Air Disasters
Season 18
202224 episodes
Episode 1
Cockpit Failure
Sep 25, 202244m
On Nov 24, 2001 — Crossair Flight 3597 (Avro RJ100): On a night approach to Zurich in poor weather, a regional jet descends into a wooded hillside short of the runway, and the airline itself comes under scrutiny.
Episode 2
The Heathrow Enigma
Oct 2, 202244m
On Jan 17, 2008 — British Airways Flight 38 (Boeing 777): Seconds from touchdown at Heathrow, both engines of one of the world's safest jets refuse to respond, leaving the crew a heartbeat to act.
Episode 3
Pilot Betrayed
Oct 9, 202244m
On Dec 27, 1991 — SAS Flight 751 (MD-81): Minutes after taking off from a snowy Stockholm, a jet loses both engines, forcing a desperate landing in a frozen field — and ending a captain's career unjustly, some say.
Episode 4
Dead Tired
Oct 16, 202244m
On Feb 12, 2009 — Continental Connection Flight 3407 (Dash 8 Q400): On approach to Buffalo on a winter night, a commuter flight suddenly pitches out of control and falls onto a house below.
Episode 5
Hudson River Runway
Oct 23, 202244m
On Jan 15, 2009 — US Airways Flight 1549 (Airbus A320): Minutes after leaving LaGuardia, a jet loses both engines to a bird strike over New York City — and the crew makes history on the Hudson River.
Episode 6
Who's In Control?
Oct 30, 202244m
On Feb 25, 2009 — Turkish Airlines Flight 1951 (Boeing 737): On final approach to Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport, a jet drops out of the sky into a farm field, and investigators weigh plane against pilots.
Episode 7
Unlocking Disaster
Nov 6, 202244m
On Feb 24, 1989 — United Airlines Flight 811 (Boeing 747): Climbing out of Honolulu, a jumbo jet's cargo door area bursts open, tearing a hole in the cabin — and one victim's parents refuse to accept the official answers.
Episode 8
Racing The Storm
Nov 13, 202244m
On Jun 1, 1999 — American Airlines Flight 1420 (MD-82): Pushing to beat a violent storm into Little Rock, Arkansas, a crew gets their jet on the runway — but can't keep it there.
Episode 9
Fire on Board
Nov 20, 202244m
On Sep 2, 1998 — Swissair Flight 111 (MD-11): A flight from New York to Geneva reports smoke in the cockpit over the Atlantic and turns for Halifax, beginning one of the most exhaustive investigations ever mounted.
Episode 10
Cutting Corners
Nov 27, 202244m
On Jan 31, 2000 — Alaska Airlines Flight 261 (MD-83): After a jammed stabilizer leaves a jet nearly uncontrollable off the California coast, investigators uncover disturbing truths about maintenance and cost-cutting.
Episode 11
Flying on Empty
Jan 8, 202344m
On Aug 24, 2001 — Air Transat Flight 236 (Airbus A330): High over the Atlantic, a state-of-the-art jet runs out of fuel, leaving the crew to glide toward a tiny island in the Azores.
Episode 12
Blow Out
Jan 15, 202344m
On Jun 10, 1990 — British Airways Flight 5390 (BAC One-Eleven): A cockpit windscreen blows out at 17,000 feet, pulling the captain halfway out of the aircraft — and the crew must land while holding onto him.
Episode 13
A Wounded Bird
Jan 22, 202344m
On Aug 21, 1995 — Atlantic Southeast Airlines Flight 529 (Embraer 120): A propeller blade snaps over Georgia, wrecking an engine on its mount and forcing the crew down into a hayfield — where the fight to survive continues.
Episode 14
The Killing Machine
Jan 29, 202344m
On Dec 24, 1994 — Air France Flight 8969 (Airbus A300): Hijackers seize a jet on the ground in Algiers on Christmas Eve, beginning a three-day ordeal that ends with French commandos storming the plane at Marseille.
Episode 15
Flying Blind
Feb 5, 202344m
On Oct 2, 1996 — Aeroperú Flight 603 (Boeing 757): On a night departure from Lima, a jet's instruments feed the crew a stream of contradictions over the dark Pacific — and the cause proves maddeningly small.
Episode 16
Deadly Crossroads
Feb 12, 202344m
On Jul 1, 2002 — Bashkirian Airlines Flight 2937 & DHL Flight 611: A passenger jet and a cargo plane cross paths at night over Überlingen, Germany, and the investigation turns to the lone controller on duty.
Episode 17
Lost
Feb 19, 202344m
On Dec 20, 1995 — American Airlines Flight 965 (Boeing 757): On a night descent toward Cali, Colombia, a jet drifts off course into mountainous terrain, and investigators probe the modern navigation meant to prevent exactly that.
Episode 18
Missing Over New York
Feb 26, 202344m
On Jan 25, 1990 — Avianca Flight 52 (Boeing 707): After hours of holding in bad weather outside New York, a flight from Colombia goes silent and comes down in a Long Island village — with the cause hiding in plain hearing.
Episode 19
Runaway Train
Mar 5, 202344m
On May 12, 1989 — Southern Pacific freight train, San Bernardino, CA: Descending the Cajon Pass with far more weight than its crew realizes, a freight train loses its brakes and derails into a residential street — and the disaster isn't over.
Episode 20
Collision Course
Mar 5, 202344m
On Sep 26, 2000 — Express Samina (Greek ferry): On a windy night crossing to Paros, a ferry strikes a charted rock formation within sight of port, plunging hundreds of passengers into the sea.
Episode 21
Head-On Collision
Mar 12, 202344m
On Feb 8, 1986 — CN freight & VIA Rail passenger trains, Hinton, Alberta: Two trains meet head-on on the same track in the Canadian Rockies — one of the deadliest and most puzzling accidents in Canadian rail history.
Episode 22
Ripped Apart
Mar 12, 202344m
Special — Multiple incidents (1988–1990), including Aloha Airlines Flight 243, United Airlines Flight 811, and British Airways Flight 5390: How seemingly minor flaws in windows, doors, and aging airframes have torn planes apart in flight.
Episode 23
Fatal Flaw
Mar 19, 202344m
Special — Multiple incidents (1985–2000), including Japan Airlines Flight 123 and Alaska Airlines Flight 261: How maintenance oversights and cost-cutting have led to some of aviation's worst tragedies.
Episode 24
Who's Flying the Plane?
Mar 19, 202344m
Special — Multiple incidents: When automation and pilots stop working together, the results reveal how delicate the balance is between human skill and the machines built to help.