Flights Gone Wrong

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18 videos

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

    Event: 1983Published: 30 Oct 2026

    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.

    View event: Air Canada Flight 143 (1983)
    Aircraft
    Boeing 767
    Location
    Gimli, Manitoba, Canada
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  2. Aloha Airlines Flight 243: 13 Minutes From Decompression to Maui

    Event: 1988Published: 30 Oct 2026

    On 28 April 1988 Aloha Airlines Flight 243 lost about 18 feet of its upper fuselage at 24,000 feet.

    View event: Aloha Airlines Flight 243 (1988)
    Location
    Near Kahului, Maui, Hawaii, United States
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  3. Helios Airways Flight 522: How a 737 Flew On After Crew Hypoxia

    Event: 2005Published: 24 Oct 2026

    Helios Airways Flight 522 took off from Larnaca in August 2005 with its pressurisation selector left in manual after night maintenance, and its pilots mistook the cabin altitude horn for a takeoff…

    View event: Helios Airways Flight 522 (2005)
    Location
    Grammatiko, about 33 km north-west of Athens International Airport, Attica, Greece

  4. Eastern Air Lines Flight 855: Missing O-Rings in Three Engines

    Event: 1983Published: 16 Oct 2026

    On 5 May 1983 Eastern Air Lines Flight 855, a Lockheed L-1011 flying from Miami to Nassau, lost oil from all three engines because replacement chip detectors had been fitted without their O-ring…

    View event: Eastern Air Lines Flight 855 (1983)
    Location
    Over the Atlantic between Miami and Nassau
    Phase of flight
    Approach

  5. Helios Airways 522: The Switch, the Horn and Andreas Prodromou

    Event: 2005Published: 16 May 2026

    Airline captain Petter Hörnfeldt traces Helios Flight 522 from the airline's audit failures and the 737's history of pressurisation faults to the overnight test that left the selector in manual.

    View event: Helios Airways Flight 522 (2005)
    Location
    Grammatiko, about 33 km north-west of Athens International Airport, Attica, Greece
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  6. Emery 17 and TransAsia 222: A Jammed Elevator and a Low Approach

    Event: 2000Published: 12 Oct 2025

    This double episode covers two accidents.

    View event: Emery Worldwide Flight 17 (2000)
    Aircraft
    ATR 72, Douglas DC-8
    Location
    Rancho Cordova, near Sacramento, California, United States
    Phase of flight
    Takeoff

  7. American Airlines Flight 191: The 1979 Crash That Grounded DC-10s

    Event: 1979Published: 23 Jul 2024

    Fascinating Horror's short documentary on American Airlines Flight 191 covers the DC-10's history at American, the takeoff from Chicago O'Hare on 25 May 1979, the separation of the left engine and…

    View event: American Airlines Flight 191 (1979)
    Location
    Open field and trailer park beside Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Des Plaines, Illinois, United States
    Phase of flight
    Takeoff

  8. Japan Air Lines Flight 123: The Faulty Repair Behind 520 Deaths

    Event: 1985Published: 16 Apr 2024

    Fascinating Horror's short documentary on Japan Air Lines Flight 123 starts with the aircraft's tail strike at Osaka in 1978 and ends at the memorial on the mountain.

    View event: Japan Air Lines Flight 123 (1985)
    Aircraft
    Boeing 747
    Location
    Ridge about 2.5 km north-northwest of Mount Mikuni, Ueno Village, Gunma Prefecture, Japan
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

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

    Event: 2001Published: 9 Mar 2024

    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.

    View event: Air Transat Flight 236 (2001)
    Aircraft
    Airbus A330
    Location
    Lajes Air Base, Terceira, Azores, Portugal
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  10. Alaska Airlines Flight 261: Two Hours With a Jammed Stabiliser

    Event: 2000Published: 15 Dec 2023

    Green Dot Aviation's animated documentary follows Alaska Airlines Flight 261 on 31 January 2000, from the climb out of Puerto Vallarta, when the stabiliser jammed, to the final inverted dive off…

    View event: Alaska Airlines Flight 261 (2000)
    Location
    Pacific Ocean, about 2.7 miles north of Anacapa Island, California, United States
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  11. Alaska Airlines Flight 261: How a Worn Jackscrew Caused the Dive

    Event: 2000Published: 3 Jun 2023

    Mentour Pilot explains the loss of Alaska Airlines Flight 261 on 31 January 2000, beginning with how the MD-80's horizontal stabiliser and jackscrew work and how their maintenance was stretched over…

    View event: Alaska Airlines Flight 261 (2000)
    Location
    Pacific Ocean, about 2.7 miles north of Anacapa Island, California, United States
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  12. American Airlines Flight 191: Mayday on the O’Hare DC-10 Inquiry

    Event: 1979Published: 14 Apr 2023

    This Mayday episode follows the NTSB investigation into American Airlines Flight 191, the DC-10 that crashed after takeoff from Chicago O'Hare on 25 May 1979, killing 273 people.

    View event: American Airlines Flight 191 (1979)
    Location
    Open field and trailer park beside Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Des Plaines, Illinois, United States
    Phase of flight
    Takeoff

  13. Japan Air Lines Flight 123: How the Bulkhead Burst Took the Tail

    Event: 1985Published: 13 Apr 2022

    This four-minute Smithsonian Channel clip explains the mechanism of the Japan Air Lines Flight 123 accident in 1985.

    View event: Japan Air Lines Flight 123 (1985)
    Aircraft
    Boeing 747
    Location
    Ridge about 2.5 km north-northwest of Mount Mikuni, Ueno Village, Gunma Prefecture, Japan
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  14. American Airlines Flight 191: The Forklift Shortcut and the Slats

    Event: 1979Published: 20 Nov 2021

    Mentour Pilot explains American Airlines Flight 191, the DC-10 that lost its left engine on takeoff from Chicago O'Hare on 25 May 1979.

    View event: American Airlines Flight 191 (1979)
    Location
    Open field and trailer park beside Chicago O'Hare International Airport, Des Plaines, Illinois, United States
    Phase of flight
    Takeoff

  15. Aloha Airlines Flight 243: Fatigue Cracks and the NTSB Inquiry

    Event: 1988Published: 7 Jul 2021

    This shorter Mayday cut covers what happened after Aloha Airlines Flight 243 landed on Maui on 28 April 1988 with part of its roof missing.

    View event: Aloha Airlines Flight 243 (1988)
    Location
    Near Kahului, Maui, Hawaii, United States
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  16. Aloha Airlines Flight 243: Landing a 737 With Its Roof Torn Away

    Event: 1988Published: 27 May 2021

    This full Mayday episode reconstructs Aloha Airlines Flight 243 on 28 April 1988, when an explosive decompression tore away part of the 737's upper fuselage at 24,000 feet over Hawaii.

    View event: Aloha Airlines Flight 243 (1988)
    Aircraft
    Boeing 737
    Location
    Near Kahului, Maui, Hawaii, United States
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  17. Air Transat Flight 236: Fuel Leak, Glide and Lajes Landing

    Event: 2001Published: 8 Apr 2021

    This Mayday episode reconstructs Air Transat Flight 236, an Airbus A330 with 306 people on board that ran out of fuel over the Atlantic on 24 August 2001.

    View event: Air Transat Flight 236 (2001)
    Aircraft
    Airbus A330
    Location
    Lajes Air Base, Terceira, Azores, Portugal
    Phase of flight
    Cruise

  18. Japan Air Lines Flight 123: The Obon Flight and the 1978 Repair

    Event: 1985Published: 24 Oct 2020

    This Disaster Breakdown episode explains Japan Air Lines Flight 123, the Boeing 747 that crashed in the mountains of Gunma Prefecture on 12 August 1985.

    View event: Japan Air Lines Flight 123 (1985)
    Aircraft
    Boeing 747
    Location
    Ridge about 2.5 km north-northwest of Mount Mikuni, Ueno Village, Gunma Prefecture, Japan
    Phase of flight
    Cruise