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One World with Zain Asher
U.S. And Russia Hold Ukraine Talks In Saudi Arabia; Russia Launches Drones At Ukraine Ahead Of Riyadh Talks; 21 People Inured As Plane Flips After Landing; Toronto Airport Briefing On Monday's Delta Plane Crash; Aired 12-1 p ET
Aired February 18, 2025 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:00:26]
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: A pivotal meeting between the U.S. Secretary of State and his Russian counterparts that didn't include Ukraine. ONE
WORLD Starts right now.
Marco Rubio says his boss is the only man who can bring about a sustainable end to the war in Ukraine.
And targeted by Trump, meet the student activists who fear the backlash of the president.
And later, stunning new images of the Toronto plane crash. Somehow everyone on board managed to survive.
Hello, everyone, live from New York. I'm Bianna Golodryga. Zain is off today. You are watching ONE WORLD.
Well, after a meeting lasting nearly five hours at a palace in Riyadh aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, high-ranking U.S. and Russian officials have
agreed to keep the conversation going. But Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, warns it's a nonstarter after his country wasn't invited to its
own peace talks.
The U.S. is describing the discussions as positive. Russia was a bit more measured, calling them useful, but said it's an accomplishment that
dialogue is even taking place. Here are two reactions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: I came away today convinced that they are willing to begin to engage in a serious process to determine how and
how quickly and through what mechanism can an end be brought to this war.
KIRILL DMITRIEV, CEO OF THE RUSSIAN DIRECT INVESTMENT FUND: We're starting from a very low base and we have lots of road ahead of us, but I think the
conversation was a dialogue, trying to understand each other position, respectful dialogue, and that's already a huge accomplishment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during the meeting, Washington and Moscow agreed on four principles, including laying the
groundwork for potentially, quote, historic economic and investment opportunities. But he also warned that ending Russia's war in Ukraine will
require concessions from all sides.
U.S. National Security Adviser Mike Waltz was a bit more blunt, saying the discussions will involve territory and security concerns.
Russia's foreign minister, meanwhile, blamed the former Biden administration for, in his words, the conflict emerging. And he said the
new administration has started to understand Russia's side of the argument.
Now, as we said, President Zelenskyy was not at the table today. He's now postponing his own visit to Saudi Arabia until early next month.
CNN's Matthew Chance joins me live from Riyadh. And, Matthew, this has to be seen as a win in the Kremlin, if for no other reason than for the first
time since Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago to the day. We've seen such high-level talks between both countries' sides. I
know you spoke with Russian officials there in Riyadh. Tell us what they said to you.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: You know, I think, Bianna, you're right about that. I mean, for a long time now, particularly
over the past three years, Moscow has wanted to get back to the top table of international diplomacy. It is very much there right now, its delegates,
its officials speaking one-on-one with the U.S. administration and the possibility of a summit meeting between President Trump, United States and
President Putin.
This is a sort of rehabilitation that the Kremlin could only dream of just months ago. And so that's one way in which in Moscow they'll be celebrating
these events tonight. The other way, of course, is that, you know, the overarching objective of Russia over the past several years, even before
the war in Ukraine, is to sow disunity and to see Western unity shattered over Ukraine and over other issues as well.
And the fact that President Trump is now driving so rapidly a peace deal, face to face, with the Russians over Ukraine, the Russians are seeing that
Western unity unfold in front of them.
And so regardless of what they secure at the negotiating table, whether they get sanctions lifted, whether they get economic cooperation of the
kind that's being discussed by both sides now, they're still going to walk away from this process with a win. And that means a lot in Moscow, Bianna.
GOLODRYGA: Matthew Chance, thank you so much.
Let's go to CNN's Kevin Liptak, who joins me now live from Washington. Kevin, how is the president viewing all of this? It's been, we have to say,
a whirlwind. It's just a week ago that we found out about a phone conversation between President Trump and President Putin, and then after
that followed a conversation between President Trump and President Zelenskyy. And here we are having high-level talks between these two
countries that as we just noted hadn't spoken to each other in three years over, three years' time.
[12:05:24]
And we know that President Trump has talked about the fact that he would like to see in the near future perhaps a summit between these two leaders.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. It's head-spinning almost just to see how rapidly this thaw is unfolding between Washington
and Moscow after so many years of really a silence between the two capitals.
And I think it reflects what Marco Rubio said today was Trump's impatience at bringing this conflict to an end. Certainly he had made the promise as a
candidate to end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours of taking office.
Obviously, that deadline came and went, but it still remains the case that he is in a hurry to see this conflict end. And I think that's exactly what
we're seeing now. This rushed meetings to try and set up these talks with the -- with the Russians, I think it certainly reflects President Trump's
desire to bring Vladimir Putin back into the diplomatic fold, including potentially, as he raced last week, allowing Russia back into the G8,
including setting up this summit talks with Putin that could potentially happen very, very quickly, now that this initial meeting has taken place.
And I think it was interesting just listening to the American officials heading into the summit. They were pretty insistent that it would be
limited to the issues of the Ukraine war, talking about the parameters and contours of a potential ceasefire in Ukraine.
Listening to them afterwards, it was clear that they talked about much more, including allowing diplomats to return to Moscow and Washington. The
embassies in those countries had really been stripped down to skeleton staffs after these tit-for-tat expulsions over the last several years. Now
they're talking about boosting the diplomatic staffs in each of those countries.
They also talked about the potential for economic development between the U.S. and Russia, clearly with an eye towards President Trump's focus on
American investments, on American energy.
And I think it was notable that one of the people at the table was the president of the Russian sovereign wealth fund, clearly, with an eye
towards President Trump's economic focus. So all of these issues, I think, give you a sense of how certainly the Russian side knows exactly what it's
presenting to the Americans as they look to move forward to this.
But certainly it has left President Zelensky and the Europeans feeling left out. I think when you listen to the American side, they say this is just a
matter of sequencing, that there will be discussions with the Ukrainians going forward. Just as an example, the envoy, President Trump's envoy to
Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, will be arriving in Kyiv tomorrow morning for a lengthy stay there to talk with the Ukrainians about all of this going
forward.
We're also learning that the British prime minister will be in Washington next week to meet with President Trump. So their argument is that this is a
question of sequencing, that there will be these discussions going forward with all sides.
But certainly watching the Americans and the Russians at that table in Riyadh without the Europeans and without the Ukrainians, certainly a
striking visual.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. It's clear that both President Zelenskyy and the Europeans don't just view this as a sequencing of events here. They are clearly
concerned about how this is happening so quickly without Ukraine there at the table or a European presence.
Kevin Liptak in Washington for us, thank you. Well, before today's talks in Riyadh, the Kremlin launched a series of drone attacks on Ukraine
overnight, seeking to weaken Ukraine's defenses and degrade its energy infrastructure in these frigid months.
The Ukrainian Air Force says that it was able to shoot down more than 100 of the 176 drones launched by Russia. As the Trump administration is
holding those talks with Russia in Riyadh, world leaders convened in Paris on Monday, vowing to step up support for Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: Europeans willing to step up, getting positively engaged, willing to help out in Ukraine post a peace deal,
including with troops if necessary, but clearly with an American backup.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: CNN's Nick Paton Walsh joins us now from Kyiv with more on this.
Nick, you know, we've been covering the war and -- for almost three years now. And you've been talking to civilians there, Ukrainians, who have long
been seeking an end to the war more than anyone else impacted here.
You could argue they have real skin in the game and have lost thousands of lives in the course of the last three years. It's a nuanced issue. I know
there are concerns about corruption, about how long this war will go on, even about President Zelenskyy and when there could inevitably be some
elections in the country now that it's still under martial law.
[12:10:12]
But when they see how things are playing out over the course of the last week in terms of bringing this war to an end without Ukraine right now at
the table, what are you hearing from Ukrainians about how they feel right now?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTENTIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: I think there has been noticeable anxiety here in Ukraine over the last 10 days to
a week. Because not only has the Trump administration seemed less committed to Ukrainian security, and they sort of vacillate over that.
You know, today, we heard National Security Advisor Mike Waltz talking about the necessity of Ukraine being involved in this, talking while he
also said territorial concessions are part of the reality, security guarantees are too, and that latter part will potentially be something Kyiv
wants to hear more about.
But we've heard the Trump administration also, seemingly in Munich and Brussels, revised their concept of the U.S. role in European security, a
much wider issue in general. And without European security, there is very little chance that Ukraine can fend off Russia too without American and
European backing.
So that's contributed to a sense, I think, of anxiety and general nervousness here. Yes, the Europeans are racing to try and come up with
some kind of assistance that they can afford, that it's practical, that is a deterrent against Russia, indeed.
But Zelenskyy's comments today were he not angrily but pretty forcefully cancelled his visit to Saudi Arabia because he said basically things were
occurring without Ukraine's involvement. He didn't really, I think it seems, they see the point of continuing with a plan to go there on a pre-
planned meeting that wasn't necessarily involved in the US-Russia summit but may have hoped to glean something out of it.
It's reflecting the wider anger I think in Ukraine that they are seeing this US-Russia summit much more about relations between Moscow and
Washington.
So that's left the notion of a Ukrainian police plan as something potentially that forms part of a wider deal Between Trump and Putin that
essentially the core of all that they're about right now.
Another interesting thing we heard today was from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov who outright rejected one of the key planks of what we're
beginning to hear repeatedly could be part of a peace plan, which is peacekeepers along the frontline.
Now, the Kellogg plan that's Ukraine's envoy from the Trump administration, written back in April when he was a private citizen, suggested that non-
U.S. troops might potentially be involved in a peacekeeping mission between Ukraine and Russia.
Hazardous, perilous, even in a ceasefire. But Lavrov said today that, no, simply they would not tolerate the idea of NATO troops or even NATO member
troops under a non-NATO mandate being in that position. He might be negotiating. They might be willing to tolerate that in the end.
But we're into a very messy situation here where the Europeans have been scrambling over the past days to pull together a peacekeeping force that
was America's idea that Russia may outright reject. That's where a place where nobody, I think it's fair to say, really thought they would be or
wanted to be.
But Ukrainians here are faced with two issues. Firstly, there's the fact that the longer these peace talks don't come up with a ceasefire or freeze
the front lines, the more land they lose and the greater potential they face of manpower crisis on their own frontlines. They're not doing well on
the front and haven't for quite some time.
The second element is that a bad peace deal, or one that is essentially the U.S. forcing concessions by Ukraine in Russia's favor, is exactly what they
want to avoid as well. And this growing uncertainty about Europe's place in all of this and the Trump administration's backing for Ukraine, leaving
everyone here deeply anxious.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And this idea of European peacekeepers in Ukraine, I mean, so far, Nick, I believe it was only the U.K., the Prime Minister Starmer,
there, who had even suggested that they may to do so and that was followed quickly by British military officials that said that due to years of budget
cuts that they don't even think they have the manpower. They're not equipped for such a long-term large operation like bringing troops over
into Ukraine.
But I guess the bigger question is no matter what European troops may ultimately become peacekeepers without a U.S. backstop, does it even really
matter?
WALSH: Yes. I mean, look, you know, I think it's a bit harsh to suggest that the Europeans aren't equipped to take on Russia without any American
support, but it's pretty close to the reality, because essentially NATO has been built around the idea of the most powerful military in the world
having a series of well-financed European democracies assisting it too, often with smaller forces.
Europe's never really been a continent where the idea of another land war has been conceived of, and that's what made the Russian invasion, the
second invasion of Ukraine in 2022, quite so jarring.
[12:15:04]
And the concept that the American logistics, air power, the sheer volume of force that the United States can bring in terms of troops and equipment to
a fight like that would not be available to Europe has obviously left many Europeans in a state of acute anxiety.
Yes, they can do something, certainly. Yes, they can get into the fight, but there's no way really they could hold off a rejuvenated, refurbished,
refitted Russian military where they in some state in the future to push again forwards through Ukraine.
So it's a massive recalibration of the concept of security on the continent, one that may possibly be short lived in that, you know, the
Trump administration seems to vacillate between one policy and the other on a weekly basis.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth comments in Brussels about Ukraine and NATO membership were reversed in a matter of hours. So things, you
know, can continually change. And we heard indeed Ukraine and Russia envoy, Keith Kellogg, say that Europe wouldn't be part of peace talks but then the
national security adviser Mike Waltz today in Saudi Arabia said that they should be and they would be.
So a lot is constantly moving. Is this the art of the deal, the art of high negotiation? Possibly, but you can't really call people's bluff or make
sleight of hand when it comes to basic things like geopolitical security between Europe and Russia.
Putin will see weakness there. He'll see opportunity. And I think that's what's got so many European leaders so deeply concerned at exactly how
Moscow interprets this and what possible space for maneuver it sees.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. I think it's fair to say Putin's already seen some opportunity unfold in just the last week and a half.
Nick Paton Walsh, thank you so much.
Well, still to come, passengers recount their terrifying experience surviving a plane crash in Toronto.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We hit the ground and we were sideways and then we were upside down hanging like bats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: Remarkably, all 80 people on board survived this crash. We'll bring you more details on what exactly happened after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: An investigation is underway to determine what caused a Delta Airlines plane to crash and flip over while trying to land at Toronto's
Pearson Airport on Monday.
We're expecting to hear from airport officials any moment with an update on the incident. CNN obtained this video from the cockpit of another plane
showing the moment the crash happened.
Well, look at that video. It's remarkable that all 80 people on board survived and managed to get out of that jet.
[12:20:09]
CNN's Jason Carroll is following this developing story for us from Toronto.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on.
CARROLL (voice over): dramatic moments captured on the runway at Toronto's Pearson Airport as passengers escaped from a Delta commuter jet, which had
just crashed and flipped upside down.
One by one, passengers ran for their safety. One says all seemed normal as the aircraft was on final approach yesterday afternoon, then suddenly a
hard landing.
JOHN NELSON, TORONTO PLANE CRASH SURVIVOR: When we hit, it was just a super hard light-like I hit the ground and the plane went sideways. And I believe
we skidded like on our side and then flipped over on our back where we ended out. There was like a big fireball.
PETER KOUKOV, TORONTO PLANE CRASH SURVIVOR: We didn't really know anything was the matter, or at least I didn't, until like the second we hit the
ground. There was no like real indication of anything. And then, yes, we hit the ground, then we were sideways and then we were upside down hanging
like bats.
CARROLL (voce-over): Flight 4819 was inbound from Minneapolis carrying 80 people on board.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Clear to land 23, Endeavor 4819.
CARROLL (voice-over): Air traffic control cleared the CRJ-900 to land. Already questions if weather could have played a role in the crash. Wind
gusts at the time reached almost 40 miles per hour.
Over the past week, Toronto hit with nearly two feet of snow.
TODD AITKEN, TORONTO AIRPORT FIRE CHIEF: This is an active investigation. It's very early on. It's really important that we do not speculate. What we
can say is the runway was dry and there was no crosswind conditions.
CARROLL: The incident comes as the aviation industry still reeling from recent accidents involving an American Airlines commuter jet and a military
chopper near Washington, D.C., a medevac jet in Philadelphia, and a Bering Air flight near Nome, Alaska. Passengers on board flight 4819 say it is
remarkable everyone survived.
KOUKOV: Just feeling lucky and happy I got to give the person I didn't know sitting next to me a big hug that we were OK and be my friend here to pick
me up from the airport and give them a big hug and, yes, get home, who knows when, but get home and give my family a big hug.
CARROLL: Investigators have several factors working in their favor the plane is intact. They will have easy access to the cockpit voice recorder
as well as the flight data recorder. They'll be able to interview the pilot as well as the co-pilot to get their input in terms of what happened in the
final moments on approach.
But even with all of that, it still could be some time before we have a final verdict in terms of exactly what went wrong here.
Jason Carroll, CNN, Toronto.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: Let's bring in our own Paula Newton with more on this incident yesterday. And it is indeed a miracle, Paula, when you watch that footage
and know that all 80 on board, or I know there are injuries, but that all 80 on board survived that incident. Tell us what we do know as we're
expecting to hear from officials there at the airport.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And to that end, Bianna, so thankful that of the 21 that were injured, two remain in hospital. We don't know
exactly the type of injuries that they have. Only that authorities say that they are non-life-threatening. I mean, really, we all need to be grateful
for that.
In terms of this investigation, we are awaiting that press conference, which should happen in any moment in Toronto. We're not expecting to hear
more, though, about the investigation at that point.
The Transportation Safety Board in Canada will be taking over that investigation. They are at this hour in conjunction with the NTSB, although
Canada is lead. We'll expect a preliminary report within the month.
And that's important, Bianna, because of the lessons learned. You know, there was an incident, a very traumatic incident as well, in Toronto in
2005, where you had an Air France jet that skidded off the runway into a ravine. Nearly 300 people also came out of that crash, all of them
survived. There were some injuries. Again, it is the issue of lessons learned.
I do want to highlight that the fire chief there in Jason's report was saying that, you know, there was no crosswind and that the runway was dry.
And, of course, we take him at his word. Will that bear out though in terms of what they find in the investigation?
Bianna, I was on this tarmac about an hour before this incident. The snow was blowing everywhere. The winds were incredible. Certainly though, the
flying conditions were safe. That's what the airport had determined at the time.
Again, once we go through all the details of this investigation, and there is so much data, not to mention the videos, the very dramatic videos that
we're looking at, all of us will learn more about what perhaps should have been done in order to avoid this or if there was nothing that could have
been done.
And despite the weather, as you heard the fire chief say there, you can't speculate. It might have been something with the landing gear. It might
have been something else with the airplane.
[12:25:03]
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
NEWTON: The weather is certainly contributing to how quickly they could get people out.
GOLODRYGA: Paula, sorry to interrupt you. The press conference has just begun. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Toronto Pearson CEO and President Deborah Flint will be providing an update on airport operations and the investigation
following Monday's incident. We also have several representatives from our first responder agencies as well as our COO of Toronto Pearson Operations.
So behind me are Peel regional police deputy chief Marc Andrews. Peel paramedics commander of operations, Cory Tkatch. Mississauga fire Chief
Deryn Rizzi. And Toronto Pearson's fire Chief Todd Aitken. And Khalil Lamrabet from our COO of Toronto Pearson.
With that, I'd like to welcome Toronto Pearson CEO, Deborah Flint, who will take a couple of questions after her remarks. Following that, our first
responders are available to also answer some questions. Thank you.
DEBORAH FLINT, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, GREATER TORONTO AIRPORTS AUTHORITY: Thank you, Karen. And good morning to all. We are
providing a third update this morning on yesterday's events as the accident transitions to the investigation phase. And I will share more on that
investigation phase and what to expect shortly.
First, however, it's really important to recognize how grateful we are that there was no loss of life or life-threatening injuries in yesterday's
accident.
You know, every time you'd board a flight, you are greeted by flight attendants and by flight crew often. It's their job to make us comfortable
and confident about the flight ahead and they do an incredible job with that.
But we saw the most important role that they play in action yesterday. The crew of Delta Flight 4819, heroically, led passengers to safety, evacuating
a jet that had overturned on the runway on landing that was amidst smoke and fire.
I thank each and every one of these heroes, every flight attendant, and crew member on Delta Flight 4819. I also thank every flight attendant and
crew member across the industry. Thank you for all that you do every day and every night in service of safe air travel.
In regards to the accident yesterday, at approximately 2:15 P.M. Delta Airlines Flight 4819 from Minneapolis to Toronto operated by subsidiary
Endeavor Air, was involved in a single aircraft accident upon landing at Toronto Pearson.
The plane was carrying four crew and 76 passengers, among them 22 Canadians. Flight attendants, flight crews, and airport emergency workers
and responders mounted a textbook response, reaching the site within minutes and quickly evacuating the passengers.
At the time, there were 21 injured passengers ranging from minor to critical but not life-threatening injuries. A total of 19 passengers went
to the local hospitals with two more going to hospitals in the time period after.
At this time, Delta Airlines has reported that 19 of those passengers have been released and two remain hospitalized. Our thoughts go out to all of
the passengers impacted and their families.
We have taken great time and care to extend care to each of the passengers that were here after the accident. That includes comfort as well as support
in their emotional well-being in the hours since the crash.
We have completed the reunification process for all of the remaining passengers and we'll continue to care for them during this extended time.
I will now give you more information about the operations at Pearson yesterday and what to expect in the days ahead.
From last Thursday to Sunday, Toronto Pearson saw extreme conditions, two separate snow storms. On Thursday and Sunday, we got more than 20 inches,
50 centimeters of accumulated snow. That is actually not typical.
In fact, it is more snow within that time window than we received in all of last winter. There were many delays and cancellations across this part of
Canada and the U.S. Northeast during this time, creating numerous flight delays and backlogs.
At Toronto Pearson, 221 of 974 scheduled flights were cancelled on Thursday, 75 of 1,012 flights scheduled flights were cancelled on Friday.
128 of 937 scheduled flights were cancelled on Saturday and 371 of 987 scheduled flights were cancelled on Sunday.
[12:30:15]
Monday was a clear day though and it was an operational recovery day for Toronto Pearson with 1,006 scheduled flights. The results yesterday, in due
part to the accident where 462 scheduled flights cancelled and 544 flights operated.
Let's now talk about the investigation and what to expect in the next few days as we pivot to this phase.
Last night, seven members of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada arrived at Toronto Pearson to begin the investigation. Thirteen more of
those investigators arrived today. Members of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration are also here on site participating in the investigation.
As it is the Mitsubishi Aircraft, Mitsubishi will be her on site as well. And Delta Airlines has sent their go team who are already here on site.
So, what does this all mean for operations at Toronto Pearson today and in the days ahead? Our emergency operations center does remain open, though
operations on the runways resumed at 5:00 P.M. Eastern time yesterday.
We have been in recovery mode since resuming flights at 5:00 P.M. yesterday, catching up on delayed flights, and that continues into today as
well.
We are currently without use of our longest east-west and north-south runways. This and ongoing expected additional weather conditions today will
affect how fast we recover operations, particularly with departure of aircraft.
We do expect that the investigators on site will be reviewing the aircraft on its current configuration on the runway for the next 48 hours. And we
are looking to get to support that investigation and the removal of that aircraft off the runway, at which point we can do our inspections and then
return that runway into service.
Toronto Pearson will continue to provide you all with operational updates, but this is now an active investigation time and you can expect to start
hearing more from the investigating authorities about the accident that happened here.
We expect that the Transportation Safety Board of Canada will be issuing a statement with more information around that later this afternoon.
In closing, I thank the industry, the community, and all of our employees here and across the sector for all the work that they are doing to support
this incident and those affected and that they do every day.
Air travel remains the safest form of transportation. We are proud of that record here. And at a time like these, we're very grateful and thankful of
how the community and the industry comes together as one.
Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll now take a few questions. Folks who maybe can come up to the mics if possible, or if there's a mic in the audience. OK.
ALEX CAPRARIELLO, NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, NEWSNATION: Hi there. Alex Caprariello with NewsNation. A question about the conditions yesterday.
Obviously, you just explained the extent of the snowstorms that came over the past few days.
Wondering if there's been any developments or any comment about what exactly it was like on the runway in terms of iciness or wind gusts. Last
night, we heard the fire chief say that he did not believe that that played a role in this crash at all. Is that still the theory here? And if so, do
we have any developments on what caused the crash if it wasn't weather- related?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK.
FLINT: Yes. This would not be a time for us to have theory or to speculate on what caused the crash. So as I shared, you know, we have a number of
agencies that are here that are responsible for doing a thorough and full and complete investigation to determine all the causal factors. And we are
looking forward to getting those results and to sharing those. And those will be shared very publicly once they are received.
CAPRARIELLO: And I understand that if you don't want to speculate about the crash. But can you tell us then what the condition of the runway was like
at that time of the -- of the impact? I mean, was it slick? Have your teams been able to determine that?
FLINT: I look forward to sharing all of that information at the proper time. Again, that is all the -- those are all the details that are going to
be covered during this investigation. And that is active, currently.
VJOSA ISAI, REPORTER, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Hi there. Vjosa Isai from "The New York Times." I have one question and a follow-up.
Does air traffic control handle CRJs differently than other aircraft in crosswinds?
FLINT: The air traffic control is responsible, NAV Canada, all of the aircraft activity here at Toronto Pearson and in the surrounding areas.
They will have to respond differently themselves as to how they manage those aircraft uniquely.
[12:35:10]
ISAI: And how do you decide to pause operations because of wind and who makes that decision?
FLINT: That is a cross collected decision that is made between NAV Canada and the pilots during live operations. We are not pausing operations. We do
have a slowdown in the operations due to two of our runways being closed for operations at this time. And those are the key contributing factors to
the delays.
ISAI: Last question, there's no Delta or TSB representatives on the stage with you right now? Are you able to speak to why they're not present?
FLINT: We've been very much in communication with all of those involved, all of the agencies, Delta Airlines and others. We've all had quite
extensive communication. They've been in our EOC, our Emergency Operations Center.
So the system and the response to the accident is working as planned and going quite well with our partners.
JOHN WAWROW, JOURNALIST, ASSOCIATED PRESS: John Wawrow with the "Associated Press." Two questions. One is the two people who remain in the hospital.
Any timeline on how long they may remain?
FLINT: I do not have that information.
WAWROW: Are they -- do you know what condition they're in?
FLINT: What we do know is that, again, 19 of those that were hospitalized are no longer hospitalized. The two that remain, none face life-threatening
injuries from what we've been briefed and what Delta Airlines has released as well.
WAWROW: And just finally, Deborah, given what we saw from all the videos, that are on social media, and I'm sure what you've seen internally, how is
it more remarkable that everyone was able to you, that everyone was able to, you know, survive this incident?
FLINT: There are so many factors that lead us to have gratitude today. Again, I cannot commend enough the crew, the flight attendants, pilots, and
our emergency responders for their quick and effective response.
It's really, really incredible. And when you see that aircraft, it just makes you really thankful for all the safety checks that go into running
this one of the world's safest air transportation systems.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. We'll take questions now from the first -- for the first responders, please.
MOMIN QURESHI, REPORTER, 680 NEWSRADIO: Good morning. Momin Qureshi from 680 NewsRadio.
My question really is, last checked, the wreckage was still out there on the runway. I just wanted to know how long that will be out there and what
kind of impact that's having on service here at the airport.
FLINT: Yes. So as I shared, yes, that the remains of the aircraft will remain on the runway while the investigators are performing their reviews.
We expect that that could be about 48 hours. And so until that time, two of our runways will remain closed. And that is affecting the volume of traffic
that we're having.
So passengers should be looking and working with their airlines, checking our website for information on delays and potential cancellations as well
for the next several days.
QURESHI: Just as a follow up to that, then I've been upstairs as many of us have talking to passengers and many of them, most of them, all of them
really are understanding of the ripple effect, but are extremely frustrated by the lack of information or conflicting information.
So just what do you say to your passengers right now who are trying to get themselves on flights to their destinations but are left feeling frustrated
by conflicting information or a lack of information?
FLINT: We are -- we are here very much at the airport to support and provide passenger care for people that might find themselves here at their
airport and have their flights disrupted. So we'll continue to provide that customer care for them.
But in the interim, please do check with your airlines, check your website, and check your apps for your most updated flight information.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. We'll move now to questions to the responders. Thank you.
SHAUNA HUNT, REPORTER, CITYNEWS: Yes, sure. It's Shauna with City News. Can you talk a little bit about the response? How long it took fire trucks to
get to the plane? And can you talk a little bit about the flame that we saw in the video and the smoke? And, you know, was it easy to put out? And just
really take us through the response.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right, Todd.
AITKEN: Thank you for the question. The actual time, it was a very quick response from Toronto Pearson Fire Emergency Services. Upon arrival, the
crew did witness spot fires. They were able to quickly knock down the spot fires using the aircraft rescue firefighting apparatus.
Once the fires were knocked down, the crews did make entry and perform primary search and rescue. The passengers were all evacuated and then they
were taken to a secondary location at Station Two for triage with our mutual aid partners.
HUNT: OK. Just a quick follow-up. Can you describe what it was like because we've seen videos of the passengers hanging upside down in their seatbelts?
Can you maybe just describe what it was like to get these people, you know, hanging, cut down and out of the -- out of the plane?
[12:40:08]
AITKEN: I believe that most of the passengers, self-evacuated at that time. And upon arrival, they were being escorted to a second location.
NATE FOY, CORRESPONDENT, FOX NEWS: Hello. Nate Foy, Fox News.
I'm just seeking some clarity from a first responder's perspective on the elements and how they played a role in your efforts yesterday. I know a lot
of people are hoping for some clarity on what the fire chief said. And it sounds like you guys won't give us that.
But can you tell me what it was like out there on the runway as you were doing your job? Was the runway dry? And the wind gusts, how did it impact
you?
AITKEN: And like we made it very early to make any conclusions, I know I provided a little bit of information yesterday for transparency. Today, now
we have an active investigation. Therefore, any of those questions would have to be directed toward Transportation Safety Board.
CARYN LIEBERMAN, REPORTER, GLOBAL NEWS: Hi there. Caryn Lieberman with Global News. Besides the chief, I just wondered if any of the other first
responders can speak to their own experiences and what you found and how you cared for some of these passengers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sure.
AITKEN: Marc.
MARC ANDREWS, DEPUTY CHIEF OF PEEL REGIONAL POLICE: Thank you for the question. Marc Andrews, Deputy Chief of Peel Regional Police.
I'd like to -- before I answer the question, I'd like to say that our thoughts and prayers are with the 76 crew members and four passengers and
their families that were impacted by yesterday's events, which fortunately had the best possible outcome for all of us.
Our response as Peel Regional Police, we're the police of jurisdiction. We have a really robust presence here at the airport. We actually have a fully
function in division with 100 officers and civilians located. We have a presence on the public side and the private side. So we were able to
respond in a, you know, very timely fashion, along with our first responder partners.
The conditions were difficult. But I will say this, that we regularly practice with our partners in fire and EMS and the GTAA and Transport
Safety Canada. So we were prepared for this event as extreme as it was. And our men and women, not only in policing, but across all the first responder
services, did a tremendous job. And in my mind, no doubt saved lives. So I'd like to acknowledge that.
There was some impact, you know, on the police of jurisdiction being ourselves, not only here at the airport, because as you can imagine, we
don't have search capacity to deal with something like this the way they do in the private industry.
So you know we had -- at one point, we had 50 police officers responding to the circumstances here at the airport and the surrounding environment.
What I'd like to do is thank our partners at the OPP, Commissioner Tom arrique and Chief Myron Demkiw because they supported us through the after
math of the incident by sending officers to support both of our public divisions, 11 and 12 divisions in Mississauga.
You know, all in all, it was a great response by first responders supporting GTAA and our TSB partners, but it's something that we've
practiced and we're well prepared for should this happen again going forward.
DERYN RIZZI, MISSISSAUGA FIRE CHIEF: Mississauga Fire and Communication Services received the 911 call. It's called a crash alarm. So we get it
directly from Pearson into our communication center. So we had a very quick response. We had six apparatus from Mississauga Fire respond. It was a
combination of aerials, engines and squads.
In addition, we sent our command vehicle and also a tanker. We also had an acting platoon chief, a district chief and myself that attended the scene.
I took a position within their emergency operations center.
Just to reiterate what Deputy just said, annually. our firefighters participate in joint training with Pearson Fire at a location called FESTI.
It's a training facility.
[12:45:00]
Our primary response is to assist with water supply, search and rescue, rehab and medical support.
The Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services and Mississauga Office of Emergency Management participates in two annual emergency exercises that
are held at Toronto Pearson International Airport each year, including a high-level tabletop command exercise and a full-scale boots on the ground
emergency exercise.
In addition to the exercises conducted each year at Toronto Pearson International Airport, the City of Mississauga conducts its own functional
emergency exercise and we did that in 2021, examining an aircraft accident occurring within the City of Mississauga. This exercise included partners
from various organizations including those represented in the exercises held here regularly at Pearson.
The Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services and OEM provides emergency management training to regional partners from various organizations who may
be involved in the response to an aircraft accident amongst other emergencies.
The Mississauga Office of Emergency Management can also serve as a conduit between the city and the Provincial Emergency Operations Centre if
provincial wide coordination for the response and recovery of community impacts during an emergency is required.
During an aircraft accident, the Mississauga Office of Emergency Management can assist in the coordination of providing municipal services if requested
by our community partners who may be impacted in the event.
This could include transportation like buses, facilities or heavy equipment. The city of Mississauga has developed its own Aircraft Accident
Emergency Plan which conforms with and operates in conjunction to the airport emergency plan developed by the Greater Toronto Airport Authority.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thanks. That was a fulsome response.
LIEBERMAN: I just also wondered if anyone can speak to the nature of some of the injuries.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you want to speak to some of the nature?
CORY TKATCH, PEEL PARAMEDICS COMMANDER OF OPERATIONS: Good afternoon. My name is Cory Tkatch. I'm a commander of operations within Peel Regional
paramedic services.
So upon our arrival of the crash site, our staff were faced with a multitude of different injuries, mainly stemming from back sprains, head
injuries, anxiety, some headaches, nausea and vomiting due to the fuel exposure.
So those were the common sort of injuries that we had come across.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Any more questions?
MAAN ALHMIDI, REPORTER, CANADIAN PRESS: Yes, please. Maan Alhmidi, Canadian Press.
Just want to follow up on this rescue effort. Can you please provide some details on the timeline? How long did you -- I mean, paramedics and
firefighters did it take for them to get to the airplane? And how long did it take for them to evacuate the airplane?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Todd, you want to take that?
AITKEN: Yes. The response from Toronto Pearson Fire Emergency Services was minutes. Because there is an active investigation, we won't be able to
provide the details. But it was a very quick response from Fire and Emergency Services, as well as our response partners that just spoke.
ALHMIDI: Can you please also comment on the role that flight attendants played in evacuating the airplane? We saw some videos on social media. They
were basically doing their job, helping passengers get off the plane. Can you please comment on their role in this?
AITKEN: Sure, absolutely. We train for such events. We're very well prepared and trained. And the firefighters responded textbook. They were
able to knock down the fire. They're able to assist the passengers getting off the plane and then performing triage and then response to the
hospitals.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Next question.
ALEX MILLER, NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, SCRIPPS NEWS: Hi. I'm Alex Miller with Scripps News.
I know you can't confirm what you saw on the runway. But can you confirm that the runway had been coded as fives across the board as a wet runway
for the -- for the pilots, which is a runway with light snow or slush?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's already a followedup question. Do you want to answer? Or do you want to repeat it? Get it?
AITKEN: Yes. Like I mentioned earlier, because there is an active investigation, that will have to be directed towards the Transport Safety
Board, please.
[12:50:08]
JESSICA MURPHY, NEWS EDITOR, BBC NEWS: Hi. Jessica Murphy, BBC News. I want to go back to something Mr. Andrews said. You talked about difficult
conditions that rescuers faced on the ground. I'm hoping you could go into a bit more detail.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sorry, with who said? Sorry.
MURPHY: BBC.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, what? No, sorry, you.
MURPHY: Peel Regional Police.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Peel Regional Police.
ANDREWS: Thank you for that question. The conditions that I was speaking of is the environmental conditions, the cold, the wind. The fact that, you
know, we were still having the occasional snow. But those conditions, again, that we're used to working in as first responders, and our people,
along with the other first responders, did a tremendous job of responding in those conditions.
It's part of the environment that we operated.
MEAGAN FITZPATRICK, REPORTER, CBC NEWS: Meagan Fitzpatrick from CBC News. What can you tell us about the child that was airlifted to sick kids? Do we
know if the child was on somebody's lap or buckled in? What can you tell us about the nature of their injuries?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. No, we don't. I'm sorry.
FITZPATRICK: You don't know if the child is in a lap?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, we don't have that -- those details.
FITZPATRICK: Can you give us an age range of the passengers on the plane?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't have that either. I would direct that to Delta.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to take two more questions.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Okay.
FITZPATRICK: And just one more. Of the two that are in hospital, is one of them the child?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're not sure either.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have a quick question for fire. Did fire responders fear the spread of the fire? And can you speak to the properties of jet
fuel? How flammable is it? How much time did that give you to tame it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. Did you -- question? OK. It's on the jet fuel.
AITKEN: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Whether they were.
AITKEN: Yes. Upon arrival, there was jet fuel and there was flames. We do have specialized aircraft rescue firefighting equipment that carries water,
foam, and dry chem and that -- it is utilized to smother and cover up the jet fuel to provide mean-free egress for the passengers.
So we do have the appropriate equipment and the appropriate training to mitigate that emergency.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. We'll take the last question.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just like a last question.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: All right. We have been listening to a press conference from officials at Toronto International Airport following up on yesterday's
plane crash when remarkably all 80 passengers on board that Delta regional jet that landed on its -- flipped over. And we saw the video there, the
ball of fire that ensued following the landing as it flipped over. That regional jet, the investigation is under -- on its way right now, under
investigation right now, ongoing.
What we did learn is that two of the 21 passengers injured in the Delta crash have been released from the hospital.
Let's bring in Paula Newton and CNN transportation analyst Mary Schiavo. And, Paula, you've been covering the story. Also, you've been impacted by
the harsh weather conditions, too. I know you experienced weather delays yesterday at the airport there in Canada. Speak to what we heard from the
president and CEO of the airport, citing the unusual snowfall that they've had over the last few days.
NEWTON: Well, I'll be really interested to get Mary's perspective on this. So I'll just put my perspective on this.
There was a remarkable amount of snow on the runway. And Deborah Flint, who is an experienced airport executive, she was at LAX beforehand, as I was
saying, did not get into the details of the investigation because they don't want to prejudice any of the investigation.
But clearly at the heart of this are the weather conditions. Why? There is going to be a question, some of it will be for NAV Canada, which deals with
air traffic control in Canada. It is in fact a nonprofit private company. It's oversight is by the government, but it's not a government agency.
There will be a question as to whether or not that specific plane at that specific time should have been landing at that point. And I'd love to hear
from Mary in terms --
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
NEWTON: -- of what she heard as well from this.
GOLODRYGA: Mary, what if anything stood out to you from what we've heard from officials today?
MARY SCHIAVO, CNN TRANSPORTATION ANALYST: Well, and I agree, they kind of walked back yesterday. One of the -- in one of the briefings yesterday,
they said, well, it was clear and the runway was dry. And yet, all these videos, we see that it really wasn't.
And so I think they wisely said today, look, you know, the weather, the weather conditions, the winds, I mean, that's all reported by
meteorological equipment. They will know this. They -- well, they already know this. They're looking at it now.
So I think that they walked that back because it is a big issue, the role that weather played. The weather clearly played some role. And, of course,
they wouldn't want to speculate on that because if the weather is as bad as some of the warnings.
Now, there's a little difference in some of the warnings that we've gotten, but if the weather is as bad as some of the worst warnings, then the issue
is should this plane have been landing, you know, unfortunately once it's touched -- you know, once it touched down ordinarily you could do a -- you
know, you could do a touch-and-go or takeoff. Well, touch and go isn't appropriate for a big commercial busy airport.
[12:55:15]
But they had some options until the second they touched down. But if that landing was not controlled, they shouldn't have touched down.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And I guess more information will come from the black box itself, once we get more detail ensued in those final few seconds of the
flight.
Mary, the winds were 29 miles per hour, relatively high, but not unheard of for planes to land in that kind of condition. Did that stand out to you at
all?
SCHIAVO: Well, yes, it did, because now that's pretty stiff wind. But what we also will be looking at, or the investigators will be looking at, is the
crosswinds. And what happened just as that plane touched down was there a - - you know, the -- I did hear that they said there was off and on snow. Was the vision of the pilot obscured?
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
SCHIAVO: Could the pilot not get a good vision of the runway? There are a lot of things that will come with that yet, but there was --
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
SCHIAVO: -- some information that it wasn't clear as we thought.
GOLODRYGA: All right. We'll have to leave it there. This investigation is underway now. We'll bring you any new information that we get in the hours
and days to come.
Paula Newton, CNN transportation analyst, Mary Schiavo, thank you so much.
And that does it for this hour of ONE WORLD. I'm Bianna Golodryga. Don't go anywhere. I'll be right back after a quick break with "AMANPOUR."
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