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Photo: Mila Daniel / CC BY-SA 4.0
14 August 2005

Helios Airways Flight 522

Hypoxia on a flight to Athens

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Helios Airways Flight 522, a Boeing 737-300 flying from Larnaca to Athens and Prague on 14 August 2005, never pressurised because a selector had been left in manual after overnight maintenance, and the pilots were overcome by hypoxia as the aircraft climbed on autopilot. It flew on unresponsive for almost three hours, circling near Athens until its fuel ran out, and crashed into hills near Grammatiko, killing all 121 people on board.
1 video perspective
- Helios Airways Flight 522: Inside the Ghost Plane Inquiry
  
  This Mayday episode follows Greek investigators as they work out why a Helios Airways 737 flew silently for almost three hours before crashing near Athens in August 2005, killing all 121 on board.
  
  Published 14 May 2021
Photo: Aero Icarus from Zürich, Switzerland / CC BY-SA 2.0
24 August 2001

Air Transat Flight 236

The glide to the Azores

Open event

On 24 August 2001 an Air Transat Airbus A330 flying from Toronto to Lisbon lost all its fuel over the Atlantic through a leak in its right engine, and both engines stopped. The crew glided it to Lajes in the Azores and landed, and all 306 people on board survived.
1 video perspective
- Air Transat Flight 236: How a Fuel Leak Stopped Both Engines
  
  On 24 August 2001 Air Transat Flight 236, an Airbus A330 flying from Toronto to Lisbon, lost both engines over the Atlantic after a fuel leak caused by an improper engine installation.
  
  Published 9 Mar 2024
Photo: Andrew Thomas from Shrewsbury, UK / CC BY-SA 2.0
23 July 1983

Air Canada Flight 143

The Gimli emergency landing

Open event

On 23 July 1983 an almost new Air Canada Boeing 767 ran out of fuel at 41,000 feet over northern Ontario, after its fuel load was worked out in pounds instead of kilograms. Captain Robert Pearson glided it to a landing on the disused air force runway at Gimli, Manitoba, and all 69 people on board survived.
3 video perspectives
- Air Canada Flight 143: Pearson’s Sideslip Landing at Gimli
  
  This Mayday episode reconstructs the flight of Air Canada 143 on 23 July 1983, from the first fuel pump warning to the evacuation at Gimli.
  
  Published 3 May 2021
- Air Canada Flight 143: Gimli Glider Landing and the Inquiry
  
  This full Mayday episode follows Air Canada Flight 143 from the first fuel pump warning to the landing at Gimli, Manitoba, on 23 July 1983, and then into the investigation.
  
  Published 5 May 2022
- Air Canada Flight 143: The Pounds-for-Kilograms Fuel Error
  
  On 23 July 1983 an almost new Air Canada Boeing 767 ran out of fuel over northern Ontario after its fuel was calculated with the wrong conversion factor.
  
  Published 30 Oct 2026

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Helios Airways Flight 522

Helios Airways Flight 522: Inside the Ghost Plane Inquiry

Air Transat Flight 236

Air Transat Flight 236: How a Fuel Leak Stopped Both Engines

Air Canada Flight 143

Air Canada Flight 143: Pearson’s Sideslip Landing at Gimli

Air Canada Flight 143: Gimli Glider Landing and the Inquiry

Air Canada Flight 143: The Pounds-for-Kilograms Fuel Error