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CNN BREAKING NEWS

Man in Stolen Cessna Threatens to Crash Plane Into European Central Bank Building

Aired January 5, 2003 - 10:22   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: More now on the breaking story we're following for you out of Frankfurt with the airport there is closed. Buildings have been cleared because it's reported that a stolen plane is circling the city there, and our Chris Burns is on the telephone now with a little bit more information hopefully about the circumstances there -- Chris.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka, a pretty dramatic sight here in the last few minutes here where this single-engine Cessna plane has been circling round and round over the skyline, the skyscrapers of Frankfurt.

This is a big banking city. A lot of buildings that are very tall, and in the last few minutes it has flown between two skyscrapers and it continues to fly at a very low altitude, sometimes at a very high speed. It did take a dive about a half an hour ago and pulled out just before it appeared that it was about ready to crash into the buildings of Frankfurt. So a very dramatic scene here.

Police continually evacuating and pushing people away from the bridges here. Downtown is the scene where the police have been circling around trying to shoo people away. The word that we have from the police is this is somebody who has taken this plane who is threatening to crash into the European Central Bank if he is not able to talk to an American named Charles Resnick.

The airport, as you say, the Frankfurt Airport, one of the busiest in the world, has been shut down as the authorities tried to get this plane to land, but all we see up to now is a police helicopter that's been circling around after it, and we continue to watch. Thousands of us here along the river, the Main (ph) river of Frankfurt, watching, and anxiously as this plain just flew over my head at a very low altitude, and is coming back around, flying over the skyscrapers once again as we watch anxiously -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Very dramatic scene indeed. Chris Burns, thanks very much for being on the telephone with us. We're going to continue to follow this breaking story out of Frankfurt.

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European Central Bank Building>

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