the crash of germanwings flight 9525 was no accident. authorities searched the home of co-pilot andreas lieu bitz who appears to have intentionally flown the jet and 150 people on board into the side of a mountain. downtown devastation. an explosion triggered by an apparent gas leak level as building in new york's east village leaving more than a dozen people injured. >> i heard this incredible sonic explosion. i mean it was like -- you could feel it. it was like reverberating. national guardsman and his cousin are under arrested accused of plotting a deadly u.s. military base attack inspired by the deadly assault

in paris. and sweet survival. 12 teams are left in the ncaa tournament with unbeaten kentucky advancing and notre dame making its deepest run in more than three decades. >> brandt for three. yes. captioning funded by cbs this is the "cbmorn this is the "cbs morning news" for friday, march 27th, 2015. good morning. i'm alison harmelin in for anne-marie green. french officials say they have no idea why the co-pilot of a german airliner intentionally flew a plane into a french mountainside. investigators say andreas lubitz was calm and deliberate and didn't say a word as he crashed a plane killing 150 people. he passed a security check on january 27th. officials say that there was a several-month gap in his training back in 2009 but wouldn't say why.

the crash has prompted some airlines to impose stricter cockpit rules. tina kraus is near the crash site in seyne-les-alpes. good morning, tina. >> reporter: good morning, alison. there are unconfirmed reports that german police may have found a significant clue at the co-pilot's home that may explain why he purposely crashed the plane into the alps. about eight miles from the crash site at this staging area helicopters are taking off again this morning to try to help find the victims. as search teams resume the difficult task of trying to locate remains in steep terrain, investigators are trying to figure out what could have led co-pilot andreas lubitz to intentionally crash a plane into a mountainside taking 150 passengers with him. they looked after@this after analyzing the cockpit flight recorder. >> when he attempted to come back, that's when the trouble began. >> reporter: late thursday german police search lubitz's

apartment in dusseldorf and also his parents' home. his passion for flying led him to join lufthansa in 2013. the company's ceo said he had fulfilled all medical tests in training. it was also confirmed lubitz took a break from his flight franing six inging inging inging training six years ago, but didn't explain why. meantime calls are growing for stricter scrutiny of pilots to prevent future tragedies. >> we need to make sure we have a just system, a just culture and not a punitive one which might only drive problems underground where they can testify be found. >> reporter: in the wake of the crash europe and canada are requiring two crew members to be in the cockpit at all times. a policy the u.s. put in place after 9/11. a german newspaper is

reporting this morning that while the co-pilot barricaded himself inside the cockpit, the captain used an axe to try to break the door down. an axe is part of the safety equipment on board an a320. alison? >> tina kraus in sane lessal alps. thank you, tina. according to the aviation safety network there have been more than a thousand hijackings by pilots since 1981 including silk air flight in 1997. the ntsb determined it was a deliberate act by the captain. the 1999 crash of egypt flight 990 believed to have been flown into the ocean by the co-pilot. and in 2013 it's believed a pilot locked the co-pilot out of the cockpit and flew the plane into the ground. they undergo annual medical exams but it's difficult to determine their mental or emotional state. >> you're legally required to disclose those things under penalty of jail and fine if you fail to do so but, of course

people can lie. coming up on "cbs this morning," we'll hear from a former fbi agent who investigated major airline crashes including egypt air flight 990. two tried to carry attacks. the men are related and one is a member of the illinois national guard. their plans unraveled when an accomplice turned out to be an undercover fbi agent. adriana diaz reports from chicago. >> reporter: the fbi says 22-year-old hasan edmonds and his cousin 29-year-old jonas edmonds were wannabe terrorists and attack a national guard base in joliet, illinois. he's a member of the illinois national guard. in the criminal complaint the fbi said edmonds used the facebook profile hasan rasheed. an undercover officer befriended him and said he wanted to get through.

quote, i'd rather struggle and strive hard in the cause of allah rather than sit back and lead a comfortable life. in later communications he said jonas also wanted to fight but since he served time in prison would likely not receive a passport. they wanted do like the terrorists in the attack on charlie charlie charlie"charlie hebdo"." he said, quote, we would love do something like the brother in paris did. hasan edmonds purchase add ticket to egypt and planned to fly out of chicago's midway airport on march 25th. that's where he was arrested. jonas was arrested at his aurora, illinois, home. the defendants showed little emotion here at chicago's federal court. if convicted they face a maximum penalty of 15 years in jail and $250,000 in fines. both are expected back in court in the next few weeks. adriana diaz, cbs news, chicago. >> in iraq the u.s.-supported on racing to take saddam hussein's

hometown tikrit from militants appears to be in its final push. they've conducted 17 air strikes in tikrit in the last two days. iraqi troops and iranian supported militias are on ground. some backed out in protest over the u.s. air strikes. the civil war in syria shows no signs of slowing down. opposition activists say that government air strikes and shellings killed 18 people yesterday. the politics are dicey in the united states. assad told charlie rose on assignment for "60 minutes" that he's open to talks with the u.s. >> what kind of communication is there between your government and the american government? >> there's no communication. >> none at all. >> nothing yet. >> nothing yet. to this moment, no. nothing. >> would you like to have that happen? >> any dialogue is positive, as i said in principle, of course. >> you can see more of charlie

rose's interview with assad on "cbs this morning" and on sunday's "60 minutes." a koort in italy is expected to rule today on whether to uphold the murder conviction of amanda knox. italy's highest court is reviewing the guilt of knox and her italian ex-boyfriend. they have twice been convicted in the 2007 murder of her british roommate. she's awaiting the decision from home in washington state. if her conviction is confirmed, it could trigger an extradition request from italy. this morning at least 19 people are recovering from injuries after a massive new york city building explosion. four people are in critical condition. the blast in the heart of manhattan's east village neighborhood shot debris 1,500 feet into the air. brian webb has more. >> reporter: fire crews spent the night keeping watch over hot spots and during the light of day investigators will get to work trying to figure out exactly what went wrong. fire crews shot powerful streams

of water across the new york city street and onto the smouldering remains of several east village brownstones. thursday afternoon a huge gas explosion and fire caused the collapse of a building and caused a blast. >> i heard this incredible like sonic explosion. i mean it was like you could feel it. >> reporter: the blast started a fire which spread to other brownstones nearby. residents were seen scrambling down fire escapes to get to safety. building resident peter menchini rushed home to the chaos. >> i was at school walked past a tv and i saw my building involved in flames. >> reporter: the investigation into the cause of the blast is likely to focus on utility work that was being performed inside the building. >> reporter: impact appears to have been caused by plumbing and gas work that was occurring inside 121 second avenue.

>> reporter: pete american chiny said the explosion and fire took about all he had. >> all my belongings were in there. i guess i'll figure out from there what's going to happen. >> reporter: the city's mayor said no gas leaks were reported before thursday's blast. at last check 19 people were injured in the explosion and fire that followed. five were new york city firefighters. in new york, brian webb for cbs news. coming up on the "morning news," a dea sex scandal. they say agents admitted to attending sex parties in colombia. lucky landing. a pilot sets down on a highway after a troubled flight. this is the "cbs morning news." le mid flight. this is the "cbs morning news." can you smell it? petsmart has lots of food choices like new purina pro plan bright mind that promotes alertness and mental sharpness in dogs seven and older. 'cause pethood's needs a partner. look at 'em! they're lovin' their vegetables. this is huge news! it's all thanks to our birds eye chef's favorites

side dishes perfectly sauced or seasoned. what are you..? shh! i'm live tweeting. oh, boy. birds eye. so veggie good. it's happening. today, more and more people with type 2 diabetes are learning about long-acting levemir® an injectable insulin that can give you blood sugar control for up to 24 hours. and levemir® helps lower your a1c. levemir® comes in flextouch® the only prefilled insulin pen with no push-button extension. levemir® lasts 42 days without refrigeration. that's 50% longer than lantus® which lasts 28 days. today i'm asking about levemir® flextouch®. levemir® is a long-acting insulin used to control high blood sugar in adults and children with diabetes and is not recommended to treat diabetic ketoacidosis. do not use levemir® if you are allergic to any of its ingredients. the most common side effect is low blood sugar, which may cause symptoms such as sweating, shakiness, confusion and headache. severe low blood sugar can be serious and life-threatening.

ask your doctor about alcohol use, operating machinery, or driving. other possible side effects include injection site reactions. tell your doctor about all medicines you take and all of your medical conditions. check your blood sugar levels. your insulin dose should not be changed without asking your doctor. get medical help right away if you have trouble breathing swelling of your face, tongue or throat sweating, extreme drowsiness dizziness, or confusion. today's the day to ask your doctor about levemir® flextouch®. covered by nearly all health insurance and medicare plans. this morning residents in oklahoma are cleaning up from the first tornado outbreak of the year to slam the state. the governor declared a state of emergency for 25 counties. the storms that crisscrossed oklahoma wednesday killed at least one person and injured dozens.

a tornado leveled a mobile home park at sand springs. this morning congress is calling on the drug enforcement administration to clean house. the federal watchdog support says the dea botched its handling of allegations, that agents went to sex parties with prostitutes while stationed overseas. craig boswell reports. >> reporter: in a new report the the justice department inspector general said overseas drug cartels paid for dea agents in colombia to have sex parties with prostitutes. the i.g. report says while some of the dea agents denied it the indication in the case suggests that they should have known the prostitutes in attendance were paid with cartel funds. the prostitution scandal involving secret service agents on an advance trip for the president to cartagena spotlighted misconduct while overseas. >> you know for a while we thought it was just the secret service. but this report demonstrates that the dea and others they're

engaging in activities that puts our national security at risk. just because somebody else does it or it's legal in that country such as colombia doesn't mean you're allowed to bring a foreign national into your room let alone get naked with that person. >> reporter: the report found that the drug enforcement administration was not fully cooperative and outlines a host of other things occurred. seven dea agents admitted to attending the parties and were given suspensions ranging from two to ten days. craig boss well cbs news, washington. a team of professional skydivers are safe this morning after making an merge landing on a highway. the pilot said the engine cut out unexpectedly. the single-engine plane was carrying five people when it touched down. no one was hurt. straight ahead, blasting off into space history. scott kelly sets off to break a

record at the international space station. and later, "downton abbey" packs it up. and later, they pack it up. find misses sonoma life and style camp shirts 50 to 60% off. men's polos only $14.99 each. save on jumping beans play wear for the kids new shoes and sandals for the family and a food network ten piece cookware set. pick up a little kohls cash too. plus enroll today for kohls yes 2 you rewards. get a $5 reward for every 100 points! this super saturday! find your yes. kohls. ♪ ♪ ♪ hershey's spreads. bring the delicious taste of hershey's chocolate to anything - everything. with hershey's spreads, the possibilities are delicious.

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the pair will make history as they orbit the earth for a year and kelly will take part in research involving his twin brother mark who's also an astro astronaut astronaut. nasa hopes that knowing more about what happens to bodies in space will point out how long humans can stand to travel through the cosmos. on the "cbs moneywatch," a popular soda slips in the rankings and "downton abbey" slips to a close. jill good morning, alison. troubles in the east. the dow lost 40 points. the s&p finished nearly 5 points lower, and nasdaq fell 13 points. >> reporter: diet coke is losing groujd as more americans shun diet soft drinks. coca-cola's full calorie coke was the country's top seller last year but full calorie pepsi moved into the number two position taking the place of diet coke which dropped to third. analysts say more consumers are concerned about the health impact of artificial inners.

carnival corporation the cruise line giant said it is ordering nine new ships. karen nal is carnival is the parent company of several cruise lines. the ships will be delivered between 2019 to 2022. they didn't say which brands would be getting new vessels. >> sad news for fans of "downton abbey." the popular award-winning british period drama is ending this year after six seasons. season five drew an audience of nearly 13 million viewers. the producers won't say much about the final season other than that the current characters will be back and given satisfying resolutions. allison? >> great show. jill wagner at the new york stock exchange. thanks, jill. when we return, the sweet 16 is narrowed down to 12 and a touching gesture from a hall of fame hoops coach after his

death. totino's blasted crust rolls... yeah. flavor at full blast i've smoked a lot and quit a lot, but ended up nowhere. now i use this. the nicoderm cq patch, with unique extended release technology helps prevent the urge to smoke all day. i want this time to be my last time. that's why i choose nicoderm cq.

plus-- german investigators find a significant clue... as to why the german-wings co- pilot crashed into the alps. and-- bay area deputies accused of running a fight club.. and forcing inmates to fight like gladiators. join us for kpix 5 news this morning... beginning at 4:30. good morning. it's friday march 27th. i'm juliette

here's a look at "today's" forecast in some cities around the country. the sweet 16 teams of the ncaa tournament are now just 12. top ranked and unbeaten kentucky will continue their pursuit of perfection. the wildcats have no problem with the mountaineers. they blow them out winning 78-39. wake up. the echos of 1979. they've done it again. the fighting irish beat wichita state, 81-70. they'll play kentucky tomorrow. the number one seed in the west is also advancing with a seven-point deficit in the second half to beat north carolina, 79-72. and in the elite eight the

badgers will take on number two seed arizona. the cats have trouble but they pull off to win it, 68-60. there's more sweet 16 action on the schedule for today. gonzaga faces ucla the lowest seed in the tournament and duke takes on utah. our coverage begins at 7:00 p.m. eastern right here on cbs. former head coach dean smith left a legacy and long after his death he continues to give. he instructed letters to his former players with a check for $200, including enjoy a dinner out compliments of coach smith. about 180 of these letters were sent. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," the role of exercise and cutting cancer risk. i'm alison harmelin. this is the "cbs morning news."

i'm alison harmelin this is the "cbs morning news." >> announcer: this portion of >> announcer: this portion of the "cbs morning news" sponsored by just for men. just you and the look you want. look you want. i'm shawn lee, i play rugby for the santa monica rugby club. i started going gray kind of early... and it's just not me. only just for men easily targets gray for a natural gray-free look. guaranteed. just you and the look you want. just for men. (clucking noises) everyone wants to be the cadbury bunny because only he brings delicious cadbury creme eggs. while others may keep trying nobunny knows easter better than cadbury. i want regularity. of course i do, it's a big part of good digestive health. can't i just have regularity without having to think about it, let alone talk about it? benefiber conveniently helps support good digestive health and maintain that word. benefiber is all natural, clear, taste-free and dissolves completely. you know what benefiber tastes exactly like when you put it in water? water!

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here's another look at this morning's top stories. investigators say they don't know why the co-pilot of a german airliner deliberately crashed a jet into the french mountainside. they say lubitz locked the pilot out of the cockpit and without saying a word flew the jet into the ground. investigators searched his apartment and parents' home. all 150 died in the crash. two illinois cousins plotted an attack. one is a member of the national guard. his cousin bragged to an undercover fbi agent that he could kill 150 people in a terrorist attack in the u.s. they were arrested on wednesday. there's a new twist this morning in the kidnapping case

of a california woman that police say was a hoax. the attorney for denise huskins says she's telling the truth when she said she was abducted early monday. as erica nochlin of our los angeles affiliate kcbs reports, huskins' attorney spoke out last night. >> reporter: the attorney for denise huskins is fighting to show that she was telling the truth, that she was kidnapped. >> she was the victim of a very serious assault. >> reporter: her attorney said she spent hours with vallejo police today who declared the $8,500 ran some was all a hoax. >> did they tell you o who that ran sox request was made to? mr. quinn himself. so what kind of criminal is that who reportedly has a hoax and then demands the ransom money. >> reporter: the attorney for the boyfriend aaron quinn blames

the vallejo police for discrediting the couple's story. >> there seems to be a stream of blatant lies coming out about our client, about the victim. >> reporter: dan russo said quinn was drugged and bound in his home and that's why he did not contact the police for several hours monday. >> he was forced to drink something that even the kidnappers told him was drugs. >> reporter: quinn report lid gave police a drug sample to proving he was drugged but vallejo police said they couldn't substantiate what he told them. meanwhile denise huskins family in huntington beach that they're standing by her. >> we love our niece, we believe in her and the true story will come out. >> that was erica nochlin reporting. just weeks before easter hens that surpass all color ss disappeared. the owner says 200 hens disappeared in the past few weeks and believes they were stolen.

the birds lay eggs in subtle shades of blue, green, yellow, and background an values the loss at about $2,000. coming up after your local news on "cbs this morning," the latest on the investigation of the airplane crash. we'll get analysis on it. plus, we'll hear from patients who took part in a historic six-way kidney swap. and we'll see how exercise may cut the risk of cancer. dr. david agus has the details. >> that's the "cbs morning news" for this friday. i'm alison harmelin. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com alison harmelin. have a great day. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

goodrich in for michelle. good morning to you, it is friday, march 27. i'm juliette goodrich in for michelle griego. >> we love friday. >> hi, everyone.

i'm frank mallicoat. nearly 4:30. we're going to start with some breaking news. contra costa county has issued a public health advisory for people in pittsburg and antioch. there was a malfunction at the dow chemical plant in pittsburg that led to a release from the plant. that could affect people with respiratory problems and could irritate your eyes, skin, nose and throat. we're working to get more information about what was released into the air. our reporter anne makovec is on the story and we'll have her report shortly. we begin with traffic and weather. a lot of allergies in the air, as well. >> yeah. what's really notable with whatever it is released into the atmosphere we'll be mindful watching the winds this morning to see what direction it blows at, a plume of smoke or whatever it is that's been released in pittsburg. the winds are calm right now so that's good news. temperatures in the upper 40s in santa