Season 13

Fight to the Death (British European Airways Flight 548)

Dec 16, 201345 min

On 18 June 1972, British European Airways Flight 548 stalls and crashes in a field near Staines-upon-Thames shortly after takeoff from London Heathrow Airport, killing all 118 people on board. The crash was attributed to the pilot retractin

Disaster on the Potomac (Air Florida Flight 90)

Dec 23, 20137.445 min

On 13 January 1982, Air Florida Flight 90 takes off from a snowy runway in Washington D.C, stalls at 300 feet altitude, strikes a road bridge and crashes into the Potomac River, killing a total of 78 people. The causes were ice on the wings

Speed Trap (Hughes Airwest Flight 706)

Dec 30, 20137.845 min

On 6 June 1971, Hughes Airwest Flight 706 collides with a United States Marine Corps (USMC) jet fighter above the San Gabriel Mountains. A total of 50 people from the two aircraft are killed, with the backseat crewman of the USMC aircraft t

Queens Catastrophe (American Airlines Flight 587)

Jan 6, 2014845 min

On 12 November 2001, just two months after the September 11 attacks, American Airlines Flight 587 spirals out of control after taking off from John F. Kennedy Airport. Shortly after, the aircraft crashes into the suburb of Queens, killing a

Lost in Translation (Crossair Flight 498)

Jan 13, 201445 min

On 10 January 2000, Crossair Flight 498 crashes just two minutes after takeoff from Zurich, Switzerland, while heading for Dresden, Germany, killing all 10 people on board. The investigation found that the pilots had suffered spatial disori

Massacre Over the Mediterranean (Aerolinee Itavia Flight 870)

Jan 20, 20147.645 min

On 27 June 1980, Aerolinee Itavia Flight 870 crashes into the Tyrrhenian Sea near the island of Ustica, Italy. All 81 people on board are killed. The top Italian criminal court eventually ruled on 23 January 2013 that a missile strike broug

Terror in Paradise (Air Moorea Flight 1121)

Jan 27, 20148.845 min

On 9 August 2007, Air Moorea Flight 1121 crashes shortly after taking off from Moorea Airport in French Polynesia. All 19 passengers and the pilot died. The cause was a badly worn and partly broken elevator control cable failing completely

Imperfect Pitch (XL Airways Germany Flight 888T)

Feb 3, 201445 min

On 27 November 2008, an aircraft on a post-maintenance test flight operating as XL Airways Germany Flight 888T crashes into the Mediterranean Sea off the coast of France, killing all seven people on board. The investigators determined that

Into the Eye of the Storm (Hurricane Hunters NOAA42)

Feb 10, 201445 min

On 15 September 1989, a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration aircraft tasked with intercepting Hurricane Hugo over the Caribbean islands is jolted by strong winds, causing an engine to catch fire and fail. The pilots of the aircr

Titanic in the Sky (Qantas Flight 32)

Feb 17, 20148.845 min

On 4 November 2010, Qantas Flight 32, en route to Sydney Airport in Australia, suffers an uncontained engine failure in its number two engine and serious damage to its left wing shortly after takeoff from Singapore. The crew members overcom