Mayday: Air Disasters
by Greg Lanning, Bryn Higgins, Gary Lang, Bernard Vaillot
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DVD details
Director: Bernard Vaillot, Bryn Higgins, Gary Lang, Greg LanningBrand: Koch International
Narrator: David Bamber
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language)
Format: Color, Dolby, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.77:1
Running Time: 312 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2009-04-07
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: E1 Entertainment
Product features:
- Each episode of this gripping series features a detailed re-enactment of a real-life air disaster. Using cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitness recounts and interviews with aviation experts, Mayday: Air Disasters provides a compelling, in-depth look at the critical moments before, during and after these catastrophes. As seen on the National Geographic Ch
DVD Reviews of Mayday: Air Disasters
DVD Review: Nightmares that came true
Summary: 5 Stars
These are six accidents of commercial jetliners worthy of re-creation and analysis. For me the most fascinating was the "Flying Blind" episode, where, prior to the flight, a mechanic had taped over the static ports of the Aeroperu 757 to clean the aircraft but then forgot to remove the tape. After takeoff, the tape caused flight instrumentation to generate erratic data and the pilots could not deduce the problem before descending into the ocean. A critical link in the error chain was the fact that the pilots relied on the air traffic controller for their altitude, a measurement that was actually generated by the airplane's own faulty readings and transmitted to the controller, who read it back to them. The black, moonless night literally kept the pilots in the dark about their real altitude until it was too late.
For all flight crew reenactments, the screenplays are taken verbatim from the cockpit voice recordings and are rendered with chilling realism. At times you feel like you're in the cockpit with the crew, helplessly watching them make crucial decisions that seal the fate of all souls onboard.
One other thing of note: The final, 80-second dive of Alaska Airlines flight 261 was, in all likelihood, even more terrifying than the reenactment as shown in "Mayday." According to the captain of a Skywest jet that was in the area at the time (see the NTSB's "Operations/Human Performance" report for the accident), flight 261, at one point, curved up until "it appeared to nearly stop, and then the nose fell back to the horizontal, leaving the airplane inverted," and then it "did an indescribable maneuver during which it appeared to tumble end-over-end." The CVR also indicated a very loud noise throughout the final dive--undoubtedly the metal-on-metal shrieking of the broken stabilizer--but this detail was left out. Nevertheless, the acting is superb, and we're reminded why Captain Ted Thompson and First Officer Bill Tansky were awarded the Airline Pilots Association Gold Medal for Heroism in 2001.
Description of Mayday: Air Disasters
As seen on National Geographic Channel as ?Air Emergency?Hold on to your seat! Each episode of this white-knuckled, thrilling series features a detailed re-enactment of a real-life air emergency. Using cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitness accounts and interviews with aviation experts, Mayday: Air Disasters provides an exciting and compelling look at the critical moments before, during and after these catastrophes and near-misses.
Includes Six Gripping Episodes:
?Unlocking Disaster? ? At an altitude of 33,000 feet, the cargo door of Flight 811 opens, ripping a huge hole in the 747 and taking out five rows of seats and nine passengers.
?Racing the Storm? ? At the height of thunderstorm season in Arkansas, American Airlines 1420 slips off a wet runway, down an embankment and breaks apart.
?Fire on Board? ? The pilot of Swissair Flight 111 smells smoke in the cockpit. Minutes later, fire and complete electrical failure cause the MD11 to crash into the Atlantic.
?Flying Blind? ? As Aeroperu Flight 603 takes off from Lima, its airspeed and altitude indicators jam. The flight crew is flying blind and heading for disaster.
?Cutting Corners? ? Shortly after Air Alaska Flight 261 takes off, the stabilizer malfunctions. The pilots struggle to control the nose-diving plane before it crashes into the ocean.
?Flying on Empty? ? An Air Transat Airbus runs out of fuel over the Atlantic and has to glide to a power-free landing, narrowly avoiding catastrophe.
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