United Airlines Flight 811, a Boeing 747-122 (registration number N4713U), took off from Honolulu International Airport bound for Sydney, Australia, via Auckland, New Zealand with 3 flight crew, 15 flight attendants, and 337 passengers aboard. As the 747 climbed to between 22,000 and 23,000 feet the R5 cargo door tore open, decompressing the cabin and leaving a gaping hole. Five rows of business class seats were blown out of the aircraft, along with nine passengers. Severely injured, a flight attendant was lying down beside the hole caused by the decompression. Because the cabin was no longer pressurized, the pilots initiated an emergency descent to reach an altitude with breathable air. The explosion had knocked out the number three engine and the number four engine caught fire. Despite only partial flaps (a portion of the shed fuselage damaged the flaps on one wing) and concerns over the plane's landing gear and structural integrity, the crew made a perfect landing and deployed all ten evacuation slides on the aircraft. The evacuation was completed in 90 seconds, with no additional injuries occurring. Flight: United Airlines Flight 811 AKA: Ripped From the Sky
American Airlines Flight 1420 was a flight from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport to Little Rock National Airport. On June 1, 1999, a McDonnell Douglas MD-82 (registration number N215AA) overran the runway upon landing in Little Rock and crashed. According to the NTSB's report, the crew of Flight 1420 learned that the winds were changing direction and that a windshear alert had sounded on the airport due to a thunderstorm nearby. The crew was originally told to expect Runway 22L for landing but requested a change to Runway 4R. As the aircraft approached Runway 4R, a severe thunderstorm arrived over the airport. The controller's last report to the crew prior to landing stated that the winds were 330 degrees at 28 knots. During the rushed approach, the pilots had failed to arm the spoilers, devices atop the wings that reduce lift by "spoiling" airflow. After landing, the first officer stated, "We're down. We're sliding." The aircraft never fully settled onto its landing gear and therefore braking was ineffective. Despite the application of brakes and reverse thrust, the aircraft skidded off the far end of the runway at high speed and crashed into an approach lighting tier, ending up on the banks of the Arkansas River. Such structures are usually frangible - i.e. designed to shear off on impact - but because the approach lights were located on the unstable river bank, they were firmly anchored and the impact destroyed the aircraft. It broke into three pieces and ignited. The pilot, one of six crew members, died in the crash, along with 10 of the 139 passengers. Flight: American Airlines Flight 1420 AKA: Fatal Landing
Swissair Flight 111 (SR-111, SWR-111) was a Swissair McDonnell Douglas MD-11 on a scheduled airline flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, United States to Cointrin International Airport in Geneva, Switzerland. This flight was also a codeshare flight with Delta Air Lines. On September 2, 1998 the aircraft used for the flight, registered HB-IWF, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean southwest of Halifax International Airport at the entrance to St. Margarets Bay, Nova Scotia. The crash site was 8 km from shore, roughly equidistant between the tiny fishing and tourist communities of Peggys Cove and Bayswater. All 229 people on board were killed. The resulting investigation by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) took over four years and cost US$39 million (CAD$57 million). Their main conclusion was that flammable material used in the aircraft's structure allowed a fire to spread beyond the control of the crew, resulting in the loss of control and crash of the aircraft Flight: Swissair Flight 111 AKA: Fire in the Sky
On 31 January 2000, Alaska Airlines Flight 261 crashes into the Pacific Ocean, killing all 88 people on board. The horizontal stabilizer had jammed due to an improperly maintained jackscrew.
AeroPeru Flight 603 was a scheduled flight from Jorge Chávez International Airport in Lima(LIM), to Comodoro Arturo Merino Benítez International Airport in Santiago, which crashed on October 2, 1996. The flight originated in Miami, Florida. On October 2, 1996, just past midnight, the Boeing 757 airliner crew, shortly after takeoff, reported receiving contradictory emergency messages, such as rudder ratio, overspeed, underspeed and flying too low, from the onboard computer; asked for an emergency to be declared and decided to return to base. Faced with the contradictory warnings, the pilot decided to descend. It was only when one wing touched water, almost an hour after emergency declaration, that the pilots realized how confused and disoriented they were. All nine crew members and sixty-one passengers died. Flight: AeroPeru Flight 603
Air Transat Flight 236 was an Air Transat route between Toronto and Lisbon flown by Captain Robert Piché and First Officer Dirk Dejager. On August 24, 2001, the flight ran out of fuel over the Atlantic Ocean with 306 people (293 passengers + 13 crew) aboard. The flight crew was able to successfully land the plane in the Azores with no loss of life. Flight: Air Transat Flight 236
Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529, registration N256AS, was a Embraer Brasilia aircraft that crashed near Carrollton, Georgia on August 21, 1995 while on a flight from the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport in Gulfport, Mississippi. Nine of the 29 passengers and crew on board eventually died due to injuries suffered in the accident. Flight: Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529 AKA: Wounded Bird AKA: A Wounded Bird
British Airways Flight 5390 was a British Airways flight between Birmingham International Airport in Birmingham, England and Málaga, Spain. On June 10, 1990 the airplane suffered an explosive decompression when an improperly installed pane of the windshield blew out; the flight crew managed to perform an emergency landing in Southampton with no loss of life. Flight: British Airways Flight 5390 AKA: Blow Out
Air France Flight 8969 (AF8969, AFR8969) was an Air France flight that was hijacked on December 24, 1994 at Algiers. The crisis was ultimately solved with minimal casualties to innocents by the GIGN, the intervention group of the French Gendarmerie, a law-enforcement agency. Flight: Air France Flight 8969 AKA: Hijacked AKA: Killing Machine
Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937 was a Tupolev 154M passenger jet en route from Moscow, Russia to Barcelona, Spain. DHL Flight 611 was a Boeing 757-200 cargo jet flying from Bergamo, Italy to Brussels, Belgium. The two aircraft collided in mid-air on July 1, 2002 at 21:35 (UTC) over Überlingen, Germany (near Lake Constance), killing all 71 aboard both aircraft. German investigators determined that the accident had been caused by problems within the air traffic control system. The controller who was on duty at the time, Peter Nielsen, was later stabbed to death by an architect who lost his wife and both of his children in the accident.
American Airlines Flight 965 was a scheduled flight from Miami International Airport in Miami, Florida to Alfonso Bonilla Aragón International Airport in Cali, Colombia. Flight 965 crashed into a mountain in Buga, Colombia on December 20, 1995. Flight: American Airlines Flight 965 AKA: Crash on the Mountain
Avianca Airlines Flight 52 was a regularly scheduled flight from Bogotá's El Dorado International Airport to New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport via Medellín, Colombia's José María Córdova International Airport. On Thursday, January 25, 1990, the aircraft performing this flight, a Boeing 707-321B registered as HK-2016, crashed into the town of Cove Neck, Long Island, New York after running out of fuel. 73 out of the 158 passengers and crew on board were killed. Flight: Avianca Airlines Flight 52 AKA: Deadly Delay
March 27, 1977 – At 2:00 in the afternoon a thick fog rolled into the usually quiet Los Rodeos Airport in Tenerife, in the Canary Islands. On the runway sat two fully loaded jumbo airliners, blanketed in fog. A bomb explosion at a nearby airport had re-directed air traffic to the undermanned airfield at Tenerife. Within three hours, a KLM 747 slams into a taxiing PAM 747, killing 583 people. The planes never left the ground.
Alternate title: "Desperate Escape" Air France Flight 358, an Airbus A340 airliner, departed Paris without incident at 11:53UTC August 2, 2005, later touching down on runway 24L-06R at Toronto Pearson International Airport at 20:01 UTC(16:01 EDT). The aircraft failed to stop and plunged into a nearby shallow ravine, coming to rest and bursting into flames approximately 200 metres past the end of the runway. The Airbus A340-313X had 309 people aboard (297 passengers and 12 crew), all of whom survived without life-threatening injuries
Alternate title: "All Engines Failed" British Airways Flight 009, sometimes referred to as the Jakarta incident, was a scheduled British Airways flight from London Heathrow to Auckland, with stops in Bombay, Madras, Kuala Lumpur, Perth and Melbourne. On 24 June 1982, the route was being flown by City of Edinburgh, a 747-200 registered G-BDXH, when it flew into a cloud of dust and ash thrown up by the eruption of Mount Galunggung, and all four engines failed. The aircraft was able to glide far enough to exit the ash cloud, and three of the engines were restarted, allowing the flight to divert to Jakarta and perform a safe landing.
Alternate title: "Fiery Landing" Air Canada Flight 797 was a scheduled trans-border flight that flew on a Houston, Texas-Dallas/Fort Worth-Toronto, Ontario route. While flying over Louisville, Kentucky, an in-flight fire began in the rear lavatory of the McDonnell Douglas DC-9-32. The pilots made an emergency landing at the Greater Cincinnati Airport, located in Boone County, Kentucky near Cincinnati, Ohio. During the evacuation, the aircraft doors were opened, causing an influx of oxygen that fueled the fire. 23 of the 41 passengers died from smoke inhalation and a flash fire.
Alternate title: "Blind Landing", "Missed Approach". On 6 August 1997, during final approach for a night landing in Guam, Korean Air Flight 801 crashes into a hill while attempting a missed approach, killing 228 people. The causes were pilot error and the instrument landing system at Guam airport being temporarily out of service for maintenance work.
Alternate title: "Mystery Crashes" The Boeing B-737 is the most reliable plane in the world. But in 1991, United Airlines Flight 585's rudder fails and the plane nosedives during approach. Investigators know nothing about what caused it. T hen in 1994, USAir Flight 427 crashes in the same way after take-off. What is causing the crashes? Is there a Hidden Danger in every B-737 in the world?
Alternate title: "6 Mile Plunge" February 19, 1985: China Airlines Flight 006 collides with a jet stream while flying to Los Angeles. The no. 4 engine fails and the pilots try to restart the engine at a much too high altitude. The plane banks slowly to the right but the pilot expects the autopilot to steady the plane. The plane slows down and stalls, sending the passengers and crew into a spiraling nosedive. The sudden actions put everyone under incredible G-forces. The Flight Engineer mistakes readings on the gauges for total engine failures on all engines rather than the Captain putting the throttle to idle. The speed increases and the plane pulls out of the dive but stalls again and falls. The extreme forces rip the undercarriage doors off and pieces of the stabilizers rip off as well. The Boeing 747SP clears the clouds and the pilot sees the horizon. The plane is pulled from the dive, pinning the passengers to their seats. The pilot lands safely at San Francisco despite having trouble with the elevators. 2 people are hurt, but everyone is alive.
August 31, 1986: Aeroméxico Flight 498 is descending into Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) for landing. Meanwhile, a private Piper Cherokee owned by the Kramer family takes-off from an airfield in nearby Torrance. They unwittingly enter LAX airspace but the air traffic controller doesn't notice it due to a distraction by a Grumman Tiger Flight 66R on the screen. Suddenly over the residential district of Cerritos, the Kramers' plane smashes into Flight 498's horizontal stabilizer, shearing off the top of the cockpit of the private plane and snapping half of the tail off from Flight 498. The Kramers die as a result of the impact. The badly damaged DC-9 flips inverted and plummets into the houses below. Everyone on board dies plus 15 people on the ground. The private plane falls out of the sky and crashes into a school playground.
Alternate titles: "Flight 21 is Missing", "Inbound" and "Flight 21 Is Missing". A USAF Boeing CT-43 (operating under the call sign IF021) attempts an instrument approach into Dubrovnik Airport in heavy fog. The passengers are mainly government officials, including U.S. Government Secretaries. The pilots attempt the IFR non-precision NDB approach to Runway 12. The aircraft goes off course and hits mountains north of the airport, killing all 35 people on board, including the United States Secretary of Commerce Ron Brown.
AKA "Desperate Dive", "Deadly Disorientation". . Flash Airlines Flight 604 departs Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport in Egypt for Paris. Just after take-off, the aircraft banks right and goes off course. The pilot corrects the roll but the aircraft banks right again. This time the pilot does nothing. The Boeing 737 rolls further and descends into the Red Sea 9km south of Sharm el-Sheikh. Everyone on board is dead. Although many people today claim that the pilot was spatially disorientated, the cause of this disaster is still disputed.
Alternative title: "Unconscious Pilot" 14 August 2005: Helios Airways Flight 522 takes-off from Cyprus. As it flies over Greece, air traffic controllers lose radio contact with it. Fighter jets are sent up to meet with the Boeing 737. One of the jets get close to the plane only to see that the First Officer is alone and unconscious in the flight deck. Everyone in the cabin is also unconscious and oxygen masks are dangling from the cabin ceiling. The captain is missing. Then, the fighter jet pilot witnesses someone enter the cockpit. The mysterious person appears to be trying to regain control of the aircraft, but it is too late. Soon, Flight 522 runs out of fuel and dives into a hill near Marathon. There are no survivors. After a thorough investigation, the mysterious person is found out to be a flight attendant that had been working on the flight who managed to stay conscious by using a portable oxygen mask as opposed to the aircraft's installed oxygen masks. This solved the mystery of who the fighter pilot was looking at before the aircraft went down.
Alternative title: "Slammed to the Ground". In the summer of 1985, a Delta 191 aircraft was diverted away from a thunderstorm, only to be struck by powerful winds and plummet to the ground. Flames engulfed the front of the plane and more than 130 people died in a tragic accident that would eventually expose, and eliminate, an invisible killer.
Alternative titles: "Miracle Flight" and "Deadly Glide". A Boeing 767-200 jet, Air Canada Flight 143, ran completely out of fuel at 41,000 feet (12,000m) altitude, about halfway through its flight from Montreal to Edmonton. The crew was able to glide the aircraft safely to an emergency landing at Gimli Industrial Park Airport, a former airbase at Gimli, Manitoba.
When an explosion blasts a huge hole in the fuselage of a new DC-10 airliner, the crash investigators discover a serious design flaw in the plane’s rear cargo door. Yet two years after the first crash, another DC-10 goes down because of the same problem. Should this accident have been prevented?
Alternative titles: "Cargo Conspiracy" and "Mystery Fire". South African Airways Flight 295 starts filling with smoke over the Indian Ocean. A fire has erupted in the rear main level cargo area; the pilots successfully open the doors in flight to clear the smoke from the aircraft, however it crashes with no survivors.
A commuter plane crashes shortly after take-off, killing everyone onboard. Investigators are faced with the possibility that overweight passengers were one of the causes of this fatal crash. The airline industry based average passenger weight calculations on 1940s figures. Were they fatally out of date?
In 1977, a plane was caught in a storm so severe that it cracked the cockpit windscreen. The crew decided to try and land on a nearby highway, but the jet clipped a tree and burst into flames. Together with the cockpit crew, 72 passengers and 8 people on the ground were killed in the inferno but miraculously, 5 people on board survived.
Air India Flight 182 flying over the Ireland coast exploded in mid-air killing all 329 on board. Investigators discovered that a bomb caused the aircraft to disintegrate.
Alternative title: "The Plane That Wouldn't Talk" Birgenair Flight 301 is scheduled to fly from Puerto Plata to Frankfurt. On takeoff, the captain finds that his air speed indicator (ASI) is not reading properly, though the co-pilot's ASI is showing the correct speed. Both pilots become confused and believe that both ASIs are malfunctioning. They lose control of the aircraft and it crashes in the Caribbean Sea. All 13 crew members and 176 passengers die.
Alternative title: "Who's at the Controls?" A Lockheed L-1011 Tristar operating Eastern Airlines Flight 401 to Miami International Airport crashes in the Everglades because the crew is distracted by a faulty landing gear indicator light and accidentally disengage the autopilot. 101 people die.
Alternative titles: "Radio Silence" and "Death Over The Amazon" A Gol Transportes Aéreos Boeing 737 and a brand-new Embraer Legacy business jet on its delivery flight collide in mid-air over the Amazon. The 737 crashes but the Legacy manages to make a safe landing. 154 people die.
This special looks at accidents and incidents where pressurization failure or explosive decompression played a part. Episodes re-visited: 3x11-Hanging by a Thread, 2x01-Blow Out, 1x02-Unlocking Disaster, 4x08-Ghost Plane.
This special looks at accidents caused by seemingly minor defects or errors. Episodes re-visited: 1x06-Cutting Corners, 3x03-Out of Control, 2x02-A Wounded Bird, 1x04-Fire on Board, 4x05-Hidden Danger
This special looks at accidents and incidents where problems with the interface between crew members and onboard avionics were a factor, and the causes of those problems. Episodes re-visited: 1x05-Flying Blind, 4x06-Panic Over the Pacific, 3x07-Kid in the Cockpit, 4x07-Vertigo, 1x03-Flying on Empty.
Alternative title: "Shattered in Seconds" Rescuers have to look to the past to solve the riddle of Flight 611, a China Airlines 747 that disappeared 20 minutes after taking off.
Shortly after leaving London Heathrow airport in December 1988, Pan Am flight 103 exploded above Lockerbie , Scotland killing 270 people. Investigators soon discovered that a bomb in the forward cargo compartment had taken down the plane.
AKA "Deadly Prize/Silent Killer" On September 8, 1989, Partnair Flight 94, a charter from Oslo to Hamburg, suddenly begins to dive from 22 thousand feet. The aging propeller plane eventually crashes into the sea, killing all 55 people on board.
Alternate title: Head on Collision/Crash Course/Collision Course Find out what went wrong when a Kazakhstan Airlines jet and a Saudi Airways plane collided in the worst mid-air crash in aviation history, killing 349 people on November 12, 1996.
An attempt to rescue orphans from the chaos of war-torn Vietnam ended in tragedy when a US plane crashed on April 4, 1975, killing more than 150 people.
On August 6, 2005, a Tuninter ATR-72 ran out of fuel and was forced to ditch in the sea near Palermo, Italy. Of the 39 people on board, 16 lost their lives. The mistake was simply a wrong fuel gauge that sent higher fuel readings than the actual ones.
In January 2007, an Adam Air Boeing 737 crashed into the Makassar Strait killing 102 people on board. The pilots inadvertently disengaged the autopilot while trying to fix the inertial reference system, causing the plane to plunge to the water.
On Halloween 1994, an American Eagle ATR-72 suffered a loss of control and crashed near Roselawn, Indiana killing all 68 people on board. While flying in freezing conditions, ice accumulated on the wings. Inadequate de-icing mechanisms failed to remove the ice, resulting in the disruption of the airflow.
This special looked at the role of air traffic controllers in the airline industry, and took a look at the Next Generation Air Transportation System, a new technology meant to eliminate mid-air collisions by reducing overall dependence on radar and radio, as well as delegating some of the air traffic controllers' tasks to computers on board each plane.
This special looks at the role of bad weather in disasters, and tours the US Aviation Weather Center in Kansas City, Missouri to see how information on weather is transmitted to pilots in the sky. Episodes revisited: 5x03-Southern Storm, 5x05-Invisible Killer, 1x01-Racing the Storm, 4x02-Falling From the Sky.
On 22 August 1985, An engine caught fire during the takeoff phase of a British charter flight from Manchester, England to the Greek island of Corfu. Despite a successfully abandoned takeoff, 55 of the 137 passengers and crew are killed as the aircraft burned on the runway. AKA "Manchester Runway Disaster"
On 16 August 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed shortly after take off, killing 156 people. The crew did not follow the taxi checklist prior to take off.
On 26 June 1988, Air France Flight 296 failed to regain altitude and crashed into trees after performing a flyby during an airshow at Mulhouse-Habsheim Airport, killing 3 people.
On 1 February 1991, USAir Flight 1493 collided with the waiting Skywest Airlines Flight 5569 on the runway, killing 34 people. An Air traffic controller mistakenly assigned the inbound Flight 1493 to a runway where the Flight 5569 was waiting to take off.
On 1 September 1983, during the Cold War, Korean Air Lines Flight 007 was shot down after violating Soviet airspace. The crew did not switch the autopilot from heading to INS mode following take off which caused the aircraft to deviate from its assigned flight path.
On 10 March 1989, Air Ontario Flight 1363 crashed just after take off, killing 24 people. Three years later, on 22 March 1992, USAir Flight 405 also crashed just after take off in similar conditions to Flight 1363. The cause of the crashes was icing. AKA Snowbound / Unwelcome Addition
On 20 January 1992, Air Inter Flight 148 crashed into the Vosges Mountains while circling to land at Strasbourg Airport killing 87 people. An error made in programing the autopilot of the Airbus A-320, combined with a sudden wind change, caused the plane to descend more rapidly than expected. AKA: Crashed and Missing / Doomed to Fail / Invisible Mountain
On 19 December 2005, just after take off the right wing of the Chalk's Ocean Airways Flight 101 fell off and the aircraft crashed, killing 20 people. The wing fell off due to metal fatigue that resulted from poor maintenance, financial distress at Chalk's, and a lack of appropriate FAA oversight. AKA: Beach Crash / Miami Mystery
Minutes before they're scheduled to land in Zurich, the pilots of a routine passenger flight can't find the runway. They abort and power up the engines in order to climb. But they are too late.
When an aircraft's engines fail during its approach to Heathrow, the captain's quick thinking enables the flight to avoid nearby buildings. The craft crashes just short of the runway and all aboard miraculously survive. But what caused the engine failure in the first place - could Sherlock Holmes theories lend a hand to investigators? AKA: Heathrow Crash Landing
Despite being de-iced twice for winter conditions, both engines fail in a plane departing Stockholm. It falls 3000 feet and breaks in three but everyone survives. What crippled a near-new jetliner?
In one of the worst American crashes of the past decade, an aircraft approaching Buffalo airport plummets towards the ground and crashes into a suburban house. With a fire raging at the crash site, can investigators find any surviving clues in the wreckage? AKA: Stalled in the Sky
On January 15, 2009 an Airbus 320 callsign US Airways Flight 1549 hit birds just 1 and half minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport in New York. The flight just lasted about 5 minutes when the plane hit the Hudson River. This was described as "the most successful ditching of all time". AKA: Hudson Splash Down
On 25 February 2009, a Turkish Airlines jet crashed during landing at Schiphol airport, killing nine people. What caused the plane to crash?
July 17th, 2007 TAM Airlines Flight #3054 is on its final approach to Sao Paolo's notorious Congonhas Airport. Runway 35-L at Congonhas is one of the busiest and most treacherous airports in the world. It's built on a hilltop, completely surrounded by tall buildings. The crew of Flight #3054 gets a report that the runway is wet and slippery. Captain Henrique Stephanini brings his Airbus A-320 down at the foot of the 1,945 meter long runway, activates the one working reverse thruster and applies the brakes, but his plane doesn't slow down. It hurtles down the runway at top speed, crosses a highway and slams into a building and adjacent gas station. No one on the plane survives. Twelve people on the ground are also killed. This is the worst aviation disaster in South American history. Investigators are under enormous pressure to figure out what went wrong on Brazil's busiest runway, before it claims any more lives.
On 8 June 1983, Reeve Aleutian Airways Flight 8's propeller separated from the aircraft over Cold Bay, Alaska causing an explosive decompression and loss of control. The pilot managed to land safely at Anchorage, Alaska. Since the propeller fell into the sea the cause of the separation is undetermined. AKA: Flight for Control
On 11 May 1996, ten minutes after take-off, Valujet Flight 592 crashed into the Florida Everglades after an in-flight fire started by an accidental triggering of an oxygen cylinder in the cargo area caused the passengers and crew to suffer unconsciousness. On impact, all 110 persons on board were killed instantly.
On 31 October 2000, Singapore Airlines Flight 006 collided on take-off into construction equipment at Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in Taipei during Typhoon Xangsane after taking off on the wrong runway. Out of the 179 passengers and crew, 83 people perished. AKA: Caution To The Wind
On 19 December 1997, Silk Air Flight 185 en route to Singapore crashed into the Musi River in Indonesia after abruptly plunging from its 35,000 feet (10,668 m) cruise altitude, killing all 97 passengers and 7 crew on board in an instant.
On 23 August 2005, TANS Perú Flight 204 attempted to make a landing at Pucallpa Airport, Peru, after a severe thunderstorm, but crashed into a muddy swamp 4 miles (6.4 km) off the airfield. AKA Blind Landing
On 30 June 1956, United Airlines Flight 718 and Trans World Airlines Flight 2 collided over the Grand Canyon in Arizona. All 128 occupants on both flights were killed. At the time it was the deadliest airline crash in history, and would lead to sweeping changes in the regulation of flight operations over the United States.
On 25 May 1979, American Airlines Flight 191 a McDonnell Douglas DC-10-10 lost its No.1 engine moments after take-off at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport and crashed into a trailer park shortly thereafter. All 271 people on board the plane as well as two other people on the ground were killed making it the worst single-aircraft air disaster in United States history. AKA Catastrophe at O'Hare
On 28 December 1978, United Airlines Flight 173 ran out of fuel after a landing gear problem. The DC-8 circled in the vicinity of Portland and crashed in a sparsely populated area near 158th and East Burnside Street, killing 10 and seriously injuring 24 of the 189 on board. According to the NTSB, the flight crew failed to check the fuel state causing the plane to crash. AKA: Fatal Fixation
On 7 September 2011, a Yakovlev Yak-42D carrying the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl professional ice hockey team crashed on take-off at the Volga River, near Yaroslavl, Russia. Out of the 45 occupants only two survived. Five days later one of the survivors (Alexander Galimov) died, succumbing to his injuries.
On 10 April 2010, in heavy fog and low visibility, a Tupolev Tu-154M carrying the Polish president Lech Kaczyński, his wife Maria Kaczyńska and other top officials, failed to make the runway and crashed into a wooded area while on final approach to Smolensk North Airport. All 96 occupants on board perished.
On 25 January 2010, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 an international scheduled passenger plane en route to Addis Ababa plunged into the Mediterranean Sea shortly after takeoff from Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport during a thunderstorm, killing all 90 people on board.
On 21 February 2008, Santa Bárbara Airlines Flight 518 was operating as a scheduled domestic flight from Mérida, Venezuela to Caracas when it crashed into the side of a mountain shortly after takeoff. All 46 passengers and crew aboard the plane died.
On 1 June 2009, Air France Flight 447, a scheduled flight from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Paris, France, stalled and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean while flying in a thunderstorm, killing all 216 passengers and 12 aircrew on board. The causes of the crash were incorrect airspeed readings due to ice blockage of the aircraft's pitot tubes, inappropriate control inputs and the pilots not taking recovery action until it was too late.
When a flight from Zurich crash-lands, killing everyone on board, the discovery of drugs among the wreckage suggests an alarming explanation.
When American Airlines Flight 587 crashed into Queens, New York after 9/11, it was considered an act of terror - until evidence proved otherwise.
Investigators determine what sparked the engine fire that crippled a team of hurricane hunters' plane during a daring flight into Hurricane Hugo.
In 1980, Itavia Flight 870 exploded over the sea. After 30 years of investigations, experts finally reveal the truth behind the mysterious disaster
Experts investigate why XL Airways German Flight 888T spiralled into the Mediterranean sea in 2008. What deadly flaw was the Airbus hiding? AKA: Deadly Test
Experts investigate an unexpected explanation for the fatal crash of Air Moorea Flight 1121 when they hear its pilot's anguished cry on the cockpit voice recorder.
On 4 November 2010, the pilots of Qantas Flight 32 were forced to deal with a series of failures when an explosion tore apart an engine on their A380.
This special looked at how people survive aviation accidents, in part with demonstrations at the Czech Airlines Training Centre. It provided case studies on the following flight: - Asiana Airlines Flight 214 - Air France Flight 358 - Reeve Aleutian Airways Flight 8 - Air Canada Flight 797 - US Airways Flight 1549
On 8 January 1989, British Midland Flight 92 crashes onto the embankment of the M1 motorway near Kegworth, Leicestershire, UK. The aircraft was attempting to conduct an emergency landing at East Midlands Airport. Of the 126 people aboard, 47 died and 74, including seven members of the flight crew, sustained serious injuries.
On 26 May 1991, Lauda Air Flight 004 spiral out of control and disintegrate about 100 miles northwest of Bangkok. All of the 223 passengers and crew die in the crash. AKA Niki Lauda: Testing The Limits.
On 3 September 1989, Varig Flight 254 runs out of fuel over the Amazon and makes a belly landing in the jungle. 13 people die in the crash.
Copa Airlines Flight 201 is flying towards Cali, Colombia when the plane suddenly disintegrates in mid-air.
FedEx Express Flight 14 crash lands at Newark and the pilots survive. Years later, FedEx Express Flight 80 experiences a similar but fatal crash.
On 16 July 1999, John F. Kennedy Jr. dies when the Piper Saratoga light aircraft he was piloting crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts in hazy conditions. His wife, Carolyn Bessette, and sister-in-law, Lauren Bessette, were on board and also killed. The NTSB concluded that the crash was caused by spatial disorientation resulting in pilot error.
On 25 July 2000, a Concorde operating as Air France Flight 4590 en route to New York City, USA, stalls and crashes into a hotel in Gonesse shortly after take off from Charles de Gaulle International Airport. All of the 109 passengers and crew die in the incident and 4 on the ground.
On 4 November 2008, an official Mexican Interior Ministry Learjet 45 crashes in central Mexico City. Mexican Secretary of the Interior Juan Camilo Mouriño, who was aboard the plane, was killed in the crash, along with the other seven people on board and eight people on the ground. The plane crashed in rush-hour traffic at Las Lomas. AKA Inner City Carnage.
Fog makes landing difficult and as Manx2 Flight 7100 makes its third attempt, disaster strikes as the plane crashes. AKA 3rd Time Unlucky.
On 20 August 2011, First Air Flight 6560, a charter flight crashed near to their destination of Resolute Bay Airport, Resolute, Nunavut, Canada in poor weather conditions. Out of the 15 passengers and crew, only three survived.
Almost 12 months have passed and we are no closer to knowing the fate of Malaysian Airlines Flight 370. Was it a suicidal pilot; an act of terrorism; technical failure or has a new Bermuda Triangle opened up in the region? In a world where nothing much escapes satellite technology which can pinpoint your front door from outer space, this mystery remains unsolved. How can that be?
A 1996 collision between United Express 5925 and a private plane leaves investigators stumped until they learn a missing pilot played a role.
When Asiana Airlines Flight 214 crashes at San Francisco Airport, investigators discover an issue that could be putting passengers at risk.
In 1992, Flight 1862 from Amsterdam to Tel Aviv suffered a catastrophic crash. Investigators discover a lethal problem threatening every 747.
Shortly after taking off, a fire breaks out on UPS Flight 6. As smoke fills the cockpit, getting the plane safely back is a race against time.
More than 50 years after a plane crash that killed UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold, a new investigation shines light on the controversial aviation mystery.
On a routine stop at the tiny Norwegian island of Stord, Atlantic Airways Flight 670 mysteriously careers off the runway and down an embankment.
When Spanair Flight 5022 slams into a creek and bursts into flames, killing 154 people, it is Spain's worst aviation disaster in decades.
After a routine flight from Jakarta, Garuda Flight 200 hits the ground so hard it bounces violently before careering off the end of the runway.
When a crash in Georgia kills 23, including an astronaut and a US senator, an investigator puts his reputation on the line to find the truth.
Seconds after taking off, TAM Airlines flight 402 slammed into a residential neighbourhood bursting into flames, killing all 95 people on board.
After a routine one-hour flight from Minneapolis, Northwest Airlink Flight 5719 crashes in northern Minnesota, killing everyone on board. Investigators face intense pressure to find the cause. The cockpit voice recorder raises disturbing questions about an inexperienced pilot. But as investigators dig deeper, they uncover a troubling pattern of abuse that led to a breakdown in human cooperation.
It is September 11th, 2001, and shortly after taking off from Washington DC, hijackers storm the cockpit of American Airlines Flight 77 and fly the plane into the Pentagon. The symbol of US military might is in flames.
On 27 March 1977, two Boeing 747 passenger aircraft crash on the runway of Los Rodeos Airport on the Spanish island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands. With a total of 583 fatalities, the crash is the deadliest accident in aviation history.
When China Airlines Flight 120 catches fire after touching down in Japan, the disaster leaves an international team with troubling questions.
When Proteus Airlines Flight 706 suddenly explodes after deviating from their flight path, investigators turn to a local journalist who from a nearby plane captures the scene as the wreckage falls from the sky.
A car dashcam captures footage of the moment TransAsia Flight 235 nosedives into Taipei's Keelung river. Facing a barrage of questions, Taiwan's Aviation Safety council soon discovers that the mystery went quite deep.
Terrorists claimed responsibility when Metrojet 9268 broke up in the air after leaving Sharm el Sheikh in 2015. But could experts prove what really happened?
Moments after taking off from a California airport, an American cargo plane needs to make an emergency landing. The pilots manage to bring their DC-8 to within sight of the runway, but the crippled plane crashes into an automobile salvage yard one mile east of the airport.
After circling above the Taiwan Strait to wait out a passing cyclone, TransAsia Flight 222 crashes on the Taiwanese resort island of Penghu. The media claims the storm is to blame, but the evidence soon points investigators in a different direction. Six months into the investigation, the airline is hit with a second accident. And that's when investigators uncover a systemic problem with fatal consequences.
En route to Salt Lake City, Delta Airlines Flight 1141 crashes just moments after lifting off from Dallas-Fort Worth airport and erupts into flames.
A commercial airliner goes down over a warzone in eastern Ukraine. The evidence indicates the plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile.
On a high-stakes demonstration flight in Indonesia, a Russian-made Sukhoi Superjet slams into a mountain killing everyone on board. It's one of the most challenging salvage operations Indonesian investigators have ever faced.
With the future of space tourism hanging in the balance, experts investigate the fatal crash of Virgin Galactic's revolutionary rocket plane.
In 2008, Qantas Flight 72 travelling from Singapore to Perth suddenly nosedives while over the Indian Ocean. With warnings flooding the cockpit and passengers being flung around, it’s up to an experienced fighter pilot to get the plane to safety.
On 14 November 1990, Alitalia Flight 404 descends too low and crashes into the woodlands of the Stalderberg Mountain near Weiach, Switzerland, 5.2 nautical miles (9.6 kilometres) short of the runway during final approach to Zurich Airport. All 46 passengers and crew members on board are killed.
On 26 April 1994, China Airlines Flight 140 pitches upwards, enters an aerodynamic stall at low altitude and crashes approximately 340 feet east-northeast of the centreline of the runway while on final approach to Nagoya Airport in Nagoya, Japan. 264 of the 271 people on board are killed in the crash.
On 15 November 1987, Continental Airlines Flight 1713 stalls and crashes off the right side of the runway shortly after taking off in a snowstorm from Stapleton International Airport in Denver, Colorado, on a scheduled flight to Boise, Idaho, killing 28 of the 82 people on board.
This special looked at how failures in communication lead to disasters
This special looked at how pilots' aggressive or unprofessional behaviour can cause deadly accidents.
This special looked at how pilots safely land their aircraft in emergency situations.
This special looked at how automation in the cockpit causes deadly misunderstandings.
This special looked at terrorist acts, including bombings and shootdowns.
This special looked at pilots' carefully planned strategies in deliberately crashing aircraft.
This special looked at foreign items, including ice, a chemical oxygen generator, and a bomb as the cause.
This special looked at disasters where multiple investigations don't agree on the cause of these accidents.
This special looked at how pilots' deviation from cockpit duties lead to crashes.
This special looked at disasters caused by fires, either on the ground or in the air.
En route from Indonesia to Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific Flight 780 is high over the South China Sea when both of the plane's engines fail, turning the Airbus A-330 into a 200-ton glider. Declaring a Mayday-and determined to avoid a disastrous ocean ditching-the captain takes over manual control of the aircraft and manages to power up only one engine by very slowly increasing the throttle. But then the misfiring engine won't let him slow down for landing.
Flying just a few hundred feet above the desert, six single-engine WW2 fighter planes get into position for the highlight event of the Reno Air Races. And with 30,000 spectators watching from below, they fly an eight-mile oval at close to 450 miles per hour. Competing in a highly-modified P-51 Mustang called 'The Galloping Ghost', local legend Jimmy Leeward is determined to set a new speed record. But half-way through the race, his plane suddenly pitches up, spirals out of control, and crashes onto the tarmac in front of the stands. It's one of the worst air race crashes of all time, and investigators call on the pilot's close friend to help them...
En route from Amsterdam to Cardiff, Wales, the crew of KLM Cityhopper Flight 433 report an engine problem and head back to the airport. But just as they're about to touch down, the dual turboprop banks sharply to the right, the wing grazes the ground, and the aircraft crashes and breaks apart on a field next to the runway. Of the 24 people on board, two passengers and the captain are dead. And when investigators from the Dutch Safety Board pore over the evidence, they determine that a minor circuitry problem sparked a cascading series of fatal errors.
An American cargo plane attempts a difficult landing at the US naval station at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. With the runway just a few meters from the armed border, the maneuver requires avoiding Cuban airspace. But something goes terribly wrong on its final approach, and the DC-8 crashes at the end of the runway. At first, investigators wonder if Cuba somehow played a role in the crash, but they eventually uncover an invisible culprit that threatens the lives of cargo pilots everywhere.
En route to the Dominican Republic with more than 87,000 pounds of denim, Fine Air Cargo Flight 101 takes off from Miami. But just moments later, the plane crashes to the ground, careens across a freeway, and plows into a building. Hundreds of bystanders witness the carnage, and though investigators are determined to figure out what happened, it will take an anonymous tip to break the case wide open.
Just minutes after taking off from Bucharest, Romania, Tarom Flight 371 banks sharply to the left, veers off course, and nosedives into a farmer's field. It's the deadliest air disaster in the country's history, and rumors of a bomb on board quickly reach a frenzied pitch in the country's newly free press. Romanian investigators call in the FBI to determine if it was an accident or an act of murder. But it's ultimately the captain's own voice that reveals the underlying cause of the disaster.
Continental Airlines Flight 1404 is speeding down the runway at Denver International Airport when the aircraft suddenly careens off the runway, crashes, and bursts into flame. Everyone on board escapes death, and then it's up to investigators to figure out what happened. At first, clues point to a deadly mechanical problem previously found on other Boeing 737s. But investigators eventually find the true culprit in the Rocky Mountains.
En route from Moscow to Perm, Russia, Aeroflot Nord Flight 821 is on its final approach when the plane nosedives and crashes onto the trans-Siberian railway. All that's left of the Boeing 737 is charred wreckage. All 88 people on board are confirmed dead. At first, investigators suspect a known design flaw in the aircraft's rudder. But as they dig deeper, they make a series of shocking discoveries that will result in calls to transform the country's aviation system.
With Brazil's Chapecoense soccer team on board, LaMia Flight 2933 is on its final approach to Medellin, Columbia when the crew suddenly declares a fuel emergency. Before air traffic control even has time to clear a path, the plane crashes on the crest of a mountain, killing nearly everyone on board. With the soccer world in mourning, investigators face incredible pressure to figure out what happened. And as they pore over the evidence, they uncover a disturbing tale of greed and a deadly gamble.
En route from Washington, D.C. to Columbus, Ohio, United Express Flight 6291 is on its final approach when the high-performance twin turboprop crashes just a mile from the runway. Three survivors emerge from the inferno, but the disaster claims the lives of the three crewmembers and the other two passengers on board. The charred remains leave little for investigators to work with. That is, until the cockpit voice recorder reveals the smoking gun.
A Pakistani airliner crashes in the Himalayas, and when their most vital piece of evidence fails to deliver, investigators scramble to find answers.
A cargo jet plummets to earth in the Swedish Arctic. And as investigators pore over the evidence, a terrifying picture of chaos and confusion emerges.
Experts fail to find a bomb when a Taiwanese plane explodes. But as they examine the wreckage, they uncover something shocking in the overhead lockers.
When a blanket of confusion and heavy fog puts two planes on a path to disaster, investigators wonder if it was the pilots themselves creating chaos.
On 16 August 2010, AIRES Flight 8250 crashes short of the runway while attempting to land at San Andrés, Colombia in a storm. The aircraft broke up into 3 pieces on the runway. 2 of the passengers died in the accident.
When SOL Airlines Flight 5428 nosedives into a remote desert, investigators struggle to find the cause amongst the scattered and scorched debris.
A helicopter carrying offshore oil workers crashes into the ocean off the coast of Newfoundland and a far-reaching investigation reveals a fatal flaw.
A turboprop crashes into an Indonesian mountain, and while three systems could have prevented it, investigators must figure out why none of them did.
When an African airliner mysteriously crashes, Namibian investigators rule out a host of possible causes before reaching a chilling conclusion.
On 5 May 2007, Kenya Airways Flight 507 crashes shortly after takeoff from a stopover in Douala, Cameroon. All 114 passengers and crew died in the accident.
On 29 October 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 enters a nosedive and crashes into the Java Sea shortly after taking off from Soekarno–Hatta International Airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, on a flight to Pangkal Pinang. All 181 passengers and 8 crew members on board are killed in the crash.
On 17 April 2018, Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 makes an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport after its left engine explodes. A passenger dies after being partially ejected from the aircraft. The engine failure was caused by a fatigue crack in a fan blade.
On 10 November 2015, Execuflight Flight 1526 enters an aerodynamic stall and crashes into an apartment building and an embankment during final approach to Akron Fulton International Airport in Akron, Ohio. Both crew members and all seven passengers on board are killed in the crash.
On 12 March 2018, US-Bangla Airlines Flight 211 skids off the runway, travels through the airport perimeter fence, and crashes into a football field during landing at Tribhuvan International Airport in Kathmandu, Nepal. 51 of the 71 people on board are killed in the accident.
On 15 December 2014, Loganair Flight 6780 starts an uncontrolled descent while on approach to Sumburgh Airport in Scotland. The pilots regain control and make an emergency landing at Aberdeen, with no fatalities. A lightning strike had disabled the aircraft's elevator controls.
On 27 August 2006, Comair Flight 5191, operating for Delta Connection, crashes into a wooded area while taking off from Blue Grass Airport in Kentucky, killing 49 of the 50 people on board. The pilots lost situational awareness and inadvertently taxied onto the wrong runway.
On 9 June 1995, Ansett New Zealand Flight 703 suffers a landing gear malfunction during final approach to Palmerston North Airport in New Zealand. The aircraft descends until it crashes into hilly terrain as the pilots try to resolve the problem.
After losing two engines near enemy territory, US Air Force pilots abort their refuelling mission and attempt to land their damaged plane.
On 18 June 1998, Propair Flight 420 crashes while attempting to conduct an emergency landing at Montréal-Mirabel International Airport after an in-flight fire causes its left wing to fail.
On 14 August 2013, UPS Airlines Flight 1354 clips the tops of trees and crashes into a hillside about one nautical mile short of the runway during final approach to Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport in Alabama.
When Flydubai Flight 981 nosedives into the runway at Russia's Rostov airport, investigators uncover one of the most lethal traps in aviation.
A Martinair flight crashes in Portugal amid thunderstorms and heavy rain, and when investigators piece together the evidence the mystery only deepens
When a two-billion-dollar Stealth Bomber crashes in Guam, it’s up to the US Air Force to investigate the most expensive aviation accident of all time.
Rocked by an explosion that rips both right wing engines off the wing, the pilots of Transair 671 manage a miraculous landing at a French military airfield.
When Alaska Airlines Flight 261 suddenly nosedives into the Pacific, investigators uncover a critical maintenance issue with deadly implications.
After a Boeing 727’s near-fatal nosedive over Michigan, investigators risk their own lives to determine why TWA Flight 841 fell out of the sky.
Facing a severe thunderstorm and a control tower shutdown, American Airlines 1572 suffers double-engine failure on final approach into Windsor Locks Airport in Connecticut.
On October 11, 1983, a routine 160 mile (245km) commuter flight from Springfield, Illinois, to Carbondale, Illinois, turns deadly when the Hawker Siddeley HS 748 the pilots were flying loses D.C. electrical power from both aircraft generators.
After a turboprop crashes in North Carolina, investigators resort to a risky test flight—and uncover an industry-wide safety problem.
When basketball legend Kobe Bryant is killed in a helicopter crash in Los Angeles, investigators look for clues amid a global outpouring of grief.
Corporate Airlines Flight 5966 appears out of the clouds and crashes into trees on approach to Kirksville, Missouri. The twin-engine turboprop plane catches fire just over a kilometer from the runway. The charred wreckage offers clues as to what happened. The researchers conclude that it was not a mechanical failure. They hear a recording from the cockpit that may reveal the whole beginning of the accident.
Independent Air Flight 1851 is en route from Italy to the Dominican Republic and is scheduled to refuel on a Portuguese island. For some reason, a Boeing 707 crashes into a mountain just minutes before the airport. The international team of investigators finds no mechanical faults at all and is confused about the cause of the accident. Then the CVR reveals a cluster of errors that sealed the fate of the 144 passengers.
Just moments after takeoff, Japan Airlines Flight 123 experiences two explosions. The pilot is having trouble keeping the damaged Boeing 747 in the air. It plunges into the mountain. The accident becomes one of the deadliest accidents in aviation history. Investigators immediately suspect terrorism, but the remains tell a different story, threatening all 747 planes around the world.
After losing both engines, a turboprop crashes in Papua New Guinea and investigators soon uncover a deadly flaw in an aircraft used around the world.
A Kazakh crew manage to land an uncontrollable aircraft and investigators must determine how a freshly-serviced plane was released with a fatal flaw.
When the cockpit window of Sichuan Airlines 8633 explodes, the crew somehow battles gale-force winds and oxygen deprivation to safely land the plane.
When a UK billionaire and his family die in an Australian seaplane crash, investigators uncover a minor maintenance issue with deadly consequences.
The plan to save a Bulgarian airliner hinges on convincing the violent hijackers that their demands have been met before the plane runs out of fuel.
An Amazon cargo plane nosedives into a swamp outside Houston, the evidence eventually leads investigators to a pilot with a long history of failures.
EgyptAir flight 804 crashes into the Mediterranean on its way from Paris to Cairo. Evidence initially suggests that the plane caught fire, but Egyptian authorities later blame the crash on terrorism. The case will be handed over to the Egyptian state prosecutor for criminal investigation. Six years later, an Italian reporter leaks the information and a new confusing theory surfaces.
A massive explosion tears a hole in a 747 over Hawaii, and the trail of clues ultimately leads investigators to a catastrophic short circuit.
On 17 October 2019, PenAir Flight 3296 overruns the runway on landing at Unalaska Airport in the Aleutian Chain of Alaska, killing one passenger. The accident was caused by incorrect wiring of the wheel speed transducer harnesses on the left main landing gear.
On 16 February 1995, Air Transport International Flight 782 crashes into the ground after failing to takeoff from Kansas City International Airport in Missouri, killing all 3 pilots. The flight crew failed to understand a three-engine takeoff procedure due to improper training.
Investigators must turn to 3D technology to determine why two float planes carrying tourists collided above a spectacular Alaskan waterfall.
On 16 February 1998, China Airlines Flight 676 attempts a go-around while on approach to Chiang Kai-shek International Airport in poor weather conditions, but crashes into a residential area after entering a stall. All 196 people on board and 7 people on the ground are killed.
With flames emerging through the cockpit floor, the pilots of Pilgrim Airlines 458 manage a heroic landing on a frozen Rhode Island reservoir.
On 26 August 2003, Colgan Air Flight 9446 crashes into water shortly after takeoff from Barnstable Municipal Airport, killing both pilots. The causes of the crash were an improper replacement of the forward elevator trim cable and the pilots not following checklist procedures.
Three hundred people are killed in one of the deadliest aviation accidents of all time after a fire breaks out on board Saudia Flight 163.
With rising young football star Emiliano Sala on board, a chartered Piper Malibu suddenly disappears from radar over the English Channel.
When Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashes shortly after takeoff, the catastrophe leads to the grounding of the entire Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet.
