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s25e10 · 2026-03-25
Running · GB
Air Crash Investigation
National Geographic Documentary
What it is
Flying is one of the safest forms of transport. But what happens when tragedy strikes? From human error and accidents to mechanical faults and design flaws, the success of aviation history is punctuated with disaster and catastrophe. It's rare, but it does happen. Follow experts as they determine what went wrong and work out how to prevent these horrific tragedies from happening again. Examine the wrecks and official records, and hear from eyewitnesses, passengers and aviation experts as we reconstruct some of the most tragic disasters in aviation history. Air Crash Investigation looks at what went wrong and how future disasters can be averted.
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Episode guide
10 this season · 261 totals04e01 Desperate Escape 2007-04-16 01:00
Desperate Escape
August 2, 2005. In a raging thunderstorm after a difficult landing, Air France 358 skids off the runway in Toronto. As it crashes, the left engine catches fire. There are only seconds to escape.
s04e02 Falling from the Sky 2007-04-23 01:00
Falling from the Sky
24 June 1982 / British Airways Flight 9. When all engines fail, the plane plummets but moments later, the engines restart. What caused this mysterious event?
s04e03 Fire Fight 2007-04-30 01:00
Fire Fight
2 June 1983, Air canada Flight 797, a small mechanical problem in the back of a Canadian aircraft quickly led to an all-out emergency. Thick, toxic smoke filled the plane before it burst into flames, killing 23 people.
s04e04 Missed Approach 2007-05-07 01:00
Missed Approach
August 6, 1997. Korean Air flight 801 departed from Seoul, Korea. It had been cleared to land at AB Won Guam Airport, Agana when it crashed about three miles south-west of the airport.
s04e05 Hidden Danger 2007-05-14 01:00
Hidden Danger
3 March 1991 - United Airlines Flight 585 - - A Boeing 737 jet spins out of control on its descent, and ten seconds later all 20 passengers are dead. What resulted was one of the longest and most expensive enquiries in US aviation history.
s04e06 Panic Over the Pacific 2007-05-21 01:00
Panic Over the Pacific
19 Febuary 1985 - Flying at 41,000 feet, a China Airlines flight encounters turbulence and the autopilot turns on. A series of mistakes and the pilot's poor understanding of autopilot almost ends in disaster.
s04e07 Out of Sight 2007-05-28 01:00
Out of Sight
31 August 1986--The loss of over 80 lives near LA's busy airport forces authorities to change the way planes are tracked and monitored.
s04e08 Fog of War 2007-06-04 01:00
Fog of War
April 1996. US government officials and business executives are on a trade mission to Bosnia and Croatia. As they near the Dubrovnik airport, rain and clouds make the journey increasingly difficult.
s04e09 Vertigo 2007-06-11 01:00
Vertigo
January 3, 2004. Moments after taking off from Egypt's Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport, a Boeing 737 crashes into the Red Sea. The plane's black boxes reveal the horrifying final moments.
s04e10 Ghost Plane 2007-06-18 01:00
Ghost Plane
14 August 2005 - When Athens air traffic control fails to make contact with Helios Airways Flight 522 from Cyprus, two F-16 fighters are despatched, only to watch helplessly as the jet crashes into a mountain.