commissioner benitez, go ahead. well, congratulations again to both businesses, phyllis, you know, when that when your business becomes a hub for the neighborhood for something more than just retail and for people to shop, i think that's something to be applauded for, being a small business owner myself and, you know, you know, the business transactions, they keep the lights on and they keep the inventory fresh. but it's that human transaction that keeps the people coming in and keeps the neighborhood alive. so congratulations on that. and then for the nihonmachi street festival. gosh, so many memories , we don't live too far from the neighborhood there either, my wife and i, and we've been going even before we had our little one. she's nine years old now, and she has so many memories, now going there. and it's inspiring now to, get her to volunteer and get her involved in the community. so thank you for doing what you do and keep doing what you do and inspire the, the neighborhood. so thank you. any other commissio

llueven las reacciones tras el asesinato al candidato a la alcaldÍa de coyuca de benÍtez, guerrero. un evento pÚblico. todo quedÓ pactado en vÍdeo. borja: vamos a conocer mÁs detalles. eduardo nos tiene las imÁgenes que, por cierto, son muy fuertes. muy buenas tardes. quÉ terrible situaciÓn. ¿quÉ se sabe hasta el momento? eduardo: borja, sasha, buenas tardes. es perturbador lo que ocurre en el estado de guerrero. las reacciones son diversas, tanto por parte de gente del mismo partido del pri, pan y rd porque a estos partidos se representaba alfredo cabrera como en generar la sociedad de este crimen que quedÓ captado en vÍdeo. sugerimos discreciÓn porque las imÁgenes son fuertes. el candidato caminaba para llevar a cabo su Último acto de campaÑa. ayer tenÍa que iniciar la veda electoral. caminaba en medio de las personas y la salud habla. cuando de repente, una mano se extendiÓ detrÁs de Él con un arma de fuego y disparÓ en diversas ocasiones. tres impactos de arma de fuego acabaron de forma inmediata con la existencia de este candidato a la alcaldÍa de coyuca de benÍtez, estado de g

gio benitez, and maria villarreal to time it out out. >>> the search in the southwestern pacific as hopes fade of finding any more survivors following a massive landslide in papua, new guinea. families searching for their love ones. >> james longman with the latest. >>> israel responds. in the aftermath of the deadly air strike on a refugee camp. at least 50 people were killed and more than 200 injured. benjamin netanyahu calls it a tragic mishap. brooke clement reports from israel. >>> the death of a former "general hospital" actor. officials say johnny wactor was killed in a robbery and what his friends and family are saying tonight. >>> tributes pour in for a basketball legend. bill walton, giant on and off the court, we look back at his life and career. mid-air scare aboard a spirit airlines flight from jamaica, passengers putting on life jackets. health concerns forced bruce springsteen to postpone concerts in europe and america strong tonight. we hear again from the young man on a mission to honor the last of the greatest generation. how he's commemorating this memorial day. ♪ ♪ >>>

>> david: gio benitez tonight. thanks, gio. >>> we'll turn to the major case involving world number one golfer, scottie scheffler. who you remember was arrested in louisville. the charges have now been dropped amid the release of new body camera video and what it shows. here's abc's victor oquendo. >> reporter: the images were hard to believe -- the top ranked professional golfer in the world, in handcuffs, in the middle of a major tournament. >> he's going to jail. >> reporter: tonight, nearly two weeks later, authorities in louisville, kentucky, dropping all criminal charges against scottie scheffler. >> mr. scheffler's characterization of that this was, "a big misunderstanding," is corroborated by the evidence. >> reporter: sheffler was trying to get into valhalla golf club for the second round of the pga championship, through heavy traffic, a chaotic scene after a fatal accident. this video shows scheffler pulling up to the entrance with detective bryan gillis running after him. gillis said scheffler refused to

abc's gio benitez leading us off tonight. >> reporter: tonight, terror on this singapore airlines flight after the passenger jet was struck by severe turbulence 37,000 feet in the air. launching some passengers violently into the ceiling, and leaving at least one man dead. the boeing 777 traveling overnight from london to singapore with 229 onboard, including four american passengers. but nearly ten hours into the flight, the aircraft suddenly hitting an air pocket over myanmar. >> the first thing is just the objects flying. not knowing what's going on. it's a feeling of lack of control, loss of control, helplessness. >> reporter: andrew davies says he and other passengers tried to help the injured. >> the worst thing i saw was the two people with very severe lars rations. there was a lady screaming in pain. >> reporter: tonight, new images from inside the plane show oxygen masks dangling from the ceiling. a dented overheard bin, and blood spatters on the back of a seat. afterward, the pilots diverting and making an emergency landing in bangkok, thailand. first responders racing to the s

>> david: gio benitez leading us off tonight. gio, thank you. >>> now the story breaking as we're on the air tonight, these new images just coming in. reported tornadoes on the ground. as i mentioned, watches and warnings up across several states as we're on the air. the national weather service calling it a particularly dangerous situation. these are the images just in tonight. look at this. stunning close-up images of a violent tornado. this is carbon, iowa. debris from damaged homes swirling there as the tornado actually crosses the road. here's the line to watch tonight. the severe weather warnings across much of the heartland. the threat this evening from texas all the way up through western new york, up to michigan as well. a dangerous night ahead for millions. the new track of these storms in the coming hours, and abc's victor oquendo tracking it from the storm zone, he's in iowa tonight. >> reporter: tonight, that dangerous situation unfolding in the heartland. multiple tornadoes touching down already. a massive outbreak

>> david: gio benitez, thank you again tonight. >>> now to the breaking news in the race for president, with some republicans still voting for nikki haley in late primaries. tonight, nikki haley and who she now says she'll vote for in november. and what she said just months ago on this. here's rachel scott. >> reporter: she once called donald trump a disaster. >> many of the same politicians who now publicly embrace trump privately dread him. they know what a disaster he's been and will continue to be for our party. >> reporter: declaring herself, quote, not afraid to say the hard truths. >> i feel no need to kiss the ring. i have no fear of trump's retribution. my own political future is of zero concern. >> reporter: but today, trump's former rival nikki haley announcing she will vote for him. >> trump has not been perfect on these policies. i've made that clear many, many times. but biden has been a catastrophe, so i will be voting for trump. >> reporter: david, even after dropping out of the race, nikki haley keeps earning significant support in key republican primaries, including i

discreciÓn porque son imÁgenes muy fuerte y es asesinado el candidato de la coaliciÓn por la alcaldÍa de benÍtezuerrero y terminaba un evento de campaÑa y caminaba junto a la gente y se le ve como le dispara y es cuando el candidato cae prÁcticamente muerto y esto lo remontÓ donde el candidato presidencial era asesinado en lo mÁs de una forma similar y este ataque dejÓ a un agresor muerto y uno detenido, ante esto alejandro moreno exigiÓ a la autoridad que se esclarezcan los hechos y estÉn con los responsables. >> estaremos al pendiente, muchÍsimas gracias y con toda esta violencia hoy tambiÉn cerraron las campaÑas en la historia moderna de mÉxico. y los tres candidatos y atraer a los votantes, esta noche tenemos una amplia cobertura y vamos a pasar en vivo con alejandro que nos va hablar sobre cÓmo y Él estÁ en el zÓcalo capitalino, buenas noches: desde este lugar claudia dijo que su gobierno darÁ continuidad al proyecto del presidente andrÉs manuel lÓpez obrador y dijo que el prÓximo domingo estÁn en juego las votaciones entre la democracia contra el autoritarismo y que ella representa a la de

our transportation correspondent gio benitez has the latest and the best times to hit the road.good time? good morning, gio. >> there is a good time and i will get to that in a moment. good morning. there are a lot of people traveling right now. in fact, i want you to take a look at this right now. on friday, the tsa screened more than 2.9 million people nationwide. that is more than right after thanksgiving. it even broke a record, the most people ever screened in a single day in the tsa's 22-year history. airports will be very busy today as people start heading back home. it'll be a lot like friday, so make sure that you give yourself enough time. so far we aren't seeing too many cancellations. that's some good news. and, of course, tens of millions are traveling by car, and there's a bit of good news for gas prices. the national average hovering at around $3.59 a gallon. the south seeing some of the lowest prices. the best times to drive today, early this morning or late tonight. if you wait until this afternoon between that noon and 7:00 p.m. window, you very well could get

reportera: josÉ alfred al les agradece con abrazos a los habitantes de coyuca de benÍtez su asistenciahombre le dispara 2 veces en la cabeza por la espalda luego el caos la gente corres escuchar al menos 15 detonaciones en un comunicado la fiscalÍa de guerrero informÓ que al lugar acudieron agentes de la policÍa ministerial quienes llevarÁn a cabo la investigaciÓn. el supuesto agresor quedÓ tirado, muerto en la cancha de basquetbol donde se llevÓ a cabo el evento a unos pasos de donde quedÓ el cuerpo del candidato de la alianza pinpara y prd—— pri pan y prd. >> eso es un reflejo de lo que como mexicanos hemos vivido en estas elecciones. reportera: tambiÉn en oaxaca hubo balacera dura tex y radica paya de rosalinda lÓpez. 5 o 10 minutos acaba de pasar una personahicieron una de detonaciones con armas de fuego, lamentablemente una persona herida. reportera: quemaron la camioneta de un candidato en puebla las autoridades informaron que este fin de semana se sumarÁn 27,000 guardias nacionales a las calles cuidando la mÁs de 170,000 casillas que tienen que instalarse. >> 260,000 elementos e

en medio de un clima de tensiÓn tras el asesinato del candidato a alcalde de coyuca de benÍtez, alfredoional para mitigar la violencia y proteger a los votantes. valeria leÓn nos cuenta mÁs. >> entre los puestos del mercado en el barrio bravo de tepito, en la ciudad de mÉxico, la guardia nacional resguardÓ el recorrido en campaÑa del candidato a la jefatura de la capital por el pan, pri, prd, santiago taboada. >> la verdad que bueno que entÓo guardia nacional con ellos para protegerlos, porque con eso de que corren peligro en cualquier momento, en vÍsperas de las elecciones mÁs grandes de la historia de mÉxico y tambiÉn las mÁs violentas, 553 candidatos han solicitado protecciÓn federal. >> estos son escoltados por 3474 elementos de las fuerzas armadas , de acuerdo con lo dado a conocer por el secretario de la marina con el instituto nacional electoral. >> desde ya hace un buen tiempo nos reunimos para eh proporcio darle apoyo durante el proceso electoral. >> presidenta cada uno de los tres aspirantes a la presidencia cuenta con un total de 24 elementos. >> ciertamente a todos nos preoc

here's abc's transportation correspondent gio benitez. >> reporter: outside a scene of absolute pandemoniumhelp the passengers of singapore airlines flight sq-321. but inside, so much worse. videos and images showing the devastation of that midair crisis when the singapore airlines boeing 777 hit turbulence earlier today. at least one has died, seven more are critically injured. >> just the objects flying, not knowing what's going on, a lack of control, loss of control. helplessness. >> reporter: andrew davies says he and other passengers tried to help the injured. >> >> reporter: the flight left monday night from london heathrow destined for singapore with 211 passengers and 18 crew on board. ten hours in, airline officials say the aircraft hit a patch of turbulence. the pilot declared a medical emergency and diverted the plane to bangkok. >> as wild as this must have felt inside the cabin, the airplane only dropped 100 feet. then it climbed back up 300 feet. so just that short period of negative gee, descending 100 feet very rapidly, was enough to push all those people who were injured up

detonaciones se escuchan en este video del ataque que terminÓ con la vida del candidato alcalde de coyuca de benÍtezsta es una de las casi 750 agresiones reportadas en ocho meses de esta jornada electoral. >> con toda impunidad, alguien que segÚn estaba protegido por la guardia nacional, lo asesinaron de manera vil y cobarde en un evento polÍtico. >> por otra parte, tambiÉn se registrÓ esta tarde otro violento incidente. ocurriÓ durante el cierre de campaÑa de la mujer que ve en pantalla rosalinda lÓpez garcÍa, candidata de morena en matÍas romero, oaxaca. ella por medio de este video en redes sociales, reportÓ un lesionado tras este ataque. tambiÉn ocurriÓ durante su cierre de campaÑa. y regresamos a estados unidos con la otra noticia del dÍa sin veredicto. culminÓ el primer dÍa de deliberaciones en el caso de trump en nueva york, siete hombres y cinco mujeres integrantes de jurado que hoy estuvo reunido durante 04:30. el veredicto debe ser unÁnime. es decir, todos los integrantes deben acordarse y trump es culpable o no de los 34 cargos que se le imputan. karla amezola nos tiene un resumen de lo o

. >> mientras que en coyuca de benitez, guerrero, el candidato a regidor anibal zuniga fue hallado muertou esposa. >> la fiscalia de guerrero informo que despues de llevar a cabo los trabajos de identificacion se logro determinar la identidad de dos victimas este ano 2023 que concluyo recientemente planteo el ano mas violento con 171 setenta y un homicidios durante el ano pasado de personajes politicos y en lo que va de este ano, la secretaria de la defensa nacional reporto 15 asesinatos de candidatos y mas de 2.900 militares protegen aspirantes que han solicitado seguridad, incluidos los tres candidatos presidenciales tenemos chiapas, 57 aspirantes pidieron proteccion y otros, como emanuel cordoba, candidato a regidor en la concordia, opto por hacer campana sin salir a la calle. >> solo sus fotos recorren las avenidas para evitar ser blanco de la inseguridad como su contrincante lucero lopez. >> de junio la eleccion mas grande de mexico, mas preocupados por la violencia electoral que por un posible fraude. >> joana. >> gracias, valeria, por estar informe. >> y seguimos hablando de mexico

se levantó, llevaba una pistola y la accionó en la cabeza de quien quería ser alcalde de coyuca de benítezlista de aspirantes a cargos públicos asesinados durante este periodo. justicia 23, indicó el gobierno federal. esto es, el número oficial de candidatas. pero la consultoría integral ya confirmó que logró registrar al menos 35 homicidios de este tipo. sin duda, este proceso electoral es el más violento que ha experimentado méxico en su historia moderna. jair mendoza indicó que el crimen organizado es el principal generador de esta violencia. busca tener, eh, en primer lugar, control del territorio. ganar un municipio con tu candidato o que no lo gane el candidato que más problemas te representa te permite afianzar tu organización criminal en el municipio. por ello, los ataques no solo fueron a las víctimas mortales. diversas organizaciones han hecho un conteo de más de 700 agresiones en contra de personas relacionadas con este proceso electoral, incluidos todos los partidos políticos. y estas acciones, dice este postulante al senado, han logrado en muchas comunidades su objetivo. eso d

francisco benítez cuenta que su padre ha sido para él una inspiración desde que era apenas un niño. más necesitan. iris delgado, telemundo. vamos a la pausa. hoy a las 05:30, pilar niño nos dirá dónde y cuándo se realizará un foro de inmigración para que usted aclare todas sus dudas y se vence el lapso para que usted reclame reembolsos que el irs no le ha pagado los detalles tras la pausa. así que quédese con nosotros porque regresamos después de esta pausa noticiero telemundo 48. muchas gracias por mantenerse frente al televisor. tenemos mucha más información porque este de

mataron a alfredo cabrera barrientos, candidato de la alianza pri, pan, prd, a la alcaldÍa de coyuca de benÍtezdetrÁs del candidato en medio de sus escoltas y le disparÓ en la cabeza en dos ocasiones. la fiscalÍa confirmÓ que los agentes abatieron a tiros al agresor a unos pasos de donde cayÓ el candidato y que dos sospechosos fueron arrestados. la muerte del tambiÉn empresario de la construcciÓn, muy querido en la zona, de inmediato generÓ reacciones. lo asesinaron de manera vil, cobarde en un evento polÍtico. >> eso definitivamente pone en riesgo este proceso electoral. pone en riesgo la participaciÓn libre de la gente, lo que de hecho en redes sociales algunos inclusive compararon el crimen con el asesinato en 1994 en lomas taurinas de luis donaldo colosio, el candidato del pri a la presidencia de mÉxico. >> pero este no fue el Único hecho violento de ayer. durante el Último dÍa de las campaÑas electorales en este paÍs, en oaxaca tambiÉn hubo disparos durante el cierre de campaÑa de rosalinda lÓpez, candidata a la presidencia municipal de matÍas romero, una persona resultÓ lesionada. >> acab

our gio benitez at laguardia. >> reporter: here in the new york area, we're seeing hundreds of cancellations and delays after those ground stops. and of course these are major airports, so we will see ripple effects across the country. >> reporter: the system now hitting the east, the same one that left a trail of destruction across multiple states. 72 tornados reported since friday. and tonight we're seeing firsthand what it was like inside a gas station, as it was hit by an ef-2 tornado north of dallas saturday night. storm chaser taking shelter with families in the dark. seconds after they get inside, face to face with a 135-mile-an-hour twister. miraculously, no one here was seriously hurt. >> oh, my god. >> reporter: you can see the sheer force of this tornado right behind me, the metal coming completely down from the gas station, cars flipped over and landing on top of each other. you can see ricky her rod in that video in the orange hat. he said he laid on top of his wife to protect her. >> it got so intense that i could feel every particle of dirt, sand, fiber glass, glass, hitting m

despuÉs todo fue gritos y caos en coyuca de benÍtez guerrero, un municipio donde autoridades han alertadoriodista, asistiÓ al mitin para hacer la cobertura y narrÓ a noticias telemundo que el candidato se encontraba con su esposa e hija al momento del ataque. >> su hija llorando por su papÁ, que porque le habÍan matado su papÁ, que Él era bueno. >> la fiscalÍa de guerrero dijo que ya investiga este homicidio. disparos, disparos, disparos. tambiÉn al sur de mÉxico, en oaxaca, sujetos armados atacaron durante el cierre de campaÑa de la candidata rosalinda lÓpez de morena en el municipio de matÍas romero. >> acaban de tirar balas con arma de fuego y lo que mÁs me duele y mÁs me molesta es que atenten con la vida de los demÁs . y se pasÓ. >> y en cotija, michoacÁn, el horror tambiÉn se apoderÓ de los asistentes durante el cierre de campaÑa de estrella mendoza, candidata de morena en ese municipio. >> me pudo mucho ver a los niÑos llorar a los adultos mayores en el suelo, a los padres de familia buscando a sus hijos. >> segÚn cifras oficiales, con alfredo cabrera, ya son 23 candidatos asesinad

en una noticia de Última hora, un candidato a la presidencia municipal de coyuca de benÍtez, esto es,to de la coaliciÓn del pan, pri y prd, alfredo cabrera, caminaba rodeado de sus simpatizantes hasta que alguien con una pistola le disparÓ en la cabeza. por detrÁs. despuÉs se desatÓ el caos. se desatÓ, por supuesto, la conmociÓn entre el pÚblico es uno de tantos asesinados en estas campaÑas electorales que ponen definitivamente el riesgo, el proceso democrÁtico en mÉxico. vamos a regresar a la otra noticia del dÍa, el inicio de las deliberaciones del jurado en el juicio contra el expresidente donald trump en nueva york, que, como nos cuenta carla amezola, concluyÓ su primera jornada pidiendo mÁs pruebas todavÍa sin un veredicto. >> hoy los ojos de la naciÓn estÁn sobre la corte criminal en manhattan, donde el futuro personal y polÍtico de donald trump estÁ por definirse, porque en cualquier momento el jurado determinarÁ si es culpable o inocente. de 34 cargos que enfrenta el juez juan merchant les dio instrucciones dentro de la sala, recargado sobre su silla, con ojos casi cerrados y

at the gladd media awards, the show was hosted by gma weekends anchor gio benitez and abc seven news looked at the lives of transgender children and their parents. congratulations. well, the new movie kingdom of the planet of the apes is now playing in theaters everywhere, and on the red carpet is taking you inside the kingdom tomorrow night on abc seven, you'll see all of the surprises at the world premiere in hollywood and hear from the cast and crew who brought this thrilling new adventure to life. plus find out the secrets behind the film's stunning visual effects and even learn how to walk like an ape. oh, that's kind of neat. don't miss on the red carpet presents kingdom of the planet of the apes tomorrow night at 10.30, right here on abc seven as well. abc talk show host tamron hall gave a commencement speech today for the class of 2024. the award winning journalist addressed students at north carolina a and t state university in greensboro. more than 1500 graduates from the largest historically black university in the nation were there to walk the stage, and during the speech

our transportation correspondent gio benitez is at la guardia airport.ot of people trying to get home right now. >> gio: that's right, michael. people who were on cancelled flights yesterday are trying to get on new flights today. we are seeing a lot of that happen here at la guardia. this is where we had the most cancellations in the country. of course here in the northeast, we're talking about huge airports. there was a ripple effect that was felt all across america. overnight long lines and frustrated passengers as memorial day weekend travel shatters records. >> i may have to live out of my carry-on. i have an extra pair of socks in my carry-on. >> i'm adjusting. trying to find other ways to be productive. it's not much of a holiday. that's safe to say. >> gio: more than 5,000 flight delays and 430 cancellations. storms across the east coast causing a ripple effect across the country, derailing plans for thousands of passengers like bradley waite, whose travel time more than tripled because of a weather related delay. >> the four-hour trip ended up b

. >> whit: before we let you go it's been one year since gio benitez joined our weekend team. >> janaiio. >> janai: now we're talkin'! >> whit: we got to play that reaction from earlier this morning. >> janai: pass the plate. >> gio: oh. >> janai: how shocked you were. >> gio: i was shocked. i had no idea. you really surprised me. y'all are family. y'all are family, and every single day you prove that and she's keeping the -- >> janai: i'm trying. >> whit: pass the cupcakes. she's hoarding the cupcakes. good grief. >> janai: you didn't join our team. you made our team. >> gio: ah. >> whit: exactly. we love you right back, g-money. >> gio: love you guys. good morning to you. i'm zach fuentes in the north bay, a massive bird fighting bus that started as a different case. it began with rohnert park police investigating a burglary at a storage facility. they searched the suspect's home last month on stony point road. this is what they found. 1000 birds that police say were raised for fighting, plus knives and several other malnourished animals. investigators also found the stolen property

transportation correspondent gio benitez joins us with details.d morning, gio. >> gio: michael, good morning. it was a scene straight out of a movie. the passengers getting out of the plane through the emergency exits. this morning delta is looking at the ground power as the problem here. this morning dramatic video showing passengers evacuating a delta flight in seattle. flames and sparks coming from the plane's nose after landing from cancun. the chutes deployed, passengers going down those emergency slides. others climbing on to the wings to it go. all of them running from the plane once they were on the ramp. >> once i got out of the plane, you could see the fire burning. right under the cockpit. >> gio: seattle tacoma airport telling abc news, after plugging into electric power, sparks caused apparent fire inside nose area. no major injuries were reported. meanwhile, we've learned at orlando's airport monday, air traffic control cleared a frontier jet to cross where an american jet had already been cleared for takeoff. now the faa is investig

transportation correspondent gio benitez has the latest on that. good morning. >> gio: yeah, we're talking about these baggage fees. dot is mandating that airlines disclose those at the time booking. now the airlines are suing. alaska, hawaiian, jet blue, aou united, all of them saying that travellers already know about the fees. airlines for america the lobbying group for the major u.s. airlines, saying this. airlines go to great lengths to make their customers knowledgeable about these fees. this will greatly confuse consumers who will be unnone dated with information. it will only serve to complicate the buying process. but the dot is already firing back in a statement to abc news saying, we will vigorously defend our role, protecting people from hidden junk fees and ensuring travellers can see the full price of a flight before they purchase a ticket. right now this is set to begin on july 1st unless this lawsuit changes things, robin. >> robin: all right, gio. now the tiny mighty baby girl. she defied the odds. janai norman has that story. good

one for outstanding tv journalism, long form at the gladd media awards, and accepting anchor gio benitezseven's own executive producer ken miguel. yay this special looked at the lives of transgender children and their parents, and i know they are currently working on another our america because someone i know is in it. so super excited about seeing where this goes from here. >> yeah, watching that piece. >> so and also it's called our america who i'm meant to be. sorry about that. >> yes. yeah >> it's an incredible piece. very powerful. you feel so connected to the kids that they interviewed and they talk to. it's such a raw representation that really. >> yeah, it's a great program. and i'm glad that that our company continues to do this over the past couple of years. yeah. and we continue to win. yeah >> it's so happy to the whole team. yeah. yeah a huge shout out to ken though i know how hard he's worked on that. just he's such a hard worker. >> way to go. way to go guys. amazing this morning we'll take you to santa cruz live. look at the coast where just a few moments ago we had a few

and our amazing gio benitez has rapelled down the empire state building. a first ever live event.ike that. >> gio: it was an incredible program here called outward bound. the whole reason for this is that it's a big fund-raiser for this program because they help young people step out of their comfort zones and explore the great outdoors. what a way to do it here. what a way for my first rapel. the empire state building. the hardest part, the hardest part, pausing for commercial break, guys. [ laughter ] >> robin: sorry about that. >> rebecca: that was a surprise to me, gio. it's been epic to see you doing it especially for such an important cause. do you know what else is epic? our biggest breakfast in bed event ever. one of the moms we are celebrating was instrumental in planning gio's empire state task. our very own operations manager maria stepped up. yay, maria. she didn't do the plunge like gio. we're celebrating them. great work maria. more moms and more fun is coming up for the 25th -- we've been doing this for 25 years. breakfast in bed. >> george: first with catastrophic

transportation correspondent gio benitez joins us with more.d morning, gio. >> gio: michael, good morning. truly tragic incident. we're talking about something called clear air turbulence. that's what it appears to be. that's when the weather is nice and smooth, people feel safe to stand up. they take off their seat belts. but then instantly, with little notice, we've got mayhem. this morning the ntsb heading to southeast asia to investigate that deadly turbulence incident on a flight from london to singapore that killed one passenger and sent at least 104 others to medical centers. the images are dramatic. passengers being taken off on stretchers treated on the tarmac. inside the plane, oxygen masks dangling, dented overhead bins, blood on the back of a seat. passengers seen with cuts and bruises, bottles and food all over the floor. >> it was really, really quick, which is why i think nobody could really respond to it. the plane started shaking. it kept getting worse and worse and worse. i saw people from across the aisle just like going comp

our transportation correspondent gio benitez is here tracking it all for us.d morning, gio. >> gio: good morning. it's been a rough couple of days for so many travellers. all of it has a ripple effect for days across the country as passengers try to get on new flights. just take a look at what happened in dallas. this morning incredible video showing the power of the wind at dallas ft. worth international airport. american airlines saying several planes were impacted by gusts up to 77 miles per hour. surveillance video showing one plane pushed away from a gate by those wind gusts. listen to the drama unfolding at air traffic control as the faa evacuated two towers. >> we can't see anybody. we lost our ground radar. we are getting out of the tower. sound likes a freight train up here. >> gio: american airlines says the planes were not occupied and nobody was injured. the weather forcing travellers to stay put right after the record breaking memorial day holiday. more than 1,100 flights cancelled across the country, more than 7,300 delayed. >> i may have to live

our transportation correspondent gio benitez is at newark airport to tell us all about it.morning, gio. >> gio: robin, good morning. we're getting our first look at memorial day travel. it's looking busier than last year. let's look at the numbers as millions set off for those summer plans. aaa is expecting 43.8 million travellers. that's more than last year. close to 2005's record of 44 million. when you split it up for air travellers, aaa expects 30 million people will hit the skies. that's the most crowded since 2005. united and american telling us they're expecting packed planes between may 23rd and 28th. let's go over to the roads now. aaa believes drivers will set a record with 38.4 million people traveling by car. that's the highest number since aaa began tracking in 2000. 4% more than last year, almost 2% more than 2019. gas prices, they are going to be similar to last year. the national average right now $3.62 a gallon. okay. so the top domestic destinations this year, orlando, seattle and right here in the new york area, guys. >> michael: all right, gio. thank you

our transportation correspondent gio benitez is here with a great story, a long time in the making. >o: good morning. you know very well what he must have been feeling launching into space. this morning right here, we are hearing from ed dwight and at 90 years young, he is finally the astronaut he was always meant to be. >> liftoff! >> gio: this morning an out of this world accomplishment for former air force captain ed dwight. at 90 years old, dwight is now the oldest person to reach the edge of space. >> when you see something on this earth and you really pay attention to it, it's mind boggling. >> gio: first nominated by jfk in 1961, dwight would have been the first black astronaut. but after jfk's assassination, dwight was not selected by nasa. >> number one, i wasn't tall enough. i was catholic. i wasn't black enough. i was not the model of the negro race. >> gio: 63 years later the celebrated sculptor finally getting his chance, joining five others for that 11 minute odyssey into weightlessness. or blue origin. >> welcome to space, astronauts! >> lot of people outside of me that

transportation correspondent gio benitez has more for us from newark airport. good morning, gio. >> gio: good morning. yeah, this goes back to that tragic max crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. you remember those scenes. they were horrific. department of justice originally allowed boeing a sort of get out of jail free card under the condition that it would follow certain rules. boeing agreed to those rules. then that door plug fell off the alaska max 9 in january. the doj now says that boeing has breached its obligations by failing to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the u.s. throughout its operation. boeing has responded overnight telling abc news, we believe we have honored the terms of that agreement and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the department on this issue. the question now though, what does a potential punishment even look like for boeing? nobody seems to know just yet. boeing has until mid june to reply, robin? >> robin: we will see what that reply will be.

our transportation correspondent gio benitez is track this for us.ood morning, gio. >> gio: hey, robin, good morning. just a terrible incident here. we've often talked about the dangers of air turbulence. look at the flight path. this was a singapore airlines flight from london to singapore. we're told just about an hour and a half before landing, the boeing 777 hit severe turbulence, again, killing at least one person, injured many others. there were 221 passengers on board, 18 crew members. singapore airlines saying in a statement it offers its deepest condolences to the families of the deceased. our priority is to provide assistance to all passengers and crew on the aircraft. we are working with local authorities in thailand to provide the necessary medical assistance. we still don't know exactly what happened here. with so many people traveling this week for the holiday, we've got to remember that even in clear weather, turbulence can hit so keep that seat belt on even if you think it's going to be a smooth ride, george. >> george: thank you very