In 1972, 45 people boarded a flight from Uruguay to Chile. Only 16 would return having made one of the most incredible decisions of their lives. To eat or starve to death. The decision would live with them forever. Andes Plane Crash: Escape & Rescue I, captions, Channel 5 2024
I said I don’t want to wait here. I want to go back to my father. I want to go back to my life. ibid. survivor
40 passengers and five crew. ibid.
And the horrid sound of the impact. Instantly everything went black. ibid.
It is believed the accident was caused by pilot error. 12 people died in the crash. 5 more died in the first 24 hours. ibid. captions
We put all the dead together. We covered them with snow as a kind of burial. Then we waited for rescue. ibid. survivor
And I know that everyone is thinking the same thing. ibid.
In 1972, the survivors of a plane crash were stranded in the Andes Mountains. With freezing temperatures and no food, they faced an extraordinary battle to survive. Andes Plane Crash: Escape & Rescue II, captions
And then comes the infamous radio announcement that they had carried out the search. ibid. survivor
Avalanche: We were there three days – three days covered in snow. ibid.
We tried to light a cigarette. We couldn’t make fire. ibid.
If we don’t do something now, we’ll suffocate like rats. ibid.
We organised the first expedition … They were really very scared. ibid.
It was the only way to stay alive. To fight against death. Andes Plane Crash: Escape & Rescue III, survivor
For seven days we walked on snow and ice … We were dying. We were dying. ibid.
We found a river. And we remembered what we learned in school, in geography … Let’s follow this river … We saw a cow … The man on the horse stops and looks at me and Jesus, maybe I can live. Maybe I can survive. ibid.
We came back from another world. ibid.
At 12.42 a.m. on the 8th March 2013 Malaysia Airlines Flight NH370 takes off from Kuala Lumpa airport. Its destination Beijing. 239 passengers and crew were on board. 40 minutes into the flight something extraordinary happens. The plane disappears from the radar of Air Traffic Control. This World: Why Planes Vanish: The Hunt for MH370, BBC 2024
‘We waited. And waited and waiting. Every now and then, Any news? Nothing yet. Nothing yet. Just waiting for news, and they couldn’t give us anything at all.’ ibid.
Contact was lost three hours into the flight over a remote area of the Atlantic Ocean. ibid.
‘It was the most luxurious way to transport passengers.’ Hindenburg: The Cover Up, man, Channel 4 2024
‘Both The Titanic and Hindenburg stories do share a certain sense of hubris.’ ibid.
May 6th 1937, minutes after the Hindenburg deadly disaster the colossal Nazi airship lies a smouldering hulk of twisted metal. Sirens blare as naval officers and first responders search for life amid the flames. ibid.
Joseph Spah, travelling with his dog Ullah, will become the focus of a sabotage investigation after the disaster. ibid.
Another Zeppelin Over London. ibid. Daily Sketch front page
‘It crashed on its 63rd flight.’ ibid. man
‘This thing was a symbol of Nazi pride.’ ibid.
‘You hear a pop and then it bursts into flames.’ ibid. investigator
For those inside the ship survival is a matter of chance. ibid.
The investigation board includes men loyal to the National Socialists. ibid.
Concorde, the airliner that makes supersonic travel a reality. Sleek and graceful, flying twice the speed of sound, a symbol of prestige with a perfect safety record. But 113 people will perish in just 120 seconds. Seconds from Disaster s1e1: Crash of the Concorde, National Geographic 2004
Paris, France, July 25 2000, Flight AF50, supersonic to New York: Concorde accelerates down the 4,000-metre runway … Caught on camera by the wife of a truck driver … of Concorde on fire. ibid.
The plane stalls and plunges to the ground. It’s 4:45 p.m. ibid.
113 die: 4 from the hotel and 109 passengers and crew from Concorde. Rescuers begin the gruesome task of pulling the bodies from the crash site. ibid.
A sudden loss of power in both engines under the left wing … There’s not enough tarmac to stop safely … The engines become the new focus of the investigation. ibid.
Investigators found several fragments of tyre on the runway; one of them weighs four and a half kilograms. Tests quickly confirm they belong to Concorde. It’s a significant lead. ibid.
The tyre burst during taxiing … This 43-centimetre mystery strip of metal. When you match the 43-centimetre strip of metal to the damage on Concorde’s tyre, it’s a perfect fit. Suddenly, the whole Inquiry depends on the source of this metal. ibid.
The metal strip comes from the engine mountain of a DC-10 … a Continental Airlines DC10 took off five minutes before Concorde. ibid.
A bomb at the airport diverts two jumbos to a tiny airstrip. In just 8 minutes the worst aviation accident of all time takes the lives of 583 people. Seconds from Disaster s1e12: Collision on the Runway
Tenerife, Sunday 27th March 1977: When the Pan Am flight lands weather isn’t a problem … The KLM jumbo ahead of it on the taxiway is refuelling … The Spanish authorities force the planes to sit on the tarmac for two more hours … A change in the weather … The 747 [KLM] starts heading down the runway towards the Pan-Am. ibid.
The KLM smashes into the Pan-Am Jumbo at 292 kph. ibid.
September 11th 2001: Terrorists tested its strength: they turned a commercial jet into a weapon of destruction. Seconds from Disaster s1e13: Pentagon 9/11
Two airliners fly into the Twin Towers in New York City. Another aircraft has dropped off the radar and is heading straight for the Pentagon. ibid.
British Midland flight 92: A new Boeing 737 flying 126 people on a short hop from London to Northern Ireland. Suddenly, a series of explosive noises and severe vibrations rock the plane. It crashes just metres from the safety of a runway. Seconds from Disaster s2e3: Motorway Plane Crash
Lockerbie, Scotland: three weeks earlier a terrorist bomb blows apart a Pan AM 747 flying from Heathrow to the US. The explosion kills all 259 people on board and 11 more on the ground. ibid.
Then without warning a massive bang. The aircraft starts to vibrate violently … Worse, they smell smoke … Air traffic control clears him for an emergency landing at East Midlands airport just ten minutes flying time away … Another even louder bang rocks the aircraft … The passengers now know they’re going down. ibid.
30 metres before the motorway the tail section hits the ground and bounces back into the air. The plane smashes through trees near the edge of the motorway. It careens across the road destroying a light on the central reservation. The aircraft slams into the embankment on the far side of the M1 and breaks into three. It comes to rest just 900 metres from the safety of the runway. ibid.
How could such experienced pilots shut down the wrong engine on a brand-new aircraft? … Boeing has made another change to the latest 737 … ibid.
A DC10 en route to Chicago is packed with children and vacationers. One hour into the flight an engine fails. Although it still has two good engines the plane becomes almost unflyable. 285 passengers face an horrific crash landing at Sioux City. Seconds from Disaster s2e7: Crash Landing at Sioux City
The DC-10 making flight 232 today is in its 17th year of service and has flown over 43,000 hours. So far without incident. ibid.
A terrifying blast rips through the plane … Number 2 engine is malfunctioning … All 3 of the plane’s hydraulic systems are empty … The plane smashes into the runway. The right landing gear and wing shear off spilling fuel and sparking a fire … Dozens of surviving passengers flee the burning cabin. Fire trucks and ambulances race to help them. ibid.
1937: The Hindenburg, the world’s largest flying machine, arrives in the United States with 97 people on board. It’s the end of a successful transatlantic flight. Moments from landing, a fierce fire erupts. In just 34 seconds the mighty airship is destroyed. Seconds from Disaster s2e12: The Hindenburg
The airship’s outer skin is made of strong cotton and linen, waterproofed and tightened with a chemical paint called dope. ibid.
In 1930 the pride of the British empire, the R101 airship, was en route to India. It hit a storm over France and went down nose-first. The resulting crash killed 48 of the 54 people on board. The tragedy ended the British airship programme. Between 1925 and 1935 the US Navy lost three of its airships in severe weather. ibid.
Sunday 4th October 1992, Schiphol Airport: 6 minutes after takeoff El Al flight 1862 heads east over Amsterdam’s suburbs … Suddenly, a terrifying jolt rocks the plane; it starts to lose altitude and rolls violently to the right … Both engines on the right wing are out of action … The jumbo is losing height fast … El Al 1862 smashes into the 6th floor of the 11-storey apartment block. Seconds from Disaster s2e15: Amsterdam Air Crash
The two right-hand engines didn’t simply fail, they sheared off completely. ibid.
Miami International Airport, May 11th 1996: a McDonald-Douglas DC9, it’s fleet is among the oldest in America averaging 26 years, and they’ve been recent incidents. Seconds from Disaster s2e19: Florida Swamp Air Crash
Valujet flight 592, 107 passengers bound for Atlanta: Just minutes after takeoff people start to smell smoke … The pilots hear a loud bang on their headphones … Smoke starts to seep into the cockpit … Flight 592 crashes into the Florida Everglades. ibid.
The aircraft seems to have been suffering from multiple mechanical and electrical failures for over two minutes. ibid.