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Erin Burnett Outfront
New Search for AirAsia Plane Under Way; Officials: Plane Wasn't Licensed to Fly on Day it Vanished; How 7-Year-Old Survived Deadly Plane Crash; Boston Bombing Suspect Could Face Death Penalty; Underage Sex Claims Against Prince Andrew
Aired January 05, 2015 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT tonight, breaking news. AirAsia 8501. Officials now saying the plane never should have been allowed to take off. This as we have reports. The tail may have been found.
Plus, a 7-year-old walks away from a plane crash that killed her parents and her sister. We'll retrace her steps through dense woods to safety and talk to another survivor about a miraculous survival story. And Britain's royal palace fighting back as Prince Andrew is allegedly tied to a child sex ring. Let's go OUTFRONT.
A good Monday evening to all of you. I'm Erin Burnett. OUTFRONT tonight, the break news in the investigation into what happened to AirAsia flight 8501. International search teams including two American ships have just begun the search again. It is now daybreak in Indonesia for the missing jet. It went down in the Java Sea ten days ago.
Another major development tonight, Reuters is reporting sonar has picked up what may be the tail of the airliner. That's hugely significant because those black boxes are located close to the tail. We're also learning new details about the final moments on board that plane. And what could have caused it to crash with 162 on board. Indonesian officials are revealing the jet did not have permission to fly that day. That's right. It wasn't even supposed to be in the air. And the weather agency in Indonesia is now telling the "Wall Street Journal" that ice may have brought down the air bus 8320. Tonight search teams could be on the verge of determining if that actually is the case and we're going to talk about what that would have meant for those onboard.
Gary Tuchman begins our coverage OUTFRONT live in Surabaya, Indonesia where the search mission has just begun. It is now morning there of course where you are, Gary. And what are you hearing about the reports, this crucial report about the tail being found?
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Indonesian military officials Erin are saying that sonar may have detected the tail portion of the plane. Which as you mentioned, it would be critically important. Because that's where the two so-called black boxes are. But we must emphasized, they say it might have detected. They've made mistakes over the last several days. These are very smart people making educated guesses and that's good. But right now they're only educated guesses because they can't see the
tail right along, they haven't picked up the tail. It is just what's being seen through the sonar through the murky water. Several large pieces have been detected. One 60 feet long. That's the length of a six story building. But they just found out yesterday that one of those piece they saw is actually in a crazy coincidence, from a shipwreck. So it shows you they can't be absolutely sure. As we speak right now, the sun came up about two hours ago. There are more than 40 helicopters and planes above the Java Sea as well as ships on the Java Sea.
In addition, there are 80 divers ready to go in the water if the conditions are good enough. Right now the conditions appeared that they are good enough. Yesterday they went in the water too. And here was the big problem, they got in the water. The conditions were good enough in the morning. As it is many early mornings here. It gets more humid in the afternoon and that's when the storm fire up and that's when the search has to be called off. But they got in and many of the families who are in this tent behind me. This is the family waiting center at the Surabaya police headquarter were very optimistic that perhaps some news would come about the bodies of their loved ones. The divers went down because it is believed that most of the people who died in this crash are still strapped in their seats at the bottom of the Java Sea and the airplane.
When the divers went down there, they were quite surprised to find out they could see absolutely nothing. All the stormy weather has led to the sediment going through just part of the Java Sea and they had zero visibility. That's their quote. Not mine, they could see nothing. And that doesn't bode very well. Because you need several days of good weather without wind, without high waves to get the water clear again. So we're not necessarily optimistic. They'll have any better vision today but they will try again today. The weather is expected to be half decent today and even better tomorrow. But that's one thing we have to tell you, Erin. This is monsoon season and no one is optimistic to have several days together of good weather and that's problematic. Right now only 37 bodies have been recovered. There are still 125 people to find -- Erin.
BURNETT: All right, Gary. Thank you very much. So hard to comprehend that they're still strapped in their seats. And also, in such a shallow water that they know so much about. That you can see a 60-foot piece of debris that actually came from a ship, not this plane. Tonight the investigation is underway to figure out exactly why this plane was actually in the air in the first place. That is because officials are now saying that they are, AirAsia did not have permission to fly that route last Sunday morning.
Kyung Lah is OUTFRONT for us live in Jakarta, Indonesia this morning. And Kyung, how could this plane have, you know, on a regular scheduled flight, you got 162 people on board. Get in the air without permission?
KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is a question that investigators Erin are exactly hoping to answer. Why this plane managed to take off and why no one stopped it. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAH (voice-over): Indonesian officials say flight 8501 should never have been allowed to take off that night. The airline was licensed to fly between Surabaya and Singapore on four days a week but not on Sundays. Still, the plane took off that Sunday, December 28th, flying into heavily trafficked skies. Once airborne, the crew was dealing with terrible weather conditions, heavy rains, high winds, conditions that would most likely force a change of flight plan for a U.S. carrier.
MARY SCHIAVO, FORMER INSPECTOR GENERAL, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION: They were allowed to pierce a thunderstorm. In the United States, the regulations say you're supposed to go around them. You're not supposed to plan your flight through a severe thunderstorm. And that would be what they were going through was equivalent of something called a level six thunderstorm. It is the worst.
LAH: Did the pilot feel pressure to keep to the schedule in what has become one of the busiest air markets in the world?
SCHIAVO: Is it very common for pilots to feel that they must go even in bad weather? Yes. And that's why they're reported in the United States. We call it, by the way, get there-itis.
LAH: Thirty six minutes into the flight, the pilot asked permission to turn and climb above the storm. But while dispatchers were checking the position of surrounding planes, flight 8501 disappeared from radar. Indonesian officials announced the investigation into flying the route without permission is separate from the accident investigation saying they suspect AirAsia is not alone in violating the rule. And for now, all AirAsia flights between Surabaya and Singapore have been suspended.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAH: This is an extensive probe, looking at all sectors have aviation here and Indonesia. And investigation Erin, expected to take one to two weeks -- Erin.
BURNETT: Kyung Lah, thank you so much. Live as we said from Jakarta. And now our aviation analyst, Miles O'Brien, Richard Quest, and our safety analyst David Soucie, author of the upcoming book, "Malaysia Airlines Flight 370: Why it Disappeared and Why It's Only a Matter of Time Before it Happened Again."
All right. Richard, let me start with you. Because this issue of not being authorized to fly, to some people may seem like a technicality. But this is pretty crucial, this is a scheduled fly, people are able to book tickets. It's a big deal, isn't it?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": I was tended to say, yes, it is a technical thing that they didn't have permission on a Sunday when they had permission on four other days. And as early as the middle of last year, they did have permission to fly every single day. It was withdrawn because of capacity constraints. But here's the point, it is not just a technical issue. Because there
are people who are paid at the airline, at the regulator, at the airport, to know these things. The route planner who says I'm going to take that plane and fly it from there. Oh, and by the way, this is what the bilateral agreement allows me to do.
BURNETT: I mean, they should be checking these things. This shows an overall level of laxness, or lack of awareness.
QUEST: It is not something you check. It is something you don't -- what happens in the first place.
BURNETT: Right.
QUEST: When you do the route, look, they had lost permission to fly every day relatively recently. So somebody knew that they shouldn't have been flying every day this week. And let's face it. There's enough blame to go around here in Indonesia. The Indonesian regulators clearly should have been more on top of this to know that they didn't have permission when they gave ground to the flight.
BURNETT: And Miles, according to AirAsia, there is another issue here. The pilot apparently evaluated the weather conditions on his own. I don't know exactly how, how technical that process was. But it wasn't, there's no update, there's no overall, here's the weather. You look into yourself. Is that okay?
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: Well, that's not the way it is done in the United States or in Europe. The way it works, every time you push back on a flight, Erin, is there is a qualified licensed dispatcher along with the captain who have come to the conclusion that this is a flight where it's safe to go, here's the route, here's the amount of fuel, here's the baggage, here's the number of people. All this is good to go. Let's go. Sign off, off we go.
In this case, leaving it all to the pilot is not the way it is done here. It takes away a level of safety. What they're talking about there though is a face to face meeting with the weather officer which does seem to be a little bit anachronistic in this day and age. There are other ways to get that. I don't think that this crew took off without checking the weather. I don't think that's true. But when you couple this with the idea that they're flying without permission to fly. You have to ask yourself about the culture of the airline, the culture of the industry. To what extent is that a secondary causal component here.
BURNETT: Right. And of course it does make you remember in the case of Malaysian Airlines flight 370, a lot of the questioning, confusion from Indonesian radar about where that plane was and when it was there. David, there is a theory about what happened here. We were just talking about Gary was reporting on.
And it's scary because when you think about it, it seems like it could happen to anyone. The weather agency from Indonesia tells the journal, "The Wall Street Journal," that an engine problem related to icing was the most reason for the crash. Commercial jets obviously fly enough for ice anytime of the year and any climate, right? Indonesia and New York, what it might be. Could icing bring down a plane in midair?
DAVID SOUCIE, CNN SAFETY ANALYST: Well, that's one of the reasons this airplane shouldn't have been flying into that thunderstorm in the first place. That's why in the United States and even in Asia, that we check the weather, we know what we're flying into and we avoid it. And that is why this is so particularly different. Is the fact that this aircraft got into this situation was a plan in the first place. There is so many questions, Erin. And icing certainly can be a problem in those conditions. But how you mitigate that is you don't get in those conditions in the first place.
BURNETT: But Richard, I feel like we've all flown through thunderstorms. And the pilot says we're in a thunderstorm. It will be a little bumpy that can't go around it.
QUEST: Yes. There are thunderstorms and there are thunderstorms. You're not talking about your average summer thunderstorm here. You're talking about as we've heard early in the beginning of this, a very serious double cell that come together where it was absolutely dangerous. The issue of this weather, it is bizarre. Because it is a leaked report from the weather center to the transportation minister that suggests icy weather was the cause. We've no idea that's what it was.
BURNETT: Right.
QUEST: I mean, the idea that the engines iced up, or there was super ice equated in the engines. We just don't know. And I think what happens of course is, as with Malaysia 370, to some extent, you're going to see this starting to get unwieldy. Because we're looking for answers. Everyone is looking for answers.
BURNETT: Yes. Of course, Miles, in this case though, it may be different than that in one crucial thing which is we expect to get the black boxes in time. Right? We know where the wreckage is. They now are saying reportedly that they think that they may have the tail. That's the Reuters report. Obviously, that would have data recorders on it. So, that could be crucial. If the tale is even still intact, what would that tell but how the plane went down? What happened in those last moments? How controlled could the decent have been?
O'BRIEN: It could have been going down in a flat spin. I mean, the Air France 447, the tail section separated. As a matter of fact, the vertical stabilizer, the fin which goes in the top of the tail section, was floating in the ocean and was discovered just a couple of days after the crash. It was quite some time, however, before they found the flight data recorder, the cockpit voice recorder, which of course was beneath the ocean. Couple of years later before they get to that. So it is unclear, if when they say they got the tail, do they have the vertical stabilizer, of the whole half section. In any case, I don't think we can come to a conclusion that it broke up midair. It could very easily have broken up off on impact with the water.
BURNETT: A final word, David.
SOUCIE: About the tail? You want me to comment about the tail?
BURNETT: Yes. About the tail. What do you think -- how it went down.
SOUCIE: Yes. Well, in that particular aircraft, as opposed to the 777, both the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder, they're not co-located in the tail. One of them is, the flight data record is. But ahead of that, actually ahead of the rear bulk head is the cockpit voice recorder. So they're not co-located. So that's why in Air France 447 is so difficult to locate them. Because it had broken off just forward to where both of those boxes are mounted.
BURNETT: All right. Thanks so much to all of you. As Richard said, this mystery and the answers really, we're just getting started on trying to figure out the right questions to ask. Never mind to get the answers.
Next, a sole survivor. A 7-year-old walked away from a plane crash in which her family died. The miraculous story of how she survived is next.
Plus, what does it take to survive a plane crash? We'll going to talk to a survivor about this harrowing tale. And the trial of the suspected marathon Boston bomber begins today. So, will he be put to death?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: It's a remarkable story of survival. A 7-year-old walks away from a plane crash that kills everyone else on board including her parents and her sister. And what's more, Sailor Gutzler walks barefoot with a broken arm through dense brush in the dark for 30 minutes in freezing temperatures, finally finding help at a stranger's home.
Martin Savidge is outfront tonight near the crash scene in Kentucky. Martin, it was a miracle for this little girl. That's the right word, I mean, isn't it?
MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is. You know, that often can be a word that is overused sometimes. In this case, it absolutely applies, Erin. When you think of what this young lady had to go through. Not just seeing the death of family members but then making it to this back door in a very remote part of Kentucky. And it is not so much how did she do it. It is how could she do it?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAVIDGE (voice-over): Behind this precious face lies the incredible strength and courage of a survivor. Friday night, 7-year-old Sailor Gutzler freed herself from the outside down wreckage of her family's plane, moving past the bodies of her mother, father, sister and cousin walking nearly a mile to Larry Wilkins' home in remote Western Kentucky. LARRY WILKINS, HELPED 7-YEAR-OLD PLANE CRASH SURVIVOR: She was
bloody. Her nose was bloody. I can't say for sure but I think maybe her lip might have been cut. But her little legs is what really got your attention. Because they were striped up all over.
SAVIDGE: From his back steps, Wilkins shows me the way she came. Even though she still can't believe she made it. Shoeless, wearing only shorts and short sleeves with temperatures in the 30s.
WILKINS: When you consider what she just walked through. And she had just seen her parents and her sister and her cousin, all three were dead, you know, it's amazing.
SAVIDGE: And decided to backtrack the way she came. Pretty quickly, I find the going is tough.
WILKINS: Downed tree limbs everywhere.
SAVIDGE: The brush is incredibly dense. Branches snag and grab as you move, while needle like thorns tear at your clothes. Even in broad daylight, the potential pit bulls are everywhere, step in slippery slope, ditches and pools of water. The brush swallows you quickly leaving you disorient and blocking the view of any land marks. As I struggle I constantly remind myself, I was ready for this. How could an injured, traumatize and frightened 7-year-old make her way in the near pitch dark and chilling mist? In the end I give up and GPS guides me back to where I started. Larry Wilkins says one wrong turn could have left the little girl lost for weeks.
WILKINS: All woods. And there's quite few cows around here too.
SAVIDGE: He believes the light in his yard could have attracted the little survivor or something else, telling me heaven had a hand as well. Martin Savidge, CNN, Kuttawa, Kentucky.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: I want to bring in Kentucky State Police Lieutenant Brent White who spoke to Sailor right after the plane crash and Lyon County Judge Wade White who was at the scene with first responders when they found the plane. And I appreciate both of you being with us. It is such a tragedy and yet a miracle for this little child. Lieutenant White, when you saw Sailor, you know, we just heard there, you know, that her legs were cut, you know, from coming through forest. And she obviously was injured from the crash as well. How did she look to you? And what was her state of mind?
LT. BRENT WHITE, KENTUCKY STATE POLICE: Well, she was amazingly calm given the feat that she had just been through. Both the crash and navigating the terrain to this location, not to mention what she had witnessed. So other than the scratches on her, she did have an obvious injury to her wrist and lower arm. But other than some minor amounts of blood, on various areas of her body, she was amazingly in good shape.
BURNETT: And what did she tell you happened? What was her understanding at that moment of what had just happened to her?
B. WHITE: She indicated to us that she and her family were returning on a flight from Florida, headed to Mt. Vernon, Illinois, and something went wrong during that travel. And that the plane had crash landed in a wooded area and the plane was upside down. And that she feared that her parents were dead but she hope that they were just sleeping.
BURNETT: So heart breaking that she hoped they were sleeping. Judge White, you went to the crash scene. You have video that shows actually where, you know, how Sailor got from the plane to that House where she was able to get help. Thick thorny briar patches, downed trees. And you did this during day. She did this in the night with no light, 7-years-old, this terrain, she's never been there before in the dark, a broken arm 39 degrees. She was wearing shorts and reportedly only had one sock on. And no shoes. I mean, it is incredible. How hard was it for you in full gear to get from that plane to that house?
WHITE: Well, we've been walking it quite a bit today in the daylight just as you said. With the downed trees, the briar patches, creeks, low places, limbs on the ground that she obviously could have tripped over several times. It is beyond me how she got out. All odds were against her.
BURNETT: I mean, all odds were again her. And we actually Judge got a google image and give a sense for all of our viewers tonight of the crash site. So this is the crash site in relation to Larry Wilkins' home. So, everyone you can see where the plane went down. And then Larry Wilkins' home where she was able to get help. This is not a populated area. Everyone, as you can see. Not a single house. And if you went a different direction, you can see she might have not been able to get help at all. Judge, I mean, Mr. Wilkins said she might not have been found at all. Do you think that's possible?
JUDGE WADE WHITE, LYON COUNTY, KENTUCKY: Yes, Erin. She could have chosen a hundred different locations to travel in. And she chose the one that brought her out of there. So obviously, God was with her, leading her out of there. And brought her to safety.
BURNETT: Lieutenant, when you spoke to her, I understand she didn't complain about her injuries at all?
B. WHITE: No. She did not. She just wanted to us get help for her family. And that is exactly what we intended to do. I gave her a teddy bear out of the back of the trunk of my cruiser and told her to hold on to it while we searched for her family. And hopefully that we could reunite them together. Unfortunately that was not the case.
BURNETT: And I know that obviously she must have been praying and hoping for some kind of a miracle there. But it's just such an incredible story, what this little girl went through. I think it makes everyone believe in miracles when you hear it. Thank you so much both of you.
J. WHITE: Yes. You're welcome, Erin. BURNETT: And next, an amazing story of survival. A plane engine failed in midair. For the next six minutes that plane fell to the ground. A man walked away, he shares his story, next.
And Britain's Prince Andrew, a lawsuit alleges, he's connected to a child prostitution ring, how the palace and a famed American attorney as well as a very, very wealthy banker in America are fighting back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: Tonight 7-year-old Sailor Gutzler is back home in Illinois after surviving a plane crash that killed her parents, her sister and her cousin. Sailor was the sole survivor of that crash on Friday in Western, Kentucky. That plane as you see there completely upside down when it crashed. Sailor's story of survival is extremely rare but there are others who have made it out alive. They're all miracles and Jason Carroll is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What lies behind the smile of this 7-year-old girl is the kind of courage seen in those well beyond her young years. That's what Larry Wilkins thought when Sailor Gutzler showed up on his front porch late Friday night and told him an incredible story.
WILKINS: She said my mom and dad are dead. We just had a plane crash.
CARROLL: Gutzler and her family took off from Key West, Florida, early Friday on board her father, who was piloting the twin engine aircraft, along with her mother, her 9-year-old sister, and 14-year- old cousin. The plane ran into trouble and crashed in a wooded area in Kentucky. Sailor was the only survivor. How was she able to survive the crash and then injure hiking three quarters of a mile through dark cold woods without shoes or warm clothes, still unknown.
WILKINS: The little girl was -- she was amazingly composed for a 7- year-old girl.
CARROLL: Her story of survival is rare but there are others documented in the CNN film "Sole Survivor." In 1987, Cecilia Cichan was just four years old when she was the sole survivor of Northwest Airline flight 255. One hundred fifty four people were killed when the airline crashed on takeoff in Detroit, including her entire family. Decades later, she still has scars and something more.
CECILIA CICHAN, NORTHWEST AIRLINE FLIGHT 255 SURVIVOR: I got this tattoo. This is a reminder of where I've come from.
CARROLL: Cichan credits luck for her survival. Austin Hatch believes a higher power may have helped him.
AUSTIN HATCH, SURVIVED TWO PLANE CRASHES: Thank God he had his hand on me. I think he was a plan for my life. CARROLL (voice-over): In 2003, when Hatch was just 8 years old, a
small plane his father was piloting crashed, killing his mother and siblings. Hatch and his father survived.
Then, tragically, eight years later, in 2011, Hatch was in another crash. This time his father, again the pilot, was killed as was his stepmother.
Hatch was the only survivor. His brain injury so bad, he had to relearn to walk and even talk. Now just a few years after the second crash, he is on a basketball scholarship at the University of American, and scored his first career points last month.
HATCH: Basketball has given me something to shoot for. It's been my goal from when I woke up in the coma.
CARROLL: What they all have in common is not just a shared tragedy, but a will to survive.
Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: And Austin Hatch, who you heard survived two plane crashes, will be a guest with Anderson tomorrow night.
OUTFRONT tonight, AC Morgan, he survived a plane crash in 1998. Like Sailor, AC was in a small plane, six seats, when it went down due to engine trouble. The plane hit a tree, caught fire. Two people were killed. AC and one other person on the plane survived. And like Sailor, they walked away from the crash, for them, half a mile to safety with severe burns. AC had two broken vertebrae, burns on 80 percent of his body.
And I appreciate your being here with us tonight.
I know it must be hard to relive this in something that over the years, you've had to learn to deal with in so many ways in your life. But at that moment when you looked back, when did you realize there was something wrong with the plane?
AC MORGAN IV, PLANE CRASH SURVIVOR: We were probably about halfway through the flight. We were at 6,000 feet. If you've ever been in a small plane, it is extremely loud and picture yourself in a very loud environment and all of a sudden, silent.
So, you hear a sound and then nothing.
BURNETT: So, the engines completely cut out.
Now, we don't know yet what the passengers experienced in the last moments, what they might have said to each other. But we do know what the plane looked like and it was a six-seater, similar to the one you were on. We know there was engine trouble on that plane as well. Do you remember what happened? When it went dead, I know there were six minutes when you were in the air, what went through your mind and what happened in those six minutes when the silence happen to the crash?
MORGAN: Have the similarity between the two flights, from what I've been able to read about Sailor's father is he was a very accomplished pilot.
BURNETT: Yes.
MORGAN: And similar in my flight, Gene Case (ph) was a very accomplished pilot as well. So he was immediately if control. You knew, you had confidence in the fact that he knew what was going on and he had a game plan to get this plane landed and landed safely.
So, there was no panic whatsoever for anybody on my flight. And that's the greatest gift ever. I mean, during that six minutes, pure quiet. You can feel the plane going down. You can look out at the front of the plane. The propeller is still spinning but you know there is something wrong. To be in that environment without panic is definitely a gift.
BURNETT: A gift which he gave you. And I -- because I can't imagine what the six minutes would have been like if there was panic or if there was fear.
When the plane crashed, obviously you had to walk. Sailor had to walk nearly a mile, shorts, no shoes, freezing temperatures. When you were walking, you were burned over 30 percent of your body. You were in agony, you are in pain. You had broken vertebrae. At least pictures that we have that you kindly shared with us from when you went in the hospital.
During that walk, were you aware of what happened? Do you remember that? Getting off that plane? Or was it just an adrenaline?
MORGAN: I remember the impact. I remember not being able to open the plane door. The other individual that was with me, lucky enough that he was able to open that door. He said that I hit him from behind so hard that I pushed him out of the plane and threw my arm over his shoulder. And we walked away from the plane.
And again, this is with two broken vertebrae and 30 percent of the body burned, basically your skin melting off my body. And as far as how is that done? Physically it is impossible. It is 100 percent adrenaline, and I'm sure Sailor had that same experience.
BURNETT: And your physical recovery has been amazing. I know there was a spot on one of your arms that was not burned. But tell us why it's not burn. We can look at it. It's got a shape to it.
MORGAN: Right. That shape is the shape of Timex arm watch. And during -- when I basically was in ICU for about a month and a half, when I came to the idea at that point in time. Timex was running a commercial, about takes a licking and keeps on ticking. So, I thought I would be the ideal candidate for that. So, I called up Timex and said --
BURNETT: Yes. MORGAN: -- here's my scenario, I should be your next spokesperson. They offered me to be a slot in the Timex Ironman World Championships. At that point of time, I couldn't walk, couldn't brush my own teeth and basically couldn't do anything by myself. So, at that point in time it didn't seem like such a great offer.
Eight years later in my recovery, I was out to dinner with somebody who introduced themselves to me as having done the Ironman. That individual didn't seem so special to me. So I called up Timex and took them up on the offer.
BURNETT: That's incredible. Now, Sailor as we know, she had some physical injuries but obviously emotionally is what seems going to be -- I mean, it's impossible to comprehend. What would you say to her? After this crash, you got married. You had two daughters. One of whom is only a couple years older than Sailor is now.
What would you tell Sailor?
MORGAN: As a father of two daughters, as a plane crash survivor, your healing process is going to be challenging. And there's going to be times where you'll second-guess if you can do it. Is it better to stay in bed?
In my point of view, it is never better to stay in bed. You get out and you do it. If you ever question if you can do it, look back at what you did. You were able to get out of the plane. You were able to walk a half mile, three quarters of a mile in the dark by yourself and find safety. You can do it, no matter. If you ever need somebody to talk to, you're more than welcome to call me.
BURNETT: AC, thank you so much for sharing your story with us.
MORGAN: Thank you.
BURNETT: And next, the trial of suspected Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev started today. Will he be put to death or not?
And Britain's Prince Andrew named in a new sex scandal involving an underage girl. The royal palace is fighting back. There is an American involved and we have a full report.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: It's considered the worst terrorist attack on American soil since 9/11. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev accused of plotting and carrying out an attack near the finish line at the Boston marathon. Three people died, more than 260 were wounded.
His brother Tamerlan also suspected of plotting the attack was killed days later following a massive manhunt. Now, it's been almost two years later and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's trial is just starting. He faces 30 federal charges and possibly death.
Deborah Feyerick is live tonight in Boston.
And, Deb, I know jury selection started today. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was there. He was in the courtroom. What was he like?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's really interesting. You know, when he walked in, he seemed very relax, he's swinging his arms, he's got sort of this long stride, he was wearing pressed khakis, a black sweater. His hair, it's very interesting, a lot of people point this out. His hair looks almost unruly, as does his beard. Not exactly the impression you want to give men and women who could potentially decide what your fate is.
But one of the thing the prosecutors will have to show is that he was not just a follower of his brother which is what the defense alleges. That in fact he himself went on this path toward radicalization. We took a look at both he and his brother.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FEYERICK (voice-over): Tamerlan Tsarnaev was a Golden Glove boxer who dreamed of going to the Olympics.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tamerlan was very flashy and flamboyant.
FEYERICK: The younger brother Dzhokhar was captain of the wrestling team. They were born seven years apart.
ALI SOUFAN, FORMER FBI AGENT: The older brother had a lot of problems. He was not able to fit. He wasn't able to have trends. He wasn't able to assimilate to the U.S. culture like his little brother.
FEYERICK: As refugees in the area of war torn Chechnya, the family applied for asylum. Cambridge, Massachusetts, became their home. Authorities believe the brothers became radicalized several years later. Dzhokhar allegedly telling investigators the brothers watched online sermons of Anwar al-Awlaki, the U.S. born cleric inciting insurgency against the West. The al Qaeda preacher was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Yemen in the fall of 2011.
In a separate incident around that time, Tamerlan was interviewed by the FBI, after the bureau received a rare and vague warning from Russian security forcers. The case was close, and soon after in January 2012, Tamerlan to war-torn Dagestan.
SOUFAN: There was something that happened during that trip. There are people that he met there, where mosques that he attended. There's training camps possibly that he went to and he probably received some training.
FEYERICK: When Tamerlan returned to Cambridge after six months, friends say he appeared more extreme in his views, saying he even began praying at the gym where he boxed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was (INAUDIBLE) for Tamerlan.
FEYERICK: The Tsarnaevs uncle however believes Tamerlan had started self-radicalizing years later.
RUSLAN TSARNI, DZHOKHAR TSARNAEV'S UNCLE: It started in 2009 and it started right there in Cambridge.
FEYERICK: Tamerlan attended the Islamic Society of Boston but was warned by mosque leaders he'd be kicked out if he continued making anti-West comments. The mosque, the largest and only one in the area, categorically denies ties to terror.
However, law enforcement points out in the last two decades, eight extremists are convicted terrorists have prayed there. Acquaintances believe Dzhokhar may have accompanied his brother at least once. His uncle says Dzhokhar was merely a pawn.
TSARNI: Dzhokhar has been used by his older brother. He used him as his accomplice, as some kind of instrument.
FEYERICK: Dzhokhar's lawyers are expected to make the same argument at trial. Even so, when he was captured in the boat days after the bombing, he had scrawled a message saying, quote --
SOUFAN: They did it for Afghanistan and they did it for Iraq. They did it for our invasion of these two places. They never mentioned Chechnya as one of the reasons that they did it.
FEYERICK: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev has pleaded not guilty to 30 charges against him. He is facing the death penalty.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: And, Deb, what are the chances that he will get death penalty?
FEYERICK: You know, it's really interesting. That's what the jurors here are going to have to decide once they are chosen over the next couple weeks. It's on the table. And one of the reasons that the defense could not make a plea with the government is that the government took a long time to make a decision to go for the death penalty because there aren't any extenuating circumstances, no new evidence. It remains a distinct possibility.
People will tell that you Boston seems to be a liberal place and the jurors tend to be more liberal. But at the same time, they have found others guilty and sentenced to the death penalty. So, it all depends on the kind of evidence, the strength of the evidence and prosecutors think they have it. But the defense certainly is going to put up a very tough fight. They're very qualified lawyers -- Erin.
BURNETT: Deb, thank you very much.
And next, Britain's Prince Andrew is named in a lawsuit, charging famous men with using a child frustration ring. The royals are fighting back and allegedly the man in charge of the ring, a very wealthy American socialite and banker.
And the governor of New Jersey, he loves New Jersey exempt for when it comes to football and maybe he's not a great dancer. But Jeanne Moos joins us with the fallout from the governor's bro hug.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: And now, let's check with Anderson with a look at what's coming in a few moments on "AC360".
Hello, Anderson.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Erin. How are you?
We're going to have a lot more on the breaking news. Obviously, a live report on just what searchers are up against as they struggle to locate AirAsia Flight 8501. Paula Hancocks spent a day on a boat, taking part in the recovery effort, joins me live from Indonesia.
Also, there's a miracle survivor in a small plane crash in Kentucky. Eric, you've been covering it. We'll talk to Martin Savidge from the spot where the 7-year-old girl stumbled through dark and difficult terrain to safety.
There is, of course, also tragedy in the crash. Ahead, my conversation with Jamie Smith Lane whose daughter Sierra (ph) was one of the people who lost their lives. What she wants you to know about her 14-year-old daughter.
Those stories and a special two-hour live edition of "360". We're on until 10:00 tonight. We'll also bring you the top "RidicuList" of 2014.
It all starts at the top of the hour, Erin.
BURNETT: I'm looking forward to that. All right. I'll see you in a few minutes, Anderson.
Well, tonight, allegations of a major sex scandal rocking Buckingham Palace. The royal family is firing back against accusations that Prince Andrew had sex with an underage girl, a girl who says she was provided to Queen Elizabeth's son by an incredibly rich, convicted American sex offender.
Jean Casarez is OUTFRONT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEAN CASAREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The usually stoic and silent Buckingham Palace has become very vocal, denying allegations in a federal suit tying his royal highness, Prince Andrew, to sex crimes with underage minors. "There is nothing to suggest this is true," a palace statement says. "We have no record of such a meeting."
The second son of Queen Elizabeth is not charged in the ongoing federal lawsuit, but it puts him right in the middle of an alleged sexual abuse ring from 1999 to 2002 that was allegedly run by international financier Jeffrey Epstein. Epstein pleaded guilty to solicitation of frustration. In 2008, he was sentenced to 18 months behind bars. He served 13 months.
Epstein was known to hobnob with the rich and famous, including Prince Andrew. When the two were spotted walking in Central Park in 2011, after Epstein had become a registered sex offender, the British press went crazy.
REPORTER: An embarrassment, sir.
REPORTER: Prince Andrew, are you resigning?
CASAREZ: His friendship cost Prince Andrew his job as the U.K. trade representative. Now, the alleged victims are suing the U.S. government, saying their rights had been violated in the Epstein plea deal, and at least one victim has named Prince Andrew by name.
Jane Doe number three was forced to have sexual relations with this prince when she was a minor in three separate geographical locations -- in London, New York and on Epstein's private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands. According to the suit, young women were paid to come to Epstein's home in Florida to give massages where they were allegedly sexually assaulted. The defense says the girls lied about their ages and that there was never any sexual molestation.
Prince Andrew has not been charged but the allegations have led to two public denials from the royal family, including one that brazenly names the accuser. "It is emphatically denied that HRH, the Duke of York, had any form of sexual contact or relationship with Virginia Roberts. The allegations made are false and without any foundation."
The federal lawsuit also names high-profile criminal defense lawyer Alan Dershowitz, who calls the allegations unfounded.
ALAN DERSHOWITZ, HARVARD LAW SCHOOL, EMERITUS PROFESSOR OF LAW: She is a liar. She has charged Bill Clinton with having sex with her on the island when Secret Service records would obviously show he was never on the island. She claimed to meet the queen.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: You know, this is an incredible story. It's now an international story. And, of course, you've got Prince Andrew involved, Jeffrey Epstein, the American allegedly providing this girl to him, according to her, has pled guilty to soliciting sex from underage girls. He's a registered sex offender.
What do you know about Virginia Roberts?
CASAREZ: Well, you're right. It's all over the British networks, all of them. And we now see her, because this is who "The New York Post" is saying is Ms. Roberts, right here, in today's edition of "The New York Post."
BURNETT: That's a picture of her with Prince Andrew.
CASAREZ: That's right.
BURNETT: And then her today.
So, it does show them together. But when you read this filing in the federal court in Florida, there are many more people that are named, too. It will be very interesting to see where all this goes. And it's two separate suits. This is a federal suit because the alleged victims are saying, we didn't know about a plea deal and we should have been privy to all the conditions of it.
BURNETT: It's pretty incredible story. All right. Thank you so much, Jean.
And OUTFRONT next, Jeanne Moos on the governor of New Jersey and, you know -- I mean, he's a politician. He never claimed to be a dancer, did he?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BURNETT: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie goes in for a high-five and a hug. It got pretty awkward. Hugs can be daunting, and when you're not on the same page, things get weird.
Here's Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was the hug some fans couldn't wrap their heads around, let alone their arms. The governor of New Jersey in seventh heaven as the Dallas Cowboys win -- not his home team, Giants or Jets -- the Cowboys, as Governor Christie told WFAN --
GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: I don't need a license how to root for the Dallas Cowboys. I've been doing it for 43 years.
MOOS: First, the governor tried to high-five Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, but Jones was distracted by his son and the governor ended up in a group hug.
Vines sprouted on the web as the hug was dubbed "goofy, weird." Someone tweeted, "You can't unsee a Chris Christie jump hug." Another compared the governor in his reddish-orange sweater to Kool-Aid man.
Governor Christie says he has worn the sweater five times and each times the Cowboys won.
CHRISTIE: That then becomes a good luck thing.
MOOS: Good luck on that presidential thing. This is the projected 2016 electoral someone tweeted in the wake of the hug.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think we can carry Texas now if we're running for president?
CHRISTIE: I think our chances have improved.
MOOS: There were even bad imitations.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We re-enact the Chris Christie, Jerry Jones hug. Boys? MOOS: There was political analysis.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: His problem with aggressive man hugs.
MOOS: But defenders found it cool to see him having a good time letting loose.
(on camera): Hugging can be hazardous to your dignity. I mean, who hasn't gotten tangled up in an awkward hug?
(voice-over): For instance, President Obama backslapping his departing press secretary. Even more fraught with danger than hugs are kisses. Bill Clinton found his lips left in limbo as Hillary turned to greet Barack Obama.
At least Chris Christie didn't kiss Jerry Jones. Though if you listen to Marvin Gaye soundtrack, one jokester added, you think he was about --
MUSIC: Let's get it on --
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BURNETT: All right. Thanks so much for joining us.
"AC360" begins right now.
