TV Schedule for Smithsonian Channel USA - Pacific HD

Air Disasters Deadly Delay

Almost immediately after taking off from Madrid International Airport, Spanair Flight 5022 banked to the right, slammed into a creek and burst into flames.

Air Disasters Landing Hazards

Martinair 495 crashes on a rain-soaked runway in Portugal, showing how weather can doom a landing; American 1572 hits a storm and loses both engines amid a tower shutdown; crosswinds challenge an Air France crew already halfway down the runway.

Air Disasters No Control

An examination of three crashes that occurred when pilots battled against their sophisticated aircraft.

Air Disasters Playing Catch Up

A private jet attempting to compensate for a late approach to the airport, slams into an Ohio apartment building just a couple of miles from the runway.

Air Disasters Deadly Display

A high-stakes demonstration flight in Indonesia turns catastrophic when a Russian jet slams into a mountain.

Air Disasters Fanning the Flames

A complex recovery operation is launched to find out if a 747 which disappeared into the Indian Ocean was carrying illegal weapons.

Air Disasters Trained to Fail

Pilots are prepared to cope with a range of emergency scenarios, but failures in training can lead to catastrophe in the cockpit.

Air Disasters Scratching the Surface

After taking off from Taiwan, a China Airlines 747 suddenly disappears from radar and crashes, killing 225 people.

Air Disasters Unlocking Disaster

A 747's cargo door opens at 23,000 feet, causing an explosive decompression that ejects nine passengers from the plane.

Air Disasters Flying on Empty

When Air Transat Flight 236 runs out of fuel over the Atlantic, its pilots desperately try to keep their Airbus A330 in the air until they reach land.

Air Disasters Cruel Skies

The U.S. Aviation Weather Center in Kansas City, Miss.; the importance of accurate weather forecasting to the aviation industry.

Air Disasters Lost in Translation

On 10 January 2000, Crossair Flight 498 crashes just two minutes after takeoff from Zürich, Switzerland, while heading for Dresden, Germany, killing all 10 people on board.

Air Disasters Fatal Approach

A false warning in the cockpit triggers a series of pilot errors, sending a commuter plane crashing by the runway of an Amsterdam airport.

Air Disasters Turboprop Terror

When a turboprop stalls and crashes into a North Carolina forest, investigators resort to a risky test flight-and uncover an industry-wide safety problem.

Air Disasters Mayday Munich

A plane with members of the Manchester United football team crashes while heading home from Yugoslavia, killing 23 aboard.

Air Disasters Focused on Failure

On 28 December 1978, the crew of United Airlines Flight 173 are preoccupied with a landing gear problem as the aircraft circles in a holding pattern in the vicinity of Portland, Oregon; it runs out of fuel and crashes in a sparsely populated area.

Air Disasters Pitch Battle

Colgan Air 9446 nosedives into the waters off Cape Cod just minutes after takeoff following a four-day maintenance stop.

Air Disasters The Death of JFK Jr.

When John F. Kennedy Jr.'s Piper Saratoga crashed in 1999, the NTSB faces big pressure to find the wreckage and the cause.

Air Disasters Landings Gone Wrong

Relying on instinct rather than the rule book, three flights end in tragedy when crews improvise on their final approach.

Air Disasters Collision Course

A passenger ferry sinks after crashing into rocks off the coast of a Greek island, killing 82; it leads to a shocking investigation.

Air Disasters Disaster At Dutch Harbor

While landing at a notoriously tricky Alaskan island airport, the pilots of a twin turboprop can't stop their plane.

Air Disasters Break Up Over Texas

Near the end of its flight, Continental Express Flight 2574 suffers wing damage and goes into a dive falling out of the sky.

Air Disasters Nuts and Bolts

When an American cargo plane crashes moments after takeoff, investigators uncover a systemic problem with aircraft maintenance.

Air Disasters The Turning Point

A Boeing 767 crashes miles from a South Korean runway; the investigation leads to contradicting stories between the surviving pilot and air traffic control.