nations together. and the president said there wasn't resistance there. that everyone seems to be on board, seeing isis as a significant threat and saying there is significant support

there. the thing is, this is still in the preliminary stages. we don't know exactly what anyone else is going to contribute. we just know that there is unity there. we've been hearing it over the past couple of days coming not only from president obama but also from the uk. although they stopped short of saying they are going to contribute air strikes. no one else has really contributed that yet, up to this point. and when asked directly, uk's prime minister, david cameron, you know, he was asked, well, are you getting closer to air strikes, and he said, sort of vaguely, we are getting closer to doing all we can to squeeze isis out of existence. so there's nothing concrete as to what each country's going to do at this point. there is just the formation of this coalition. next up, of course, is the regional coalition. that's going to happen now that this summit has ended with secretary of state kerry going to the region, wolf. >> so the coalition will provide, i suppose, military

support, but they're also looking for other support as well, diplomatic, political, economic, designed to go after isis, is that right? >> yeah, i mean, we knew there's a military component, but we don't know what the details will be or how this coalition will play out, in terms of who's going to do what concretely. what weem been hearing from the white house is that each country will make its own commitments. some will be only humanitarian aid. some will be equipment. some will be militarily. whether that means contributing to something like air strikes or whether it means training and equipping an army on the ground, that's what remains to be seen. it was kerry who really laid out the goals of this coalition today in an address he gave, in a statement that was put out. saying what they want to accomplish, at least, will be the military component, dealing with the foreign fighters, and also tracking their movements.

that's one way that we may see a real effect on that issue. that's one of the biggest fears. not only for european countries but the united states. the flow of these foreign fighters. the fear of them coming back to the homeland. one of the big goals of the coalition is to share information, to track these fighters, so that, you know, all of these nations can get a collective handle on that, wolf. >> all right, michelle, thanks so much. michelle kosinski traveling with the president at the nato summit in wales. the top two issues on the nato agenda were ukraine and isis in iraq and syria. let's get to both those issues. right now with our guests. diana, the fighting has been especially intense around various areas not far from where you are, the cease-fire technically took effect just a couple hours or so ago. are you hearing gunfire? what's the status as far as your eyewitness account is concerned?

>> it's been quiet ever since that cease-fire went into effect a couple of hours back. in fact, for half an hour, before that, it was all very quiet, but before that, for a good stretch of the day, really, there was very, very intense shelling all along the 40 kilometers strip really between mariupol, where i am, ukraine's fourth largest city, and the russian border. yesterday, the rebels seemed to approach very close to really mariupol and were shelling the outskirts of the city or the checkpoints around the circ circumference of the city. the ukrainian forces managed to push them back somewhat. they really were battling over that strip. we shot some video you'll see, which shows the smoke pill low billowing up over the horizon. for now, the cease-fire does seem to be being respected. we heard shortly after 6:00 p.m. in the donetsk region, just

north of donetsk city itself, there were explosions, but generally things have been quiet. let's hope it stays that way, wolf. >> let's hope it stays that way, indeed. as you know, diana, the deal also includes a prisoner exchange, although the ukrainian president pourchenko referred to them as hostages. how many people are we talking about here on both sides? >> well, the interior ministry has said before that there are some 400 ukrainian troops or members of the volunteer battalions being held by the rebel forces. that doesn't include a group who were surrounded in the city of ilovisk last week, a particularly ugly episode in this conflict, and we still believe there are those kept prisoner there who would add to that number. in the nearby town when we talk to rebels at the checkpoint there, they were very, very cagey about whether they still had prisoners and we felt it

would appear they did. it's 400-plus i would say. the ukrainian interior ministry hasn't given any data as to how many it has. it calls them detainees anyway and hasn't given any numbers. but certainly the details on this peace plan are pretty sketchy. there are 12 points. we don't know what all of those points are so far. certainly a bilateral cease-fire and prisoner exchange and the cease-fire should be monitored by the osce to make sure it's detained. remember, the last one in june failed after ten days. people, certainly the ones i've spoken to, since 6:00 p.m., don't hold out that much hope this one will last. >> the osce, the organization for security and cooperation in europe. diana magnet, be careful over there, thank you. baghdad now. cnn's jomana joining us. yesterday, iraq's new president told our christiane amanpour he asked for assistance from nato

count countries, but hasn't made a formal request. what are you learning about the request, the help from the nato alliance? >> well, as you know, wolf, we are in the final days here of that government formation process, that constitutional deadline for prime minister-designate al baghdadi. they are confident they will have an exclusive government. so we will likely see a formal request come when that government is confirmed and it's in office. now, of course, they know, iraqi officials here have made it clear. they understand that having an inclusive government is a key condition for the united states and other countries to provide them with more support. now, what they want, we've heard, wolf, over and over again, from iraqi officials, saying they want more training, more equipping, arming their

troops. and support with things like surveillance and air strikes. the one thing they do not want is boots on the ground. they say they do not want a repeat of the u.s. military presence here. and if you recall back in 2011, u.s. officials were insisting at the time, the u.s. military were insisting, they were leaving, and leaving hadn'te ining behind ready iraqi military force that would be able to stand on its own here. they've been put to the test over the past year and really failed. so they do realize here, the government realizes more needs to be done. as we heard the president of iraq say yesterday, the military is going to need rehabilitation more than anything. so right now, they will take any help they can get, pretty much. >> so depressing that the iraqi military has utterly failed over the past six months in dealing with this isis threat. thank you very much, be careful over there in baghdad.

>> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >> major breaking news we're fol lowing now. we understand norad is tracking a small plane, being described as unresponsive as it flies over the atlantic ocean. barbara starr is at the pentagon watching. renee marsh here with me. what do we know? >> two f-15 jets are trailing this general aviation aircraft. the problem is, the pilot is not respon responsive. air traffic control trying to communicate. however that individual is not speaking back to air traffic control. possibly this is a situation of hypoxia. perhaps this pilot is unconscious. due to a lack of oxygen. we don't have those details at this point, but we do know whoever's in the cockpit is not communicating with those on the ground. it is unclear how much fuel is left in this plane, but at this hour, we know that it is over the atlantic ocean. it is headed for cuba. and we know that both norad and

the faa are continuing to track this plane at this point. >> based on the statement we've now received from petersen air force base in colorado, the norad headquarters, this plane departed rochester, new york, was on a flight plane headed to naples, florida, and now it's not responding at all. do we know how many people are on board that plane? >> we don't know details about who may be on board. we know it appears this flight left rochester around the 8:00, 8:30 hour this morning, and it was supposed to land in naples around 2:05 p.m. so we know that is the flight plan. why this pilot is not communicating, we don't know. we saw a similar situation last weekend, a plane fly into restricted airspace here in washington, d.c. same situation, pilot not response im. we know fighter jets were following and tracking this plane. unfortunately, it crashed into

the atlantic ocean. so similar situation just within days of each other but we're watching this one. >> when we say general aviation, we mean a private plane, not a commercial airline or anything along those lines. it's a light business and utility aircraft that we're told. let me go to barbara starr over at the pentagon. this plane moving i guess closer and closer to cuban airspace. that could be a problem. >> wolf, this is really an extraordinary situation. u.s. military officials say the plane's trajectory, its path right now is heading towards cuban airspace. the planes trailing will not enter cuban airspace. they will turn off well before any risk of going into cuban airspace. what we're told at this hour, using the u.s. coast guard, u.s. coast guard channel of communications, the u.s. military is communicating to cuban authorities what they believe is going on with this plane. this is a coast guard method of

communicating with cuban authorities because, of course, the u.s. has no formal diplomatic relations with cuba. the coast guard channel is usually for refugees at sea. boats stranded at sea. that kind of situation. this is a very quiet channel of communication that the two countries maintain for safety at sea. at this hour, it is being used for the u.s. military, through the coast guard, can tell the cubans what they believe is going on. interestingly, the two f-15s picked up the trail of this plane, we're told, at about 25,000 feet in altitude. high, we're told, high altitude for this type of aircraft. another indication this plane and the pilot may be suffering from hypoxia. they don't know how much fuel. the key question, if this is what we're dealing with, will the plane potentially crash into the atlantic ocean? will it enter u.s. airspace? what will the cuban authorities

have to do to deal with it? how will they track it? how will they try and keep it from crashing obviously into any populated areas in cuba. wolf. >> barbara, renee, to both of you, i assume the u.s. government, through various channels, the u.s. does have a diplomatic interest section in hava havana, is communicating all this information directly to the cuban government in havana, so they see two f-15s knofollowing small plane about to enter cuban airspace, the cubans will not be alarmed. how does that work, barbara? >> it is our understanding it is being done right now through the coast guard to cuban maritime authorities. because they have this existing relationship about events at sea. they know each other. they know how to deal with each other. and to properly communicate with each other, we're told, but, again, it's mainly our understanding been for maritime events at sea in the past, you

know, when cubans take to the sea and try and go in small nonsecured boats to florida, when the cubans see something going on and they're not sure what it is. it's been a method of communication. but it is really quite extraordinary. to think about the fact we're talking about what they're communicating right now is u.s. military information from those two f-15s about what they're seeing with this small business jet. that's why i say, you can count on the fact the f-15s will turn back well before they get to cuban airspace. nobody, you know, wants any misunderstanding about this situation. and, sadly, it could all get resolved one way or the other fairly soon. they're not sure how much fuel the small plane has on board. it's come all the way from new york to florida. it's now turned out over eastern florida in the atlantic headed for cuba. how much fuel will it have left

before it goes down somewhere, wolf. >> we're showing viewers this map. it's heading towards cuba. do we know how far away from cuban airspace the small private jet is right now? >> we don't. we don't have that exact figure at this point. we just know that it is headed that way. we know that the u.s. military at this hour in conversation with cuban authorities, as well as the u.s. coast guard. we are getting a little bit more information about the type of plane. we know seven seats on board. we know this is a fixed wing single engine plane. to your point, we don't know how many individuals are actually on board this plane. >> usually a plane like this would have a pilot and co-pilot, not just one pilot, right? >> perhaps. it's really unclear as to, again, the number of people on board, and, still, even though we're hearing that most likely this is a situation of hypoxia, we don't know what this situation is and why this pilot

is not responding to authorities at this point, but to barbara's point here, this plane would have had enough fuel to get from point a to b. rochester to naples. and at this point, we don't know how much fuel is left. so you have this situation where if this plane is flying and this pilot is unresponsive and it remains over the atlantic ocean, those are variables that you just don't want to have here. where, you know, you may run out of fuel right over the atlantic. >> and norad, north american airspace defense command. they're following this plane en route. but the pilot, no communications coming out of that plane right now. it's heading towards cuban airspace. let's take a quick break, resume the special coverage right after this.

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we're following the breaking news. a small private plane, supposedly en route from rochester, new york, to naples, florida, is now flying over the atlantic ocean. there's been no response from that small plane's cockpit. two u.s. air force f-15 fighter jets are now chasing that plane. it's moving closer and closer towards cuban airspace right now. rene marsh is watching. you're getting new information. set the scene for viewers, rene, who might be just tuning in. >> as we speak, again, those f-15 jets are trailing this private plane. we don't know at this point why the pilot is unresponsive. but that is the situation.

this plane is over the atlantic ocean. we do not know how much fuel is left. we know this plane took off from rochester, new york, earlier this morning, around 8:30 this morning. it was supposed to arrive in naples, florida, a little bit after 2:00 p.m. this afternoon. now we have this situation where, for whatever reason, the pilot is not communicating, and we have the jets following, as well as the faa monitoring this situation. we know that it is en route or heading in the direction of cuba. but, you know, this is interesting, because we just saw a very similar situation just this past weekend, and that situation did not end well. in which, again, the pilot, unresponsive, fighter jets, they were tracking this plane, until the point in which it crashed into the atlantic ocean. hoping that is not the scenario we see here. as we speak, they are still tracking this plane, still fight flying over the atlantic. >> this is a light business and

utility aircraft. that, according to norad, the north american aerospace defense command, that's why they launched these fighter jets. there's been an unresponsiveness coming out of the cockpit. joining us on the phone is the executive director of the naples airport. this plane was en route from rochester, new york, to naples. what can you tell us? >> i think what i've heard you saying already, you've got just about everything we know. we know it's a tbm 700, as you mentioned, which is a single engine light aircraft. we do not know the people at this point and what their condition is and why they would -- it appears on radar they're still at altitude. i know they've been flying for five hours. that's a long time for that aircraft. again, as you one announcer mentioned, we hope it doesn't

end in a very negative situation. >> usually when a plane like this takes off from rochester, new york, they've got a manifest. have you gone through that yet, ted? >> we don't have that information. that would be in the faa's domain. we contacted their tower to see if they have anything. we don't have any information like that on it. >> you don't know if there was one pilot or two pilots? we know it's a seven seater, a small plane, right? >> that's correct, it's a very small plane. i think it's actually a six-seater. some people maybe could say seven seater. >> it's either a six or seven seater. usually, if they've been flying now for few hours, what is the normal time they would have in a plane like this in term of the fuel? how long could a plane like this flying at 25,000 feet, stay in the air? >> you're asking me to really specula speculate. it's a good little airplane. it's a turbo prop.

depends how hard it has to work to get up there and how many people it has on board. once it gets that high in altitude, it can cruise at a good speed and with low fuel, you know, use, so it can cruise very well. i was speculating just before you came, five hours is a long time for that airplane. >> i expect five hours is approaching the limit. we'll find out soon enough. ted soliday, executive director of the naples airliport, which s the destination. thank you very much. barbara starr at the pentagon. >> i'm just heard back from norad with the latest information. they're telling us the two f-15s have broken off now. that they are no longer trailing the aircraft. this of course is because the aircraft is unresponsive, has now entered cuban airspace. so the f-15s would have broken

off before entering the 12-mile airspace of cuba. of course, airspace is 12 miles. your national airspace is essentially 12 miles off your coastline. the f-15s would not enter cuban airspace. so they broke off. we're told the aircraft has entered cuban airspace and it is the understanding of norad that a cuban fighter jet has -- is now intercepting and trailing the aircraft. this is the latest information from an official at norad, the north american aerospace defense command, which maintains surveillance of u.s. airspace and watches for any aircraft out of space, of course, especially since 9/11. so, again, the u.s. f-15s broke off before entering cuban airspace. the plane is this unresponsive aircraft, now has entered cuban airspace. i want to read precisely. it is the understanding of

norad, quote, a cuban fighter has intercepted and is now trailing the aircraft. wolf, this raises some very interesting issues for the united states. because the whole issue of what to do about unresponsive aircraft. even though they may be small business jets usually. when they are over land, when they potentially are overpopulated areas, what do you do about them when they're not under flight control, when the pilot is clearly not in control of the aircraft. the solutions about what to do, about how to bring a plane down when it's not responsive is something the united states military, the faa, everyone has struggled with of course since 9/11. there are procedures in place in the united states where shooting down small aircraft, let's be blunt. there are procedures for shooting down small unresponsive aircraft. they've not ever had to do that, but it raises a very significant question. the cubans now trailing this and, look, they are not going to want to see this aircraft go

down or potentially go down over one of their populated areas, wolf. >> in other words, that one cuban fighter jet that's chasing this plane, if they see that small plane, that private plane, and this is an ominous thought, look like it's going down into some sort of populated area in cuba, what you're saying is there is the possibility this cuban fighter jet could simply blow it out of the sky? >> there is, wolf, let's be blunt. one can assume, i would think, that the fighter jet, if not the first one that went up, at some point the cubans may send up armed fighters. those f-15 we're told, they were armed, as is standard practice for protecting u.s. airspace. so the cubans might likely well do the same thing. the cubans generally fly some older models of russian mig-type aircraft. they would be capable, by all

accounts, of conducting such a mission, if they had decided that they need to do that to protect their people. it is one of the reasons i think it is very fair to say that using that coast guard channel of communication, the u.s. military was in touch, passing along everything to the cuban authorities that it knew about the aircraft, what the situation was, what the status of the aircraft was, the fact it did not appear to be flying under any control, that the pilot was unresponsive. the u.s. would have, as a matter of airspace safety, maritime safety, the u.s. would have passed along all the information it had to the cuban authorities to give them a full picture. and now that it is over cuban airspace, it will be a decision by the government of cuba as to how they proceed, how long they trail this aircraft, where they trail it too. they will be -- the cubans will be watching to see where it goes

and what decisions they may have to make about it. i think it's fair to assume very soon in the very soon time frame, this aircraft is going to run out of fuel and then it will go down at some point. it's just a question of where it will go down. >> it's now entered, you see the map right there, you know cuba, you've been to the guantanamo, for example, the u.s. naval base at guantanamo. they in cuba, the bottom part of the cuban island over there, this plane is now in cuba -- over cuba, being followed by a cuban fighter jet. we're going to stay on top of this story, because there are serious potential ramifications unfolding right now. not only for the pilot, the co-pilot, the others who may be on board this plane, but obviously u.s./cuban relations. we'll see what happens. peter goelz will be joining us in a moment, the foreimer managg

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in the nation... the safest feature in your car is you. add vanishing deductible from nationwide insurance and get $100 off for every year of safe driving. we put members first. join the nation. ♪ nationwide is on your side we're following the breaking news here on cnn. norad saying they have been tracking a small plane en route from rochester, new york, to naples, florida, but unfortunately there's been an unresponsiveness coming from the cockpit of that small plane. it's now over cuban airspace. it's being followed by a cuban jet fighter.

two u.s. air force f-15s who were tracking that plane deviated because it was entering cuban airspace. we're getting more information. rene marsh is work the story. what else are you picking up? >> we just heard from the faa this pilot has not communicated at all with anyone on the ground since 10:00 this morning. it is now -- >> the plane took off about 8:00 this morning, right? >> correct. we're talking about more than 3 1/2 hours in which they have not been able to make any contact with the pilot. we're also learning a little more about who this plane was registered to. we believe at this point, again, we're still getting information in, we're still trying to verify all the details, but we believe at this point it is -- this plane is registered to a real estate development company in rochester. we have reached out to the company at this point, but right now they are not talking. of course, i'm sure they're trying to get a hold on as far as what is going on here with

this pilot and why this pilot is not communicating. >> a tbm-700 light business and utility aircraft, seven passengers, tissurbo prop. >> seven seater. we don't know at this point how many passengers were on board. this is an example of the type of plane we're talking about here. a private plane. we believe it belongs to this real estate development company out of rochester. perhaps on business, headed to business, we don't know. we know the destination was naples, florida. we know this is a seven seater. what we don't know is how many people were actually on board. >> barbara starr's at the pentagon getting more information. what are you learning? >> norad is now saying by their calculation, they believe the situation could be resolved in the next several minutes. that basically the plane will run out of fuel. it is coming to the end of its fuel load. >> but barbara, it's over cuba right now. we're tracking it. it's right over cuba.

>> indeed. the plane is going to run out of fuel, wolf. the question will be, how do the -- at what point will the cubans respond, if they have to respond, if they have to bring that plane down, because it's over a populated area. that is what the u.s. is watching right now. now, i asked them, how will you know when it goes down whether the cubans brought it down, did the, you know, bluntly, how will you know very quickly, did the cubans shoot it down or did it simply run out of fuel, wihich t will do very soon, we're told. u.s. officials are saying they may not know right away. they're watching that flight tracker as well that we have up on our air, to watch for the first signs of the plane going into rapidly declining altitude. we mentioned those two f-15s broke off before they got into the 12-mile airspace of cuba. what we know now is those two f-15s had a refueling plane to keep them up longer, are

circling around the southern side of cuba. so if by chance the small plane crosses completely across cuba and goes back over the water, they will be able to pick it up. the f-15th are being refueled in midair. they're going around, headed around to the south side of cuba to pick up the plane if it is able to stay in the air long enough to cross over cuba. i have to tell you, norad officials are telling us they do not think that is the case. the rough calculation is this will be resolved soon. the plane will simply run out of fuel. the question that may not be readily answerable is will the plane simply go down or will the cubans have to bring it down. we don't know. it is flying right now it a straight line, but what we don't know is if it's headed to any populated areas in cuba, wolf. >> can you make out, based on that map, that flight tracker we're showing viewers, how close that plane might be to the u.s.

naval base at guantanamo bay in cuba? >> i well tell you, i have asked that question and norad's calculations at this point, that it is not a threat to guantanamo bay. they don't believe. unless for some reason it was to suddenly change course, which they don't think it will. it's on the equivalent of autopilot. though it may not technically be on autopilot. they don't think at this point it presents any threat to guantanamo bay. >> barbara, stand by. we're going to get back to you. we'll take another quick break. we'll go to cuba. our correspondent on the ground is standing by. we'll get new information. stay with us.

we're following the breaking news. a small plane that took off hours ago from rochester, new york, en route to naple, florida, has gone off track. there's been no response from the cockpit now for hours. the plane is over cuban airspace. you see it being tracked right there. it's being followed by a cuban jet fighter. after two u.s. air force f-15s stopped. didn't want to encroach cuban airspace. let's go to havana. what are you hearing in the cuban capital, patrick? >> well, there's a flurry of communication going on between the u.s. interest section, the diplomatic mission here in

havana and their counterparts at the cuban foreign ministry and elsewhere. what we're hearing from multiple sources is the u.s. is operating under the assumption this plane is not a threat to cuba, this is some kind of tragic accident that's happened aboard that's rendered the pilot unconscious. it seems ku s cuban authorities tracking this plane, so far not treating it like a threat. brings back memories of 1986 when cuba did down two planes that came from the united states. a very different mission, to drop anti-government pamphlets here. you know, they were shot down as they entered cuban airspace. this plane is being tracked. obviously, it could be a threat if it were to crash in some of these populated areas. there are a number of towns along the coast there. getting down to the second largest city in cuba, which is santiago, 1 million people here. so far, again, multiple sources,

cuban government seems to understand, seems to agree with u.s. assessment this is not any kind of threat. this is some sort of flight that's just gone terribly wrong and they're keeping a very close eye on this plane. they are tracking it, but they are working very closely, it appears, with u.s. authorities to monitor this plane and they're not, wolf, treating it like any kind of threat and are trying to avoid another international incident, wolf. >> we see, it's now over most of cuba, and potentially, assuming it has enough fuel, it could get back over the atlantic ocean. stand by. we're going to get back to you. our man in havana. we'll take another quick break. and for many, it's a struggle to keep your a1c down. so imagine, what if there was a new class of medicine that works differently to lower blood sugar? imagine, loving your numbers. introducing once-daily invokana®. it's the first of a new kind of prescription medicine that's used along with diet and exercise to lower blood

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comcast business. built for business. . this is cnn breaking news. >> we've been following the breaking news now. it looks like it's almost over as far as u.s. officials are concerned. fuel as far as this small plane that left rochester, new york, en route to naples, florida, hours and hours ago now flying over cuban air space. you see where it is getting ominously close right now i should say to the u.s. naval base at guantanamo bay in cuba. appears to be two pilots on board, this unresponsive plane flying into the caribbean, potentially. that a federal aviation source is tell cnn's deborah feyerick. the source described the two pilots as unconscious, based on calculations of the fuel known to be on board the aircraft

chief, reporting according to the source the plane will likely run out of fuel just about now. peter goaelz director of the national transportation safety board is on the phone. what's your analysis based on the information you've heard? >> it looks eerily like the payne stewart accident in 1999, where the pro golfer, payne stewart's learjet depressiurize and we tracked it into south dakota before it finally crashed. unfortunately, it looks very similar to that tragedy. >> it looks like the pilots are unconscious for some sort of reason. this aircraft, are you familiar with this tbm-700 light business utility aircraft? >> i am. >> is it similar to a learjet in the sense you could lose oxygen and then you go into this kind of unconsciousness? >> it is a high-performance

turboprop that's pressurized and can cruise at 25,000 feet. anything above 12,000 feet, you need to have pressurization and. if it loses pressurization gradually, it can easily disable the pilots and disable the passengers. they might not have even known it was happening. there haven't been any reports about any holes in the fuselage or something dramatic. so it most likely was a gradual depressurization. and unfortunately, this is not going to end well. >> because it looks like some other pilot may have been able to look into that cockpit and see an unresponsive crew. if there are two pilots inside. so that clearly is, as you point out, very ominous. if this plane is going to crash into -- on the ground in cuba, would that cuban fighter jet

following it take it out of the sky before it crashes or just let it crash into the ground? >> it depends on what they're over. i know in the payne stewart case, we tracked it carefully, because we were fearful it might run out of fuel, perhaps over st. louis or some other heavily populated area. and this case, i'm sure they're tracking it carefully. if it appears as though it's going to crash in an unpopulated area, they're going to let it go down. >> peter goelz, we'll stand very close touch with you and on top of this story. very ominous story indeed. that's it for me. thanks very much for watching. i'll be back 5:00 p.m. eastern in" the situation room." "ne "newsroom" with brooke baldwin will start after a quick break. . during the day, we generate as much electricity as we can using solar.

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comcast business built for business. this is cnn breaking news. >> all right. here we go. breaking news top of the hour. as you and i are watching this all play out together, i'm brooke baldwin, as we are watching this little blue plane here, a live flight tracker, an unresponsive plane, a small aircraft. it has been trailed by u.s. fighter jets, cuban fighter jets and now in cuban air space. it is expected to run out of fuel at any moment. this is what we have, based upon calculations. sources tell us it should be running out of fuel at any minute now here. u.s. and cuban militaries are investigating. this small private plane left rochester, new york, earlier this morning. was headed to naplenaples, flor. but what began --