Mayday: Season 9

2010 · 8 episodes · ★ 7.7

What Season 9 of Mayday

Season 9 of Mayday brings together eight episodes covering accidents, incidents and events that shaped aviation history. Each episode reconstructs the sequence of events that led to the emergency through dramatized scenes, computer animation and archive footage. The narration is voiced by Stephen Bogaert, while experts, retired pilots and investigators explain what went wrong and how investigators reached their conclusions. The conflicts range from a fire on the runway to errors in the cockpit configuration and in air traffic control decisions. In the episode about Air France flight 296, the pilot and the official investigation disagree on the cause of the crash. Other episodes focus on ice buildup on the wings and cracks in the wing of Chalk's Ocean Airways flight 101.

8episodes

Sep 8, 2010premiered

Oct 27, 2010final episode

6 hrtotal runtime

Season 9 Episodes

9x01 Panic on the Runway (British Airtours Flight 28M)
Sep 8, 2010 · 45 min
On 22 August 1985, an engine of British Airtours Flight 28M fails during takeoff, puncturing a hole in the wing fuel tank and starting a fire. The crew successfully abandons the takeoff and stops the aircraft on the runway, but the fire spreads to the cabin. 55 people die before they can evacuate, mainly due to inhaling toxic smoke. The investigation found that fatigue of a part in the engine caused it to fail.
Directing: James Hyslop · Writing: Alex Bystram · Starring: Mark Burns, Richard McMillan, Andrew Musselman, Melissa Kramer
9x02 Pilot vs Plane (Air France Flight 296)
Sep 15, 2010 · 45 min · ★ 7.2
On 26 June 1988, Air France Flight 296 fails to climb and crashes into trees after performing a flyby during an airshow at Mulhouse-Habsheim Airport, killing three people. The cause of this crash remains in dispute.
Directing: James Hyslop · Writing: Greg Gransden · Starring: Nicholas Kilbertus, Olivier L'Ecuyer, Lyne Tremblay, Drew Zeran
9x03 Alarming Silence (Northwest Airlines Flight 255)
Sep 22, 2010 · 45 min
On 16 August 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255 stalls as it lifts off from Detroit Metropolitan Airport and crashes just beyond the runway, killing 154 of the 155 people on board and two people on the ground. The investigation showed that the pilots failed to configure the aircraft's flaps and slats for takeoff.
Directed by: Ian Robertson · Written by: Alex Bystram, Michael Sheehan · Starring: Michael Kremko, Bill Lake, Brendan Murray, Christopher Sawchyn
9x04 Cleared for Disaster (USAir Flight 1493)
Sep 29, 2010 · 45 min · ★ 8.0
On 1 February 1991, USAir Flight 1493 collides with a waiting SkyWest Airlines aircraft on the runway, killing 34 people. An air traffic controller mistakenly assigned the inbound Flight 1493 to land on a runway where SkyWest Flight 5569 was waiting to take off.
Directing: Su Rynard · Writing: Christopher Blow · Starring: Art Hindle, Seann Gallagher, David Bronfman, Julia Lefebvre
9x05 Target Is Destroyed (Korean Air Lines Flight 007)
Oct 6, 2010 · 45 min
On 1 September 1983, during the Cold War, Korean Air Lines Flight 007 was shot down after violating Soviet airspace. The crew did not switch the autopilot from heading to INS mode following take off which caused the aircraft to deviate from its assigned flight path.
Directing: George D'Amato · Writing: Armen Kazazian · Starring: Denis Akiyama, Cecil Law, Jordan Andonov, Allen Keng
9x06 Cold Case (Air Ontario 1363 and USAir 405)
Oct 13, 2010 · 45 min
On 10 March 1989, Air Ontario Flight 1363 crashes just after takeoff, killing 24 people. Three years later, on 22 March 1992, USAir Flight 405 also crashes just after takeoff in similar conditions to Flight 1363. The cause of the crashes was ice on the wings, which significantly reduced lift.
Directing: Ian Robertson · Writing: Robert Eaton · Starring: Matthew Cooke, Tre Smith, Martin Harper, Shauna Bradley
9x07 The Final Blow (Air Inter Flight 148)
Oct 20, 2010 · 45 min
On 20 January 1992, Air Inter Flight 148 flies into a peak in the Vosges Mountains while circling to land at Strasbourg Airport, killing 87 people. An error made in programing the aircraft's autopilot, combined with a sudden wind change, caused it to descend more rapidly than expected.
Directing: George D'Amato · Writing: Carl Knutson · Starring: Burke Lawrence, Philippe Ayoub, Jean-Marc Fontaine, John Tokatlidis
9x08 Cracks in the System (Chalk's Ocean Airways Flight 101) Season Finale
Oct 27, 2010 · 45 min · ★ 8.6
On 19 December 2005, just seconds after takeoff from Miami, Florida, the right wing of Chalk's Ocean Airways Flight 101 breaks off, causing the aircraft to crash into the sea, killing all 20 people on board. The causes of the crash were metal fatigue and poor maintenance.
Directing: Michael Sinyi · Writing: Greg Gransden · Starring: Kristi Angus, Jarrod MacLean, Peter James Haworth, Nicholas Bacon