faa is very political. so they're not going to have the restrictions they need to have for that air stays. >> gregg: it is political, it's wrong to have politics trump human life. >> it happens all the time. >> maybe the faa under the federal tortd claims act should be sued for wrongful death instances and other instances. we'll debate that coming up. >> we're still waiting for the n.t.s.b. for the deadly collision the moment it begins we'll be bringing it to you. >> julie: i'll be speaking with a licensed pilot. he has flown the area. many many times and he tells us the new york air traffic control is far too busy to monitor the small aircraft in the area. everyone that flies in the area is expected to maintain an altitude apparently below a thousand feet and stay clear of the clouds and look out for other air traffic. that is part of the visual flight rules he says. so it's interesting and address your points about your mandatory rules that should be mandatory in larger aircraft. >> absolutely. what did d

the faa calls the conduct of the

the faa is not responding. even more revealing is that the faa convened the rule-making committee that was going to look top-to-bottom of this segment of the air industry. they issued over 120 recommendations some years ago and not one of them has been implemented yet. the faa has been dragging its feet on oversight of this segment of the industry. >> jamie: so in 2005, and possibly before before, the nts issues 16 recommendations to be followed by the faa and you're saying it went a step further, the faa had its own committee that issued over 100. and really, they've been left, what i find fascinating with the on-demand companies, they can have pilots with as little as 500 hours in the cockpit. commercial airlines have to have, i believe i'm correct can, minimum of 1,500. so less experience pilots, more take-off and landing. it sounds like a recipe for danger. would you recommend that people take the flights? does the public need to stand up and say we won't do it until it changes? >> i think you need to be ve

the faa is saying it didn't. says the two employees are now on add minute stralti -- administrative leave. the investigation is not over. the two could be fired. >> the air traffic controllers association supports the association that no one rushes to judgment. the faa says it has no direct impact on what happened that day. at the least, it appears to be bad behave your on the part of employees who should know better. >> also, this was a situation that happened. it calls in to question -- the job of these people to make sure we are all safe in the skies. it's scary to think about. someone may not take that so seriously. >> exactly. the ntsb, the faa, they'll both take a close look at this. >> the pictures are astounding as well. they were obtained from the home video. susan candiotti for us, thanks. >>> president obama lands in montana in a few hours and we're expecting hundreds of protesters to be there waiting for hip. lawmakers are saying more hot tempers and pointed questions in town hall after town hall. and

there are two events that are still under investigation by the faa -- by the ntsb. into the hudson river. it was considered a part 91 sightseeing flight. there was one pilot and seven passengers aboard and there were no injuries. there was an in-flight separation of a rotor blade and it's being examined in our materials lab. we expect that report to be completed within the next 60 days. the second accident that remains in an open status where we have not yet determined probable cause occurred in september of 2008. it was a nonfatal accident that was a landing accident. it was an instructional flight operated under part 91, and we are again conducting a met lurgecle exam of a part from that aircraft. we expect the report to be completed within the next 60 days. >> so there you hear the ntsb spokesperson talking now about the case that is essentially where they have not come to a final conclusion, and this, of course, gives you some context in the idea that it does take a long time sometimes for them to figure out exactly what causes this kind of accident, especially

but the faa and ntsb both say the comptrollers' actions are very disturbing. the ntsb tells nbc news, the comptroller handling air traffic saturday morning made a nonbusiness related phone call after clearing the pilot of the small plane for departure. the ntsb says the teterboro comptroller told the pilot to contact newark but failed to advise of air traffic. a newark comptroller did see the traffic but had not heard from the plane yesterday. newark asked teterboro's comptroller to steer the plane away. trying to radio twice but got no response. the pilot never contacted newark. and never responded. this horrific crash caught on home video. in a statement, the faa said -- but today the new ntsb chief had a sharp response. >> it is too early to speculate whether or not atc was cause sal in this accident and inappropriate for others to do so. >> the faa? >> yes. >> veteran air traffic comptrollers insist multitasking is part of the job. >> air traffic comptrollers can never have a bad day, a bad day could result in the loss of hundreds of lives. >> reporter: wh

these are serious violations of the faa regulations. obviously, they're not supposed to be on the phone. from the context, it was nonfaa business. it's very serious. if this came at the time when they were handing off flights to newark, air traffic controllers do have obligation to tell the pilot of any flight that they can reach if the aircraft had strayed from the assigned altitude. so it could be related. but, of course, it's always the pilot's do you think dwroi st pilot's duty to stay at the assigned altitude. >> so this was an inappropriate telephone conversation, it could just be the fact that this person was on the phone, nonbusiness related item? is that what we're saying? >> yes. that's what it sounds like. there are rare occasions when air traffic controllers do have to resort to picking up the telephone if they can't reach the people that they need to get ahold of. but not at teterboro and not new oracle. it sounds like they were engaged in a private conversation. that supervisor is supposed to be present. we worked a number

the faa is already saying, well, maybe it didn't, but the faa stands to lose millions and millions ofrs, the taxpayers do, if the faa is wrong. >> the employee on leave is a long-time employee. >>> they're attacking a raging wildfire in northern california. the lockheed fire is burning in the santa cruz mountains. it's getting close to some homes. more than 2,000 people have evacuated. they say this fire is different than the ones they faced in the past. zsz there >> there is a lot of concern because we can see the flames on this one. that's pretty close, versus the last fire was just a lot of smoke coming over the sierra madres. >> here's the tough thing about fighting this fire, no roads are near it, so firefighters are having to hike in to get close to the flames. they're hoping to get more support from the firefighting helicopters and airplanes today. >>> michael vick is back in the nfl. he has a new team. here's rafer with who stepped forward. >> robin, it's a big surprise. we knew he was probably going to be signed, but nobody expected the philadelphia eagles to be that team. th

the faa says the actual employee's actions did not appear to contribute to the accident itself. still their attention to the job at hand is what is at stake. two air traffic employees have been suspended in connection with last week's deadly crash over new york's hudson river. >> i saw the last of it, and i saw something explode and then something fall after that. so i would hurry. >> reporter: nine people died saturday when a small plane collided with a tour helicopter. the faa now says the air traffic controller handling the plane was having "inappropriate conversations on the phone" at the time of the accident. he has been placed on administrative leave with pay. also suspend, a supervisor who was required to be in the building but had left np 'a statement, the faa said, "while we have no reason to believe at this time that these actions contributed to the accident, this kind of conduct is unacceptable." the faa has already begun disciplinary proceedings against the individuals, but the national air traffic controllers association says the agency should conduct a full investi

the faa is already saying, well, maybe it didn't, but the faa stands to lose millions and millions of dollars, the taxpayers do, if the faa is wrong. >> a source also tell it's us the controller who was put on leave is a long-time employee. he and his supervisor could face disciplinary actions including being fired. >>> and the first casualty of the 1991 gulf war is finally laid to rest. navy pilot michael scott speicher was buried this morning 18 years after he was shot down over iraq. here is the procession. his remains were found just last month buried in central iraq. thousands of people lined jacksonville streets to pay tribute as speicher's funeral procession passed as you see there. >>> and friends and family are remembering eunice kennedy shriver at a private funeral in hyannis, massachusetts, today. her daughter, maria shriver, and son-in-law, governor arnold schwarzenegger were two of the family members carrying the casket into the church. vips oprah winfrey, jon bon j i bon jovi, vice president joe biden among the guests there. edward kennedy is not there. remember, he's fi

that in the end will be up to the faa. they're the ones that set these rules as to where you can fly. these are very heavily used corridors. helicopters are very important to the city and used all the time. tourists seem to love it. and for commerce. they've just been an accident, total tragedy or maybe in fact if we had different procedures you could have prevented it. we've not had very many accidents in the area. the last one that was most noticeable was -- notable was the plane put down in the hudson river where everybody survived. in this case we don't think it was survivable from virtually the instant the crash took place and it's very tragic. >> be sure to watch "meet the press" when it is rebroadcast today at 2:00 p.m. eastern right here on msnbc. >>> joining me right now, aviation security consultant george novak formerly of the faa. good morning, george. set the scene here. how did this happen? >> well, right now it's a little early to be -- we have some basic facts. we understand the two aircraft collided. they

the faa is already saying, well, maybe it doesn't, but the faa stands to lose millions and millions of dollars if the taxpayers do if the faa is wrong. >> reporter: the two employees are now on administrative leave. the investigation's not over. ultimately, the two could be fired. the national air traffic controllers association supports the investigation, but adds that no one should rush to judgment about what, at the very least, could be described as bad behavior. susan candiotti, cnn, new york. >>> many historically black colleges and universities are hit pretty hard in this tough economy. as enrollment decreases, schools, students are struggling to make ends meet. here's sharon endo from cnn. >> reporter: sophomores found a perfect fit at spelman college but when the tough economy hit her and her family hard, she packed her bags ready to drop out. >> i wasn't able to get loans. neither were my parents. >> reporter: it's a familiar story at colleges across the country, but especially at historically black colleges and universities wherein some cases up to 95% of students rely on fin

faa administrator is to make certain that safety is paramoun -- my goal as faa administrator is to makeertain that safety is paramount in everything we say in everything we do. if you think the bar is said to hide, then your standards are set too low. it is time for us to stand up, and without all of us in this room standing up, we will not reach the next level of safety. with that, i thank you, and i applaud you for the wonderful opportunity to come and visit with you today. thank you. [applause] >> well, the captain has graciously asked to spend a few minutes with us, if there were any questions. i told him at the end of the week that we might have questions and we might also have statements and actions ready to go. at this time, if there is a pressing question, let us take the opportunity. if you stand, you will have to come up here. i don't know if we have a microphone are not. it looks like we have one here. over here? >> i'm capt. out of chicago for united. just about the fatigue, i understand we are looking into the-based, which is probably quite the improvement. the ata alpa som

>> that is up to the faa to determine. it may would be one of those things that no amount of restriction could have prevented. that is something that people don't want either. we have commercial interests that transportation can come and go. we have number of airports, there is causewell, newark. on the other side of the river you've got la guardia and kennedy and further out republic and westchester. it's a busy area as any big city would be. there is traffic coming in and all all the time. for commercial aircraft there is a lot of positive control. i will say my experience with the faa controllers in this area they are the most professional i've ever had the privilege of working with. they handle an enormous amount of traffic. there are areas that are not positive controlled. this could have happened over a cornfield or over the east river i think it's like any place traffic that is not positively controlled. it's not that anybody did anything right or wrong but the only definitive answers to your questions when come fro

stick with us if you would because we're getting word from the faa in dc.olly henneberg in our washington bureau is following that for us. like a martyr you hearing to give. >> the faa is pointing us hear toward officials on the ground there. what would be happening in dc right now is the national transportation safety board and faa officials are here below some points in the team if the team hasn't left already been to have. to head up there to new york two start putting together the actual investigation of this incident. we are getting some details from an faa official. we believe in new york. jim peters. he said the plane took off from teeterboro new jersey, have been in a southerly direction en route to ocean city new jersey. the newark radio tower apparently lost radar contact with the plane. there were three people onboard the plane we are seeing some reports -- were trying to confirm ourselves -- we are seeing some reports the black box they have been recovered from the plane. as far as the helicopter, helicopters don't have to keep in contact with t

. >>> well, two faa employees are suspended after a weekend mid- air collision over the hudson. what investigators say at least one air traffic controller was doing at the time of the deadly crash. >>> and once kids get back to school, it will be picture time. but tonight a warning about those school snapshots so you don't waste your money. >>> the latest now on fire conditions in northern california. you are looking at just one of three fires burning in the state. this one has burned about 4,000 acres of land, and forced several thousand people out of their homes. additional firefighters, more helicopters, and fixed wing airplanes are being brought in to try to get this one under control. >>> lynnette squeaky frome is a free woman. she was convicted of pointing a gun at president gerald ford. she was released from a medical center in texas this morning. a follower of manson, she was just 26 years old when he pulled the weapon on the former president. she was sentenced to life in prison with a chance of parole. >>> funerals were held today for some of the victims of last weekend

the faa should have that. if you recall during the usairways after the plane landed in the hudson there were a number of video surveillance cameras along the river that actually captured the plane landing in the water. they will be going around. detectives from nypd and detectives from new jersey state police and the ntsb will be looking on both sides from the new jersey side as well as the new york side, for any surveillance cameras that may have captured images of this crash in midair. and then from there, determine exactly where the helicopter went down, where the plane went down, and, determine where their search will continue from there. right now, they are conducting a grid search. a lot of things have to be taken into consideration. the hudson river flows fairly rapidly. and it depends on what time the high tide, low tide, how fast the river goes. so you are probably, there are probably going to be centering their recovery efforts now a little bit down the river from where they believe the helicopter an

a plane with the faa is saying three people on board. those two collided. eyewitnesses who happen to be walking in the area in buildings nearby on a beautiful day in lower manhattan saw it happen. they describe that the wing on the aircraft was simply sheered off. a rotor may have come off the helicopter. and the two quickly descended into the water. search-and-rescue mission got under way within minutes. people were able to see that boats and helicopters, rescue helicopters got into the vicinity where this collision took place. new york police department descended divers from a helicopter into the water. they have been searching for any survivors. in all now nine people at least involved in this midair collision. we understand from the u.s. coast guard one person was rescued. again don't know the condition of the person. but an intensive search-and-rescue mission is under way. we understand the aircraft which has been described as a piper pa-32 possibly took off from teeterboro airport may be registered to a company out of philadelphia. that plane had take

>> well, we know that the faa put these exclusions zones together in the early '70s.y air space around new york city and new jersey. there's three large commercial airports, we've got teterboro with a lot of business jets and there are a number of other smaller airports in the area. it's very complex space. these exclusion zones were set up to allow vfr operations outside that class b air space. class b air space, you can't enter that without being under the direct control of atc. >> you're going to have to make a recommendation when you complete your investigation. is it possible you might say let's take another look at these rules that have been part of the game in new york for 70 years? >> well, the rules have been in place since the 1970s and we did actually take another look, you probably remember our investigation of the corey lyttle action that took place in manhattan and we looked at the east river exclusion zone after that october 2006 accident. the safety board made a recommendation to prohibit fixed wing aircraft that were nonamphibious from operating in th

he says the faa can prevent this sort of tragedy. >> they can make the helicopters operate at a lower altitude than the fix-wing aircraft coming through the area. and if you are at different altitudes you are never going have an accident like this. >> reporter: just last month the department of transportation released a report to the faa about the safety of the on-demand flight industry which includes small planes and helicopters like the ones used by liberty tours. it found in 2007 and 2008 commercial air carriers had zero passenger deaths. in contrast, during that same period, there were 33 fatal on-demand accidents resulting in 109 deaths. incidents involving on-demand aircraft have happened in new york before. in 2006 yankee pitcher cory lidle and his flight instructor crashed into ayman mann high-rise and in 2005 another liberty tours helicopter splashed into the east river. all 7 aboard survived. >> while you saw the bulk of the helicopter wreckage being pulled out earlier today, researchers are still using sonar to try and find the bulk of the aircraft still in the water. and o

the faa is cracking down, suspending two employees. what they should have been doing in the moments before the deadly crash. we're live in new york next. >>> and then, a local firefighter arrested for soliciting sex from a minor. he faces charges and his wife is doing the talking tonight. gary? >>> and talking about the weekend. looks like the weekend forecast may cooperate. we'll touch on this and the first forecast in just a bit. stay with us. c >> new fallout in the tragedy on the hudson. tonight, two employees are suspended and you won't believe what they're accused of doing and the moment right before the crash. fox's -- [ indiscernible ] is live in new york with the latest. giovanna? >> reporter: good evening, maureen. well, brand-new details have, merged about what happened moments before saturday's crash of a small plane and chopper over the hudson. according to ntsb investigators the u.s. department of transportation is pledging to take action on air safety. just asvo surfaces of saturday's small plane and cho

right in then faa would be joining in this conversation? >> it is up to the pilot to switch to the frequency to enter the airspace. if he was climbing to 1,100 feet or above into that airspace, he would be up on frequency with the appropriate authority. >> but speaking as a pilot, if you are climbing and you're at that altitude making a turn while climbing, presumably you're trying to get out of that space. right? you're making a shift change, a directional change. how difficult as a pilot is it to see what's going on around you while climbing? are you focused looking up? do you look to the side? >> well, before that you know you're going to turn. you want to stay in front of the aircraft. you want to make sure that you're aware of it. of your situational awareness prior to doing such acts of turning, clearing turns, making sure that there is no traffic coming down river. >> but this is all done just visually. you're not getting direction from anybody in theory. no one is required, let's say, to give you this kind of direction. >> no. but h

the faa's already saying, well, maybe it didn't, but the faa stands to lose millions and millions of: the faa says the two employees are now on administrative leave. the investigation's not over. ultimately the two could be fired. the national air traffic controllers association supports the investigation, but adds no one should rush to judgment about what at the very least could be described as bad behavior. susan candiotti, cnn, new york. >>> it's an emotional day in jacksonville, florida, as the city honors fallen hero, scott speicher. the navy pilot was killed during the first gulf war in 1991. speicher was one of 382 u.s. service members who died in that war. now we'd like to remember some of the final good-byes of those others that died in action as well. the mother of marine lance corporal daniel byron walker holds a flag in her lap. walker was 20 years old, and the first texan killed in the first gulf war. marine major eugene mccarthy is honored by his fellow marines during his funeral in brooklyn. mccarthy was killed when his chopper crashed. ♪ soldier on if you're taking 8

the controllers will be pay as the faa investigates. in new york, wjz eyewitness news. >>> a funeral for a few of the victims today. three members of the philadelphia family. >>> the sun is shining over baltimore. let's look outside. clouds out there but a calm day so far. we're live with first-warning coverage. marty is in the out back but tim williams is here in the weather center. >> there are some clouds out there. showing you the satellite. what the cloud cover is and we see the sun peeking through. clouds are not overly heavy. we've seen rain but most offshore. we're seeing temperatures creeping up to around 80 degrees area-wide. 77 in cumberland and elkton. these dog days of summer are heating up. temperatures all around region around 80 degrees. that makes for a good night. more with marty. >> reporter: hi. thank you, tim. good afternoon, everybody. let's talk about what you might be doing tonight which would be the baltimore orioles and the an an and angels. could be some thunderstorms, game time temperature is going to be most

the faa's already saying maybe it didn't, but the faa stands to lose millions and millions of dollars, the taxpayers do if the faa's wrong. >> the two employees are now on administrative leave. the investigation's not over, ultimately the two could be fired. >> and susan candiotti live from new york. what's been the reaction from air traffic controllers that association? >> well, there is an association that represents them and they're saying they support this investigation and they're asking the public just don't rush to judgment too soon until this administrative hearing is over. >> what about any possible changes for how pilots were regulated in that air space over the hudson. >> well, i've learned that only yesterday the head of the faa said at its research facility in atlantic city that they may soon be reissuing advisories to pilots who fly over that hudson river air base. the current advisories call for pilots to use a radio frequency that is assigned to that area, fly at speeds under 140 nauts and turn on their lights as they take off along that river. again, these have been v

yet the faa insists these controllers are not to blame. we'll take your calls, 1-877-tell-hln is the number. here to talk about it, kim, reporter from the new york daily news, and mary schafo. mary, with the air traffic controllers, one guy on the phone, supervisor nowhere to be found, could they -- anywhich they could be to blame? >> the additional facts that have come out today, there is. we were -- there were supposed to be five in that tower. there were only two there. and of the two, one was acting as the supervisor because the supervisor is out. there is an faa regulation, 2-1-6 that requires the controllers to let aircraft know they're in a conflict situation, meaning they're about to run into each other. now, the teterboro controller says that he tried. of course, he was on the phone with his girlfriend, but he never reached the plane and he never let newark know he did not reach that plane to give the alert. that could be a problem for the faa. >> ken, what do you have on that end? could these air traffic controllers be blamed at

what does the faa say? >> it is extremely dramatic as a headline. he was on the phone at the very same time he was supposed to be talking to the aircraft. we want them focusing on their jobs. on the surface, that is very troubling. this is crucial. did his behavior in any way contribute to the horrific events of that day? more on that in one second. his supervisor has also been put on administrative leave because he was not in the building at the time the incident occurred. we have learned that both of these aircraft were flying at a low ceiling on the hudson river. at this particular altitude, they were engaged in what they call avoid and see rules. the aircraft had be on the lookout for other aircraft. this was not the responsibility of the air-traffic controller. the faa says, while we have no reason to believe that these actions contributed to the accident, this kind of conduct is not acceptable and we have placed the employee is on administrative leave. so, they have no reason to believe that these actions contributed to the tragedy and there i

what the faa in a statement calls "inappropriate conversations." and there is more. the faa says the air traffic comptroller's supervisor was not in the building at the time as required. our source says the air traffic comptroller had already cleared the plane for takeoff from teterboro airport in new jersey before talking with his girlfriend. the ntsb said the plane had been handed off electronically to the next tower down the line in newark and then the plane disappeared from radar. the faa calls the conduct of the comptroller and his boss unacceptable bet says, quote, we have no roone to believe at this time that these actions contributed to the accident. >> we have somebody missing in action, we have somebody else not doing their job, so the negligence is there, the only question is, whether that negligence had a role in this accident. >> reporter: the faa says the two employees are on administrative leave. the investigation is not over, ultimately the two could be fired. while the faa says all this had no direct role on the midair collision, the ntsb says it is

that in the end will be up to the faa, and they are the ones that set these rules as to where you can fly. these are heavily used corridors and helicopter are very important to the city and used all the time. and for commerce and this may have been an accident, total tragedy or maybe in fact if we had different procedures you could have prevented it. >> eric: good morning, everyone i'm eric sean along with jamie colby here in new york. divers recovering a 4th body from the cash site earlier this morning, and this is federal investigators, relying on eyewitness accounts and amateur photographs of the incidents like the one we have been showing you hear in the fox news channel, like this one, so dramatic and sad and to try and piece together exactly what happened and joining us on the telephone is one of the top aviation in the nation, mitch bowmeister, what do you do and where do you start when the mayor of new york says maybe there should be new procedures, how do you determine exactly what went wrong? >> caller: good morning, eric. let me just step back. i have flown this corridor my

the controllers will be paid as the faa investigates. in new york, drew levinson, wjz eyewitness news. >> now, air traffic controllers are expected to be alert at all times while on duty. and typically are given about a 15-minute break roughly every two hours for that reason. >>> a member of charles manson's cult-like group is out of prison tonight. lynette "squeaky" from was resleased today. -- released today. from who was one of charles manson's earliest and most devoted followers said she targeted the president for attention. >>> hundreds gathered to pay their final respects to eunice kennedy shriver. the 88-year-old died tuesday. her daughter maria paid tribute to the woman who founded the special olympics. along with her 19 grandchildren. she was remembered for being a trailblazer and an early feminist, whether she was fighting causes at home or with her family. >>> thousands of answers for the question, what can the state do to save money? political reporter pat warren has a short list. >> governor o'malley launched the plan to get

the faa says the comptroller was involved in an inappropriate phone conversation at the time of the crash. a supervisor was reportedly not in the building as well. nine people were killed, but the faa says employee actions do not appear to have contributed to the crash. >>> the white house is turning to the information super highway to combat the misinformation about the health care campaign today. ads will run in several states, including virginia, where the vote for moderate democrats is crucial. >>> news of may tollway a company is recalling. this is after a boy got a plasticail lodged in his throat. quick is sold on a little tykes web site. keep an eye out for that stuff. >>> we are watching it early at 5:00, we saw the storm's coming out of baltimore, and they got south east of washington. a very small start. they were slow movers. springfield, 72 degrees right the only tw.inhg wein are seeing right now is a tiny shower over southe calvert county. in the district, 75 degrees. the high today was 87 degrees. the averages and records for the state. pretty comfortable today. the humidity

we will that that rule inside of the faa by statute and by process.e will then turn it over to the department of transportation. they have a period of time to look at it. omb look said it and in that point of time that rulemaking will go out for public comment. i would not that i have asked in the interest of accelerating this that both the omb and the department of transportation accelerate their review of this support will. why does this take so long? people's said, it seems like an exceptionally long time. i think this audience appreciates just how complex this particular rule is that rulemaking in general is delivers it and it is delivered to buy its vary design. the last thing we wanted some sort of a knee-jerk rule that does not answer the question at hand and i can tell you that this committee is giving all of the issues here a very good look. just as an example let me give you a question. what person do you think is concerned more with tea, the pilot who was flying from detroit at night with a backup crew and funds for rest or the private to i

while the faa says there is no reason to believe that contributed to the crash, both have been put on administrative leave as the investigation continues. kristen dahlgren, nbc news. >>> now here's a look at some other stories making news "early today" in america. >>> a new york woman says dash cam video from january supports her claim that police used unnecessary force. she was hit with a taser twice after arguing with an officer who stopped her for speeding and talking on a cell phone. although he claims she was refusing his commands, charges of resisting arrest were later dropped. >>> the federal building in los angeles was closed for hours yesterday after its parking lot became the scene of an hour-long standoff. police fired four rounds of chemical agents into the vehicle of a man who allegedly made threatening statements about the white house. eventually they shattered the suspect's window, used a taser on him, and draggeded him out of the blast. >>> a big blast on the campus of louisiana tech university as a water tower came crashing down. officials say it was too expensive to

but the faa stands to lose millions and millions of dollars, the taxpayers do, if the faa's wrong. >>w on administrative leave. the investigation's not over. ultimately, the two could be fired. >> that was cnn's susan candiotti. >>> the bomber of pan a.m. flight 103 over lockerbie, scotland, a making another apparent move to get out of prison. he's dropping the appeal on his conviction on the terrorist bombing. it may be part of the deal he is seeking with scottish authorities to be released on compassionate grounds. reason being the 57-year-old libyan man is suffering from terminal prostate cancer. 270 people, as you recall, were killed in the 1988 lockerbie bombing, most of them americans. families of the victims are divided over whether he should ever be released. >>> americans are passionately debating the future of health care in this country. i am going to take on the issues with former surgeon general, dr. david satcher, right here in the "cnn newsroom." mr. evans? this is janice from onstar. i have received an automatic signal you've been in a front-end crash. do you need help

the faa will be poring over frame looking for clues as to what went wrong.ur john berman has been following the story closely. he joins us along the hudson river with the latest. good morning, john. >> reporter: good morning, robin. well, you can see the wreckage of the helicopter here underneath the blue tarp behind me. faa investigators say they discovered the conversations when listening to recordings from a nearby air traffic control tower. when they found them the controller and the supervisor were suspended immediately. the air traffic controller at teterboro airport was engaged in what the faa calls an inappropriate conversation at the time of the crash. media reports say he was on the phone with his girlfriend. he had cleared the single engine piper for takeoff before making the call and was still on the phone when he handed off control to nearby newark airport which monitors low-flying traffic on the hudson. he was still on the phone when the accident occurred. investigators also discovered that the supervisor was not in the building at the time of

. >> the faa? >> joining me live from denver is former national transportation safety board investigator. good morning to you. >> good morning, alex. >> so, greg, the atc controllers have been suspended. from what you know, do you think these suspensionins are justifi? >> i think under the circumstances right now, they are still developing the facts. so putting them on administrative leave is an appropriate action until they can ferret out what involvement both the controller and his supervisor would have had in this accident. so i think under the circumstances, letting them have time off until they get the facts squared away, yeah, i believe it is justified. >> it's a tug of war that seems to be going on. ntsb suggesting the personal phone call complicated the attempts to warn the plane's pilot of the tourist helicopter in the area. no evidence that the controller's actions contributed to this whole collision. is it a behind-the-scenes tug of war? >> it always is, alex. any time you have an accide

. >> the crash will be investigated by the faa and the ntsb. we do not know the cause right now. we believe they have recently taken off from the keymar airpark. the aircraft crashed. >> the plain is a golden circle air t-bird ii. the faa moved to the wreckage to a hangar at the keymar airpark to try and figure out just what caused the crash. investigators have not given us any indication of how long it will be before they determine that cause. coming up at 11:00, we will have reaction from the owner of the airport about the man who was killed and the very latest on the investigation. wbal-tv 11 news. >> tragically in -- tragedy in the sky of new york city. michael bloomberg believes nine are dead after plane and helicopter collided in mid-air before falling into the hudson river. we have more from hoboken. >> the debt limit their collision between a tour helicopter rent small plane occurred mid day over the hudson river between manhattan and hoboken. >> sadly, it appears to was that this was probably not survivable. >> in all, nine people died, including five italian tourists on

however, the faa setz the employees' actions don't fear contribute to the department.have damon weaver of south florida child and interviewed president obama. >> right now, i'm waiting for him to arrive so i can interview him. i was a little nervous waiting for the president, but finally he arrived. >> how are you, sir? nice to meet you. >> everybody knows that you love basketball. i think it would be cool to have a president that can dunk. can you dunk? >> not anymore. i used to when i was young, but i'm almost 50 now, so your legs are the first thing to do. >> now that i interviewed you, would you like to become my homework some. >> absolutely. thank you, man. great job. >> thanks for making my dream come true. >> you did anout standing job. >> president obama is now my home boy. >>> 6:54. let's take one more step towards the weekend here. i want to focus on the fact that it does appear we'll have better weather and still an isolated thunderstorm in the afternoon saturday and sunday. temperatures wigging going to the upper 80s. 85 the two deagrees. we reach 90 next w

i think it will take the faa in cooperation with city and state elected officials to really do a hard core analysis of our safety requirements. that's something we have to focus on. >> one thing you know well and you mentioned it is that in new york, the training that goes into our emergency service personnel on a daily basis, preparing for tragedies like this is second to none. they were there within minutes of this tragedy occurring. what do you have to say to those first responders today and did you find similar to the u.s. airways plane when it came down that this is a high traffic area, did you find other people coming to try to help in this particular instant today? what was the scene? >> it was truly extraordinary to see people who are willing to sacrifice their safety, their lives, their futures to save others. commissioner kelly, police department, fire department, people who are close by, true heros, this is something that i have an opportunity to witness far too often. i wish i didn't. but there is a sense when i go home at night and say prayers for the families and for the

his supervisor was out of the building despite being on duty. >> for the faa to sit there and allude or make accusations that the comptroller had anything to do with this accident is absolutely absurd, and a very insulting. >> the faa says the actions probably did not contribute to the crash. >> we have somebody missing in action and someone else not doing their job. the negligence is there. if they're not doing their job, people can die. >> on wednesday, caskets of the five italian tourists were transferred to hearses to be flown in italy for funerals and burials buried the air traffic controller was using a land line to talk to his girlfriend even though it was supposed to used for official business only. reporting live in the newsroom, rebecca cooper, abc 7 news. >>> they are supposed to make crossing the road safer, but the blinking lights make no sense. >> and live in fairfax county, the outbreak of a potentially deadly flu in dogs, what you y >>> you are watching abc 7 news at 5:00. >>> we're live at the animal shelter or a quarantine is in effect to stop the dog food disease.

what is the problem with the faa? what has the faa not done?industry has been subject of ntsb investigation for 20 years, particularly, hawaii, alaska, the grand canyon. the safety record is not good in those areas. part of it is, you want to get closer, you want to see better. they fly sometimes in marginal weather. the last time that the faa went out with a new set of rules, there were 2300 comments on the rules. they had to have a number of public hearings on it. it is a very contentious area because the industry employs a lot of people. people enjoy these flights. i think the faa has really got to act now. megyn: the faa was developing a new approach to safety oversight. they would target the most risky operations, but the new system is not scheduled for another four years. >> part of it is an issue of money. for instance, there simply aren't enough air traffic controllers to put that section of the airspace under air traffic control. there is simply not enough. part of it is also, the faa have themselves hamstrung in their own rule making

the faa said it placed two employees on administrative leave. the faa says an air traffic controller in quoting here, apparently inappropriate conversations, end quote, on the crash. the supervisor was not in the building at the time. but the employees' action don't appear to be contributed to the accident itself. >>> a 9-year-old child, bitten by a baltimore lifeguard. it happened at a city rec center. it took place during a summer day camp at the callow hill in pimlico. we have more on what happened and what the boy's mother is doing about it. >> i feel this is a definitely a case of abuse. >> reporter: she is beside herself. after a week and a half, her 9- year-old son ian is finally healing from a bite on his back, inflicted by a 17-year- old lifeguard, trusted to take care of children. >> he bit through the shirt. it started to scab over and raw and red. >> reporter: her son complained he was being bullied at the day camp. she talked to camp counselors who reassured her there were no problem. >> she said, i want to let you know there was a

the faa, though, doesn't think those factors contributed to the accident.deo of the accident that shows the moment of impact between the two aircraft was taken by a man practicing with a new camera while on a boat tour. >>> the taliban is claiming responsibility for a massive suicide car bomb attack outside the main gate of nato's headquarters in kabul, afghanistan. police say at least seven people died in that attack. at least 91 more were wounded. the bomb site is next to the u.s. embassy and is on the same street as the country's presidential palace. now, a national security analyst for our sister network cnn was in kabul at the time of the explosion. here he is. >> reporter: it seems to be much larger than anything i've experienced before, and certainly given the fact that i'm several miles north, it was loud enough that everybody in the place i'm staying in ran out to see what was happening. i wouldn't say the security is sort of outrageously tight. i mean, clearly there's a great deal of concern that you can travel around these streets of kabul with n

the faa found papers that led them to the problem. the agency said it doesn't mean the planes are unsafe. it could be an issue with documenting a. southwest has 10 days to fix the problem n. march, the airline paid out the largest-ever phone against the airline. flying jets. >>> you have noticed the difference in spam e-mail? it's down. thatis when scammer send you what appears to be a e-mail and according to ibm, only a small fraction -- the users are getting smartber what links they click o. >>> check in with brian and findut what is coming up next on the news edge at 6. >>> telemarketers, speaking of sp. the government cracking down. when the robo calls will be silenced for good. >>> and most computer printers, allergy medicines. truckloads of stolen merchandise of a local pawnshop. >>> and you will hear from the hero cop who pulled a baby out car. e burning car. ththe dad took off rung. leaving the 8-month-old behind. >>> and a transgendered woman murdered in broad taillight. -- daylight. a second in the hospital and was hate the

but the faa says, in fact, this was not a factor. is it, in fact, too early to make that determination? >> oh absolutely, lester. i think that's why the ntsb is upset. as a party to the investigation, they know that they shouldn't be making statements regarding the investigation. it's one thing to say they have the controllers on administrative leave and they're doing an investigation, but for them to have drawn a conclusion this early, that's what really upsets the board because it's the board who makes that determination as to what the involvement of that controller and his supervisor was with regard to this accident. there's going to be a bit of a tug of war until they get this timeline sorted out and really get the understanding from the controller as to what he heard, what he saw, plus look at the recorded radar information and the alerts that sounded. >> and what we understand is while this pilot was not flying on instruments, was flying visually he was getting radar advisories or flight following. some assistance interest the