the landing gear telling the plane it is on the ground not flying. turning off pressurization and the autopilot. if it thinks it s on the ground, it s going to want to pull the throttles all the way back. so there s no more thrust out of the engines. reporter: alaska air says a backup system immediately restored air pressure in the cabin. oxygen masks were never deployed. and the pilots took the flight controls. systems are not working properly you need to know how to manually fly the airplane and bring it back safely. reporter: and just like that, the pilots took control. flying the big jet in by hand, like it was a cessna. jim avila, abc news, washington. we turn to a developing story and the latest on a risky rescue mission at the bottom of the world. an american has been picked up from the mcmurdo station in antarctica, arriving in christchurch, new zealand.
this morning on world news now systems failure. the frightening emergency in the skies over california. what went wrong on an alaska airlines flight and what the cockpit crew did to prevent disaster. it s thursday, august 9th. announcer: from abc news, this is world news now. good morning, everybody. i m rob nelson. and i m sunny hostin in for paula faris. we ll explain what happened over california and hear from some frightened passengers in just a moment. and then to the drama taking place right now involving a medical emergency in antarctica, a risky air-lift just to save an american.
ago. investigators returned to a former grocery store where the man who confessed to killing the little boy once worked. the case against pedro hernandez has been put on hold as doctors try to determine whether he is mentally competent. a southern california woman who police say tried to kidnap a newborn has appeared in court for the first time. giselle ramirez will face charges of kidnapping and burglary in connection with the incident. if convicted she could face 17 years behind bars. investigators say ramirez wore hospital scrubs when she tried to take the infant out of the hospital in a tote bag. and now to the developing story we are following at the bottom of the world involving a risky rescue. an american has been picked up from the mcmurdo research station in antarctica, arriving in christchurch, new zealand. the mission considered very difficult because it is winter in antarctica right now. the rescue flight was timed so it arrived during a narrow window of daylight yester
the mission was very risky because it is winter in antarctica. the rescue flight was timed. it arrived during narrow window of daylight yesterday. we don t know the patient s identity or what he or she is suffering from. the person is said to be in stable condition and treated at a hospital in new zealand. an update now on the wisconsin temple shooting. the fbi says the gunman killed himself with a shot to the head after being wounded by a police officer on the scene. authorities had previously said a police bullet killed wade michael page. three people hurt in the suburban milwaukee shooting are still hospitalized in critical condition. we talked earlier this week the irony of this happening weeks after the aurora movie theater massacre that we saw, and in fact, colorado s governor called the governor of wisconsin to express support. saying, look, pretty much i have been there. i m still going through this. kind of almost sharing notes on how your state deals with such a high-prof
the case against pedro hernandez has been put on hold as doctors try to determine whether he is mentally competent. a southern california woman who police say tried to kidnap a newborn has appeared in court for the first time. giselle ramirez will face charges of kidnapping and burglary in connection with the incident. if convicted she could face 17 years behind bars. investigators say ramirez wore hospital scrubs when she tried to take the infant out of the hospital in a tote bag. and now to the developing story we are following at the bottom of the world involving a risky rescue. an american has been picked up from the mcmurdo research station in antarctica, arriving in christchurch, new zealand. the mission was considered very difficult because, of course, it is winter in antarctica right now. the rescue flight was timed so it arrived during a narrow window of daylight yesterday. we don t know the patient s name