on our broadcast tonight, air scare, the airline captain who earlier today had to be restrained by passengers. the plane forced to land in an incident that will get the attention of all of those who fly. the main event inside the showdown at the supreme court. why it didn't look like a good day for the president. and now ring, the campaign we're making even larger to help america's military men and women find good jobs here. "nightly news" begins now. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good evening, most people do the same thing when boarding an

aircraft. you glance left to see the pilots, and we move to our seats. today right on the heels of the story about the screaming flight attendant who was apparently off her meds comes this. a captain on a jet blue flight from new york to las vegas who had something of a meltdown during the flight and again passengers took to the aisles and went into action as the flight was then forced to make an unscheduled landing. it's where we begin tonight. tom costello covers aviation for us. he's at national airport in d.c. reporter: this captain is now in fbi custody and getting medical care. his behavior is described as incredibly erratic. talking about the possibility a bomb on board. when flight attendants asked for passengers to subdue him, they jumped into action and wrestled

him to the floor. police and medics removed from a jet blue passenger plane the captain restrained in a wheelchair. home video posted on youtube captures the action midnight. tony was one of the passengers. >> visually you could tell that he was agitated and acting peculiar. very rapid head movements and hand movements. cotton mouth, a little bit of foaming at the mouth, drinking lots of water. >> reporter: jet blue was flying from new york to las vegas when the captain started erratically pushing buttons and steering the plane. the co pilot became so concerned he persuaded him to go to the restroom. when an offduty captain entered the cockpit and locked the door, the original captain began to lose his mind. >> screaming and saying, say

your prayers. >> it appeared he was attempting to open the side door, i wasn't going to let that happen. >> reporter: passengers quickly restrained him with seat belts as the cockpit declared an inflight emergency. >> we're going to need authorities and medical to meet us at the airplane. >> reporter: the restrained captain was talking about israel, iraq and iran many. >> you know, they're going to take us down, they're going to take us down. and then he said, everybody say the lord's prayer, just say the lord's prayer, they're going to take us down. >> reporter: captain john cox. >> this pilot was treated as niz other passenger who's disruptive and who may need to be restrained. the flight attendant was quick to call for help, which was appropriate. >> reporter: in a statement to nbc news, jet blue will only say that flight 191 was diverted to amarillo for a medical situation involving the captain. >> unbelievable story, in this

post-9/11 era, it fell to passengers to help subdue the situation. tom, thanks. now to the big debate underway at the supreme court over president obama's massive health care reform law. today was the main event of the three-day event. historic arguments over whether the requirement that americans buy health insurance is constitutional at all. a lot of the experts have been predicting that the law would with probably stand but after today, all bets are off. our justice correspondent pete williams with us from the court tonight, pete good, evening. >> it's impossible to predict based on today's argument what the court will do weeks from now. but it does seem the majority of the justices are skeptical that congress has the power to pass such a sweep iing law. >> reporter: with demonstrations outside the court more organized today, for and against the

health care law. the justices inside wrestled with the key question, does congress have the power to require every american to buy something on the private market, specifically health insurance? just as anthony kennedy the key vote showed he had his doubts. >> when you are changing the relation of the individual to the government in this -- what we can stipulate is i think a unique way, do you not have a heavy burden of justification to show authorization under the constitution? >> the court's conservatives asked if congress can make everyone buy insurance stlrks any end to what else it could do? >> can the government require you to buy a cell phone because that would facilitate responding when you need emergency services? >> everybody has to buy food sooner or later, so you define the market as food. therefore everybody's in the market, therefore you can make people buy broccoli. >> the court's liberals said the same arguments were made against social security.

>> there was a big fuss about that in the beginning, a lot of people said, maybe some people still do today, i could do much better if the government left me alone. >> and several liberal justices said the health care market is unique. >> it's different because of the nature of the health care service, you are entitled to health care when you go to an emergency room, when you go to a doctor, even if you can't pay for it. >> reporter: that brought justice kennedy back to one of the key points. the cost of treating people without insurance has shifted to those who do, it suggested his vote may be in play. >> the young person who's uninsured is uniquely, approximately very close to affecting the rates of insurance and the cost of providing medical care in a way that is not true in other industries. that's my concern in the case. >> reporter: so no clear victory for either side tonight, tomorrow the justices consider this question, if the insurance

requirement is unconstitutional can the rest of the massivele mg care law survive? >> another momentous day at the court. pete williams, thanks. time for some analysis, savannah guthrie with us in the studio. we talked about whether the conversation and the votes are going to come down along party lines. the questions sure seem to. a lot of people say this court doesn't ask devil's add vow cat questions. it may be an indicator. >> i'll be the devil's advocate on that. oral arguments are not always an indicator of where the court will come out. if you look at the d.c. circuit, conservative judges grilled the government's lawyers. they were in the majority upholding the health care law. there was a voting rights act case a couple years ago, where they grilled the government lawyer and ultimately upheld the law 8-1. that said you cannot sugar coat this for the government. this is a tough day for the government. even the justices who seemed

gettable, because of their past writings seemed more open to an expansive fb federal view of power, seemed consumed by one question. if you can force people to go out and buy health insurance, are there any limits to what the government can do. none of the justices look at this as an easy application to regulate commerce. i know we talked about it last night, may well be, if these oral arguments are an indicator, if we do see a court sharply divided along i'd ydeological l. >> we get to find out in june. to our south now, a history making day in cuba. pope benedict is in havana, the first time a pope has vaz ited since john paul ii 14 years ago. andrea mitchell is there tonight as well. good evening. >> reporter: the pope is meeting with president raul castro,

possibly also his brother fidel later. the pontiff has been urging political reform here, but gently as he did at a shrine that is sacred to many cubans. cuba's economic czar and vice president said while cuba is shaking up their economy, there will not be political reform. the church has a lot more religious freedom than it did 13 years ago when pope john paul ii visited, just this afternoon, the arch bish so of miami held a massive reconciliation for cuban americans and the people of havana. that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago. many of the hundreds who came here today from miami refused to come to the last papal visit, even holding protests against those who did. tomorrow the pope holds a giant mass here in revolution square. >> andrea mitchell in havana tonight. among those traveling to cuba to see the pope are several hundred of the catholic faithful from miami. for a lot of people it will be a

very emotional homecoming, a long time in the making. mark potter reports also from havana to the. . >> reporter: an historic cathedral in old town havana, cuba, a mass is being celebrated by miami's archbishop. many on the pilgrimage with him are cuban exiles who fled the cuban revolution led by fidel castro, never to return. with pope benedict visiting cuba, he sees an opportunity to finally reunite countrymen separated by the cold war. >> i think people are recognizing the need to reconcile. not necessarily a regime or government, but reconcile with their brothers and sisters. >> reporter: miami businessman carlos and his wife olga are among those making the trip, packing extra supplies for the cuban people in need. >> i'm taking milk, oatmeal.

>> reporter: he once opposed communications with cuba. but after seeing pope john paul's visit of 14 years ago, he sees it differently. >> it became clear that it is far more important to help the people than it is to hurt the regime. >> reporter: andy gomez from the university of miami also is making the trip, but argues with some of his family and friends who think it's a bad idea. >> i would like to go to my homeland and see where i was born, would i. but i would never ever step there with with communism there. >> we need to build bridges with the cuban people, not just the cuban american community the international community. >> reporter: a pilgrimage of reconciliation among the cuban family. ♪ >> reporter: mark potter, nbc news, havana, cuba.

flames burning out of control, a dry and dangerous start to fire season already. and later, helping this nation's military veterans with a critical mission on the home front, getting a job once they're back home. heartbeat,have an irregr and that it put me at 5-times greater risk of a stroke. i was worried. i worried about my wife, and my family. bill has the most common type of atrial fibrillation, or afib. it's not caused by a heart valve problem. he was taking warfarin, but i've put him on pradaxa instead. in a clinical trial, pradaxa 150 mgs reduced stroke risk 35% more than warfarin without the need for regular blood tests. i sure was glad to hear that. pradaxa can cause serious, sometimes fatal, bleeding. don't take pradaxa if you have abnormal bleeding, and seek immediate medical care for unexpected signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk if you're 75 or older, have a bleeding condition like stomach ulcers, or take aspirin, nsaids, or bloodthinners, or if you have kidney problems,

especially if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all medicines you take, any planned medical or dental procedures, and don't stop taking pradaxa without your doctor's approval, as stopping may increase your stroke risk. other side effects include indigestion, stomach pain, upset, or burning. pradaxa is progress. if you have afib not caused by a heart valve problem, ask your doctor if you can reduce your risk of stroke with pradaxa. my name is sunshine and i have three beautiful girls. i like taking advil® for a headache. it nips it in the bud. and i can be that mommy that i want to be. ♪ [ male announcer ] take action. take advil®. trouble with a car insurance claim.

[ dennis ] switch to allstate. their claim service is so good, now it's guaranteed. [ foreman ] so i can trust 'em. unlike randy. dollar for dollar, nobody protects you like allstate. if the mountains outside denver, colorado, a fire that was intentionally started as part of a controlled burn, as they call it, got out of hand. and now thousands of people have been ordered out of their homes and there have been deaths.

nbc's miguel almaguer has our report tonight. >> reporter: 20,000 people may be forced to evacuate tonight as a wind-driven fire could close in on 65,000 homes. the fire has claimed at least two lives, an elderly couple, while a third person is reported missing. firefighters discovered the bodies among the charred debris. >> they were loading cats, dogs and people on to their engines and vehicles to move them out of the way. reporter: this fire began as a prescribed burn last week, but flaired out of control in the rugged mountain community of conifer yesterday. this time lapse captured the plume of billowing smoke that could be seen as far away as denver 35 miles out. >> the plume of smoke was huge. it looked like a bomb went off or something. >> the blaze charred at least four and a half square miles. you. >> leave, and you have no idea if your house is going to be

there when you come back, or if you'll ever come back. >> dry brush and 40 mile an hour gusts fuelled the fire, this afternoon winds calmed long enough for airdrops as crews arrived from three states trying to beat back the flames. a fire originally started as a way to protect neighbors has tonight turned against them. >> firefighters say at least 23 homes are a complete loss, zero% of this fire is contained. there is one piece of good news, wined with speeds are expected to die down overnight. brian? >> miguel almaguer near the fire line in colorado tonight. thanks. there's been another accident involving offshore drilling, this time a leak from the gas drilling platform in the north sea. 150 miles off the coast of scotland. the drilling rig owned by the french oil and gas company total was attempting to close off a well when the accident happened. the company said today it could take as long as six months to

drill a relief well to stop the leak. the scottish government has declared an exclusion zone for all air and sea vessels around the rig because of the risk that the leaking gas could explode. up next for us tonight. what may be the best news ever about chocolate for a lot of people. and what could be a game changer for folks who live in hurricane zones. what we're being told not to do. ashlee! ashlee! ashlee! ashlee! what were you looking for when you bought your edge? um, i was definitely looking for fuel economy. that's the whole reason we, we wanted to look at the ecoboost. can you talk a little bit about the style of the edge? um, well, i think it's very hip. i even have several guys were like "whoa, do have twenties on those". like, don't even know what that means, but i guess it's cool. (laugh)

whose non-stop day starts with back pain... and a choice. take advil now and maybe up to four in a day. or choose aleve and two pills for a day free of pain. way to go, coach. ♪ after just one use? think again. [ female announcer ] with olay regenerist wrinkle revolution, it's possible to reduce the look of wrinkles in just 10 minutes. now you've seen it. experience it for yourself. [ female announcer ] olay regenerist. that's how it is with alzheimer's disease. she needs help from me. and her medication. the exelon patch -- it releases medication continuously for twenty-four hours. she uses one exelon patch daily for the treatment of mild to moderate alzheimer's symptoms. [ female announcer ] it cannot change the course of the disease. hospitalization and rarely death have been reported in patients who wore more than one patch at a time. the most common side effects of exelon patch are nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. the likelihood and severity of these side effects may increase as the dose increases.

patients may experience loss of appetite or weight. patients who weigh less than 110 pounds may experience more side effects. people at risk for stomach ulcers who take certain other medicines should talk to their doctor because serious stomach problems such as bleeding may worsen. people with certain heart conditions may experience slow heart rate. [ woman ] whenever i needed her, she was there for me. now i'm here for her. [ female announcer ] ask the doctor about your loved one trying the exelon patch. visit exelonpatch.com to learn more. do about medicare and social security... security. that's what matters to me... me? i've been paying in all these years... years washington's been talking at us, but they never really listen... listen...it's not just some line item on a budget; it's what i'll have to live on... i live on branson street, and i have something to say... [ male announcer ] aarp is bringing the conversation on medicare and social security out from behind closed doors in washington. because you've earned a say. from behind closed doors in washington. it's oysternomics 101.

you start with a u.s. senator named ben. by helping restore thousands of acres of oyster beds, he kept hundreds of oystermen on the job... which keeps wholesalers in business... and that means more delivery companies... making deliveries to more restaurants... which hire more workers. and that means more oystermen. it's like he's out here with us. he's my friend, ben. i hope he's your friend, too. i'm ben cardin, and i approved this message. here's a big change. the storm experts are telling us, people should no longer tape up their windows when a hurricane is on the way. this came out of the national hurricane conference which is underway right now in orlando. they say taping the windows leads to a false sense of security. they say it's best to use hurricane shutters and impact resistant windows. let's be honest about something here. hearing this will be completely

meaningless to the true old salts out there who are hurricane veterans from galveston to key west to nags head. they'll go on taping their windows because of the time honored belief that it reduces the shards of glass flying through the air during storms. researchers have found that people who are generally healthy and eat chocolate on a regular basis tend to weigh less than people who don't eat chocolate so often. experts say the reason might be this, even though chocolate is high in calories, it's also high in anti-oxidants which can actually help control blood pressure, lower blood sugar. at least that's the story we're going with. it's another great time to look at the night sky if you can where you live. the london daily mail has pictures of the same show visible at night all over the world. two planets shining brightly

very nearby, venus and jupiter. because venus is closer it's the brightest in the skies. it's one of the best views of two planets for years to come. it's very visible with the naked eye at night. it looks even better through just a small telescope. we may be in the midst of march madness and good luck to any of the final four players who want to top this. austin showing clock management skills well beyond his ears as a third grader. he tosses one up half court at the buzzer. his team wins the game by a score of 25-4. might have been a little one-sided, came in second in the league tournament. up next here tonight, getting america's fighting men and women back to work here at home. c box plays ] multi-policy discount. paperless discount. paid-in-full discount. [yawning] homeowner's discount. safe driver discount.

chipmunk family reunion. someone stole the nuts. squirrel jail. justice! countless discounts. now that's progressive. call or click today. fight both fast with new tums freshers! concentrated relief that goes to work in seconds and freshens breath. new tums freshers. ♪ tum...tum...tum...tum... tums! ♪ [ male announcer ] fast relief, fresh breath, all in a pocket sized pack. are choosing advil. i'm keith baraka and i'm a firefighter. and it's very physically demanding. if i'm sore i'm not at my best. advil is my go-to. it's my number one pain reliever. [ male announcer ] make the switch. take action. take advil. [ male announcer ] make the switch. i bathed it in miracles. director: [ sighs ] cut! sorry to interrupt. when's the show? well, if we don't find an audience, all we'll ever do is rehearse. maybe you should try every door direct mail. just select the zip codes where you want your message to be seen,

print it yourself, or we'll help you find a local partner and you find the customers that matter most. brilliant. clifton, show us overjoyed. no, too much. jennessa. ah! a round of applause. [ applause ] [ male announcer ] go online to reach every home, every address, every time with every door direct mail. a great clean doesn't have to take longer. i'm done. [ female announcer ] unlike sprays and dust rags, swiffer 360 duster's extender can clean hard-to-reach places in less time. swiffer. great clean in less time. or your money back. constipated? phillips' caplets use magnesium, an ingredient that works more naturally with your colon than stimulant laxatives, for effective relief of constipation without cramps. thanks. good morning, students. today we're gonna continue...

it was one of those emotional days in norfolk, but then again, they are used to saying good-bye to war ships full of men and women in uniform headed to far away places. today was a little different because that is the "uss new york" her bough contains tons of

melted steel from the world trade center. that brings us to our final report to the. help for u.s. military veterans. when you think about it, their job while in uniform is to get the job done. now ask yourself if you're an employer, don't you want someone like that on your payroll? that's the gift of our company wide campaign called hiring our heroes. a giant commitment by nbc universal and the chamber of commerce which in the past year has held more than 100 jobs for vets and their spouses. hundreds of people have been hired. chris jansing has the story of two those vets who got the help they needed. >> reporter: after five deployments in iraq and afghanistan, marine sergeant xavier reese wasn't expecting a struggle like this. 18 months of bouncing from one temporary job to another. >> i stored up all my money, i got to prepare for the fact that i may not get a job when i get

home. >> reporter: frustrated he packed his 2005 mazda and drove 40 hours straight from california to atlanta where he heard about a job fair at the georgia dome and off he went without sleep. >> i got to work, you know? a man who don't work don't eat. >> reporter: sergeant reese's struggle is devastatingly common. the unemployment rate for post 9/11 veterans is 12%. 29% for vets under 25. that harsh be reality was not the welcome home joshua hope the for after a tour in iraq working convoy security. >> applying for all these jobs but getting nowhere. >> reporter: military experience and skills easily translate to jobs in the private sector. >> about 81% of the jobs we have in the military have a direct or very close civilian equivalent. >> reporter: in portland, oregon, the red cross interviewed rassi and hired him

as a lab technician. 5,000 employers have hied 8400 veterans including sergeant reese who got a management job with gamestop. >> i was pretty excited on the inside, but like i said, you got to maintain your cool. have you to. you have to. >> reporter: mark hired reese because of his military experience. >> so much to offer from leadership ability to great communication. typically they have exceptional work ethic, reliability, accountability. >> for sergeant reese, real life battles fought and won from fallujah to atlanta. successes at war and now at home. chris jansing, nbc news, atlanta. >> this movement, hiring our heros is expanding to sponsor 400 job fairs in the next year, starting tomorrow morning in new york aboard the aircraft carrier and floating museum the intrepid. the "today" show will be

broadcasting live from there. there are fairs tomorrow in chicago, texas and germany. all the information is on our website. that is our broadcast for a tuesday night. i'm brian williams. we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening, good we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening, good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com-- it's oysternomics 101. you start with a u.s. senator named ben. by helping restore thousands of acres of oyster beds, he kept hundreds of oystermen on the job... which keeps wholesalers in business... and that means more delivery companies... making deliveries to more restaurants... which hire more workers. and that means more oystermen. it's like he's out here with us.