Air Disasters
Cast & Crew
Upcoming TV Airings
The airings below are based on a generic national schedule. Times and dates can vary by TV provider.
Monday, July 7
Perilous Payload
Season 20 • Episode 6
Three planes fatally out of balance force investigators to question every calculation.
Monday, July 7
Deadly Myth
Season 11 • Episode 3
After a commuter flight crashes, it's up to investigators to determine the cause.
Monday, July 7
Edge of Disaster
Season 9 • Episode 9
Atlantic Airways Flight 670 careened off the runway and became engulfed in flames.
Monday, July 7
Runway in Sight
Season 20 • Episode 7
If pilots aren't prepared when the runway is in sight, a landing can quickly become a tragedy.
Monday, July 7
Holding Pattern
Season 17 • Episode 1
A plane enters a rapid descent and crashes nose-first at Rostov-on-Don Airport in Russia.
Monday, July 7
Courage in the Cockpit
Season 20 • Episode 18
Devastating failures in the air put pilots to the test and shine a light on three feats of flying.
Monday, July 7
I'm the Problem
Season 3 • Episode 3
Moments before a Pacific Southwest flight crashes in California, gunshots are heard in the cabin.
Monday, July 7
Tragic Takeoff
Season 16 • Episode 3
Investigators must determine why a twin-engine jet failed to take off.
Monday, July 7
Lockerbie Disaster
Season 21 • Episode 2
The tragic circumstances surrounding the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 by terrorists.
Monday, July 7
Testing the Limits
Season 8 • Episode 2
The first-ever 767 plane crash in history: Lauda Air Flight 004.
Monday, July 7
Time Critical
In a rush to complete their flights, three different flight crews skip key procedures.
Monday, July 7
Time of War
Mistaken identity and hostile fire over enemy territory are among the many risks that pilots face.
Monday, July 7
Ticking Time Bomb
From corrosion and metal fatigue to faulty repairs, three doomed airlines are brought down.
Monday, July 7
Impossible Landing
Season 3 • Episode 4
United Airlines Flight 232 crashes into Sioux City's runway in 1989.
Monday, July 7
Deadly Data
With hidden flaws buried in their navigation systems, three planes suffer tragic computer errors.
Monday, July 7
Seconds From Touchdown
Season 16 • Episode 9
A turboprop is just seconds from landing when it flips over and crashes.
Monday, July 7
Blown Away
Season 12 • Episode 2
The investigation into the 2014 crash of a TransAsia flight uncovers a systemic problem.
Monday, July 7
Splash Down
Season 20 • Episode 29
Three last-resort water landings-all handled differently yet each one crucial.
Tuesday, July 8
Slam Dunk
Season 13 • Episode 10
A quick trip from Washington D.C. to Ohio in 1994 turns deadly.
Tuesday, July 8
Killer Attitude
Season 11 • Episode 2
The pairing of a domineering pilot and an inexperienced first officer has deadly consequences.
Tuesday, July 8
Deadly Go Round
Season 12 • Episode 9
After a plane crashes just before landing in Japan, fears arise about its complex automated systems.
Tuesday, July 8
Cockpit Breakdown
Season 20 • Episode 28
Three flights end in tragedy after miscommunication mix-ups and personality clases.
Tuesday, July 8
Atlantic Ditching
Season 15 • Episode 7
A helicopter carrying offshore drilling workers crashes into the ocean, leading to an investigation.
Tuesday, July 8
Flying Blind
Season 18 • Episode 10
A crew makes an error while cleaning a Boeing 757, causing it to crash into the Pacific Ocean.
Wednesday, July 9
Stealth Bomber Down
Season 17 • Episode 3
When a USAF stealth bomber crashes after takeoff, investigators search for a reason.
Wednesday, July 9
Panic on the Runway
Season 2 • Episode 4
In August, 1985, an airplane's engine catches fire as it accelerates.
Wednesday, July 9
The Lost Plane
Season 11 • Episode 10
Investigators struggle to understand the crash of Thai Airways Flight 311.
Wednesday, July 9
Vanished
Season 4 • Episode 13
On 1 June 2009, Air France Flight 447 stalls and crashes into the Atlantic Ocean.
Wednesday, July 9
Mistaken Identity
Season 6 • Episode 1
The captain of a Navy cruiser must quickly determine if an approaching plane is friendly.
Wednesday, July 9
Helicopter Down
Season 6 • Episode 7
A helicopter carrying oil workers to an offshore drilling platform crashes.
Wednesday, July 9
Fatal Delivery
Season 9 • Episode 5
The two-man crew of a UPS cargo jet must attempt an emergency landing.
Thursday, July 10
Scratching the Surface
Season 21 • Episode 1
A China Airlines 747 suddenly disappears from radar and crashes, killing 225 people.
Thursday, July 10
Hidden Danger
Season 7 • Episode 5
A Boeing 737 rolls into a dive and crashes within eight seconds, killing all 25 people on board.
Thursday, July 10
Murder in the Skies
Season 10 • Episode 7
Following a crash, investigators make a shocking discovery about a co-pilot's mental health.
Friday, July 11
The Final Push
Season 8 • Episode 5
Investigators try to find the cause of two similar air crashes that happened nearly 12 years apart.
Friday, July 11
Playing Catch Up
Season 16 • Episode 2
A private jet slams into an Ohio apartment building just a couple of miles from the runway.
Friday, July 11
Deadly Display
Season 12 • Episode 5
A high-stakes demonstration flight turns catastrophic when a Russian jet slams into a mountain.
Saturday, July 12
Fanning the Flames
Season 1 • Episode 4
A recovery operation is launched to find out if a 747 was carrying illegal weapons.
Saturday, July 12
Sideswiped
Season 8 • Episode 4
A Boeing 737 leaving Panama City crashes into one of the most remote jungles on the planet.
Saturday, July 12
Imperfect Pitch
Season 5 • Episode 8
A passenger plane plunges into the sea during an in-flight test.
Saturday, July 12
Death and Denial
Season 6 • Episode 8
In 1999, EgyptAir Flight 990 crashes into the Atlantic Ocean, killing all 217 people on board.
Saturday, July 12
Alarming Silence
Season 2 • Episode 5
Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes shortly after take-off in Detroit.
Saturday, July 12
Flying on Empty
Season 18 • Episode 12
When Air Transat Flight 236 runs out of fuel, its pilots desperately try to keep it in the air.
Sunday, July 13
Headline News
Season 20 • Episode 1
Three devastating crashes make front-page news around the globe.
Sunday, July 13
Cruel Skies
Season 2 • Episode 3
The importance of weather forecasting to the aviation industry.
Sunday, July 13
Deadly Disturbance
Season 14 • Episode 9
How routine flights can turn catastrophic in mere seconds when the pilots become distracted.
Sunday, July 13
Deadly Delay
Season 9 • Episode 7
Spanair Flight 5022 banked to the right, slammed into a creek and burst into flames.
Monday, July 14
No Control
Season 14 • Episode 4
Three crashes occur as pilots battle against their sophisticated aircraft.
Monday, July 14
Mayday Munich
Season 3 • Episode 2
Manchester United football team's plane crashes while returning from Yugoslavia, killing 23 aboard.
Monday, July 14
Focused on Failure
Season 4 • Episode 8
United Airlines Flight 173 runs out of fuel and crashes in a sparsely populated area.
Monday, July 14
Lost in Translation
Season 5 • Episode 3
The crash of a small commuter jet in Switzerland has plenty of clues but not enough answers.
Monday, July 14
Risky Runways
Season 20 • Episode 24
The toughest landings on earth pushed three fight crews to the limit.
Monday, July 14
Nowhere to Land
Season 3 • Episode 11
An emergency landing during a violent storm kills the engines of a 737.
Monday, July 14
Deadly Reputation
Season 2 • Episode 12
TAM Airlines Flight 3054 slides off a runway and crashes into a warehouse next to a petrol station.
Monday, July 14
Kid in the Cockpit
Season 6 • Episode 9
A pilot's decision to let his 15-year-old son fly has disastrous consequences.
Monday, July 14
Explosive Clues
Season 14 • Episode 5
A look at three commercial planes that became targets over the Sinai Desert and the Sea of Japan.
Monday, July 14
The Pentagon Attack
Season 10 • Episode 2
The FBI and NTSB join forces to determine how terrorists hijacked American Airlines Flight 77.
Monday, July 14
Fatal Focus
Season 9 • Episode 4
When a 737 careens off the runway in Indonesia, investigators uncover a shocking explanation.
Monday, July 14
VIP on Board
Season 20 • Episode 13
Airplane crashes involving high-profile passengers put added pressure on investigators.
Monday, July 14
Turboprop Terror
Season 17 • Episode 9
A turboprop stalls and crashes into a North Carolina forest; investigators uncover a safety problem.
Monday, July 14
Engine Gone
Season 20 • Episode 22
Three crews experience the same devastating event; an engine falls off their commercial airplane.
Monday, July 14
The Death of JFK Jr.
Season 8 • Episode 6
John F. Kennedy Jr.'s Piper Saratoga crashed in 1999 and the NTSB faces enormous pressure.
Monday, July 14
Fatal Approach
Season 13 • Episode 3
A false warning in the cockpit triggers a series of pilot errors, sending a commuter plane crashing.
Monday, July 14
Controversial Crashes
Season 14 • Episode 8
Seeing how international investigative teams solve controversial plane crashes.
Monday, July 14
Out of Sight
Season 7 • Episode 7
In one of the world's busiest airports, a large passenger plane crashes into a smaller one.
Monday, July 14
Dead Tired
Season 18 • Episode 4
Colgan Air Flight 3407 stalls at low altitude and crashes in a residential area near Buffalo.
Tuesday, July 15
Fire in the Hold
Season 4 • Episode 2
A plane sustains electrical failures and crashes in the Florida Everglades.
Tuesday, July 15
Lost
Season 18 • Episode 17
An American Airlines Flight en route to Cali, Colombia loses their exact position.
Tuesday, July 15
Deadly Pitch
Season 13 • Episode 5
An anonymous tip helps uncover the cause of a cargo plane crash in Miami.
Tuesday, July 15
Communication Breakdown
Season 14 • Episode 1
Misunderstandings between pilots and air traffic controllers cause deadly air disasters.
Tuesday, July 15
Caught in a Jam
Season 16 • Episode 8
When a commuter turboprop crashes onto hilly terrain in New Zealand, a search for answers ensues.
Tuesday, July 15
Speed Trap
Season 5 • Episode 2
A deadly midair collision between a commercial airliner and a F-4 Phantom.
Wednesday, July 16
Racing the Storm
Season 18 • Episode 8
A plane crashes during a thunderstorm, but investigators don't believe weather caused the crash.
Wednesday, July 16
Missing Over New York
Season 18 • Episode 18
Avianca Flight 52 is delayed numerous times is low on fuel as it attempts to land in New York City.
Wednesday, July 16
Frozen Wings
Season 20 • Episode 26
Investigators determine how modern aircraft could possibly end up with frozen wings.
Wednesday, July 16
Landings Gone Wrong
Season 20 • Episode 25
Three flights end in tragedy when crews improvise on their final approach.
Wednesday, July 16
Collision Course
Season 20 • Episode 3
A passenger ferry sinks after crashing into rocks off the coast of a Greek island, killing 82.
Wednesday, July 16
Break Up Over Texas
Season 3 • Episode 6
Continental Express Flight 2574 suffers wing damage and goes into a dive falling out of the sky.
Wednesday, July 16
Nuts and Bolts
Season 12 • Episode 1
When a cargo plane crashes moments after takeoff, investigators find a systematic problem.
Thursday, July 17
Miracle Escape
Season 7 • Episode 1
Passengers and crew escape a jet that skid off the runway before catching fire.
Thursday, July 17
Deadly Descent
Season 13 • Episode 1
When an airbus A330 loses both engines, its pilots must think of a solution before they crash.
Thursday, July 17
Deadly Detail
Season 10 • Episode 4
A Boeing 737 erupts in flames, putting 165 debarking passengers and crew in jeopardy.
Thursday, July 17
Dead of Winter
Season 12 • Episode 10
Continental Airlines Flight 1713 crashes on takeoff from Denver during a snowstorm in 1987.
Thursday, July 17
Blow Out
Season 18 • Episode 13
A cockpit window on British Airways Flight blows out, partially ejecting and injuring the captain.
Friday, July 18
The Turning Point
Season 11 • Episode 4
A Boeing 767 crashes miles from a South Korean runway; the investigation leads to differing stories.
Friday, July 18
Fire on Board
Season 14 • Episode 10
Three flights that erupted in flames, and the investigations that changed aviation forever.
Friday, July 18
Under Pressure
Season 3 • Episode 7
A burst tire creates an in-flight fire on flight 2120 which causes passengers and crew to perish.
Saturday, July 19
Steep Impact
Season 9 • Episode 8
The crash of a commuter plane in Georgia killed a NASA astronaut and a four-term U.S. senator.
Saturday, July 19
Dead of Night
Season 20 • Episode 21
Three crews lose site of the horizon and fall into the same deadly trap.
Saturday, July 19
Mixed Signals
Season 1 • Episode 8
Watch how a series of confusing signals make a plane crash into the Atlantic Ocean.
Saturday, July 19
Cold Case
Season 2 • Episode 6
A design flaw on the Fokker F28 causes two similar plane crashes in Ontario and New York.
Saturday, July 19
Target Is Destroyed
Season 2 • Episode 2
Korean Airlines Flight 007 is shot down by a fighter jet when it enters Soviet airspace.
Saturday, July 19
Panic Over the Pacific
Season 7 • Episode 6
A miraculous rescue is launched after a 747 plummets toward the Pacific.
Sunday, July 20
Vanishing Act
Season 8 • Episode 3
Varig Flight 254 disappears without a trace over the jungles of Brazil.
Sunday, July 20
Massacre Over The Mediterranean
Season 5 • Episode 7
An Italian passenger plane is blown out of the sky.
Sunday, July 20
Dangerous Approach
Season 10 • Episode 6
A Colorado commuter flight crashes five miles short of the runway.
Sunday, July 20
Pitch Black
Season 17 • Episode 8
An Illinois turboprop crashes after losing battery power; investigators uncover a series of errors.
Monday, July 21
Meltdown Over Kathmandu
Season 16 • Episode 6
A passenger plane comes in like a fighter jet and crashes, killing 51 of the 71 people aboard.
Monday, July 21
Vertigo
Season 7 • Episode 9
An examination of the crash over the Red Sea in January 2004.
Monday, July 21
Lapse in Security
Season 20 • Episode 14
Three horrific aviation disasters are all linked to breakdowns in vital security measures.
Monday, July 21
Killer in the Cockpit?
Season 14 • Episode 6
A look at commercial flights that ended in disaster because of suicidal pilots.
Monday, July 21
Blind Spot
Season 3 • Episode 1
In 1978, passengers and seven people on the ground die when a PSA flight crashed into a Cessna.
Monday, July 21
Dead Weight
Season 1 • Episode 5
Just after take-off, Air Midwest Flight 5481 plummets to the ground, killing all on board.
Monday, July 21
The Plane That Flew Too High
Season 2 • Episode 11
The West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 crash ultimately leads to bankruptcy of the troubled airline.
Monday, July 21
Hockey Team Tragedy
Season 4 • Episode 9
A Russian passenger jet crashes into the Volga River, killing almost everyone on board.
Monday, July 21
Deadly Solution
Season 10 • Episode 9
A captain's decision leads to a deadly stall over the Java Sea.
Monday, July 21
Pilot Betrayed
Season 18 • Episode 3
Following the story of the Scandinavian Airlines Flight 751 and Captain Rasmussen.
Monday, July 21
Choosing Sides
Season 8 • Episode 1
A tragic misunderstanding is the real cause of the crash of British Midland Flight 92.
Monday, July 21
Dream Flight Disaster
Season 19 • Episode 7
A British tycoon and his family die in a 2017 Australian seaplane crash.
Monday, July 21
Pacific Plunge
Season 17 • Episode 5
The pilots of an MD-83 realize something is very wrong with their plane.
Monday, July 21
Collision Course
Season 20 • Episode 3
A passenger ferry sinks after crashing into rocks off the coast of a Greek island, killing 82.
Monday, July 21
Deadly Silence
Season 10 • Episode 1
A private Learjet goes rogue before crashing in a South Dakota hayfield.
Monday, July 21
Accidents in the Air
Investigators dig deep into three mid-air collisions that seem to defy logic.
Monday, July 21
Deadly Airspace
Season 12 • Episode 4
When an airliner goes down in Ukraine, examiners must conduct an investigation in a war zone.
Monday, July 21
Pressure Point
Season 19 • Episode 3
Investigators race to determine the cause of the 1985 crash of Japan Airlines 123.
Monday, July 21
River Runway
Season 10 • Episode 8
Pilots attempt to land their Boeing 737 in an Indonesian river.
Monday, July 21
Blown Apart
Season 21 • Episode 3
In Sept. 1989, Partnair Flight 394 crashes into the sea, killing all 55 people on board.
Tuesday, July 22
Head-On Collision
Season 18 • Episode 21
With its conductors sound asleep, a freight train fails to stop and collides with a passenger train.
Tuesday, July 22
Bomb on Board
Season 6 • Episode 2
In 1994 on Philippine Airlines Flight 434, a terrorist bombing requires a daring emergency landing.
Tuesday, July 22
Ocean Landing
Season 6 • Episode 10
Pilots aboard a hijacked plane are forced to attempt an emergency landing at sea.
Tuesday, July 22
Terror in Paradise
Season 5 • Episode 10
A seven-minute island-hop from Moorea to Tahiti ends in disaster.
Tuesday, July 22
Attack Over Baghdad
Season 6 • Episode 5
A missile cripples a cargo plane after it takes off from Baghdad International Airport.
Wednesday, July 23
Fatal Transmission
Season 9 • Episode 1
A runway collision at a small airport turns tragic.
Wednesday, July 23
Take Off Tragedies
Season 20 • Episode 20
Three flights ending in tragedy, prove that minor missteps during takeoff can have consequences.
Wednesday, July 23
Lost
Season 18 • Episode 17
An American Airlines Flight en route to Cali, Colombia loses their exact position.
Wednesday, July 23
Control Catastrophe
Season 19 • Episode 5
Experts investigate a string of events that caused Air Astana Flight 1388 to become uncontrollable.
Wednesday, July 23
Cockpit Catastrophe
Season 19 • Episode 6
The cockpit window of an Airbus A319 explodes; pilots land the out-of-control plane.
Wednesday, July 23
Phantom Strike
Season 1 • Episode 10
A legacy business jet collides with a Boeing 737 in mid-air over the Amazon forest.
Wednesday, July 23
No Warning
Season 15 • Episode 8
Investigators must figure out why the safety systems of a turboprop plane failed to prevent a crash.
Thursday, July 24
Maintenance Mistakes
Season 20 • Episode 19
When the nuts and bolts of maintenance go unchecked, it can spell catastrophe.
Thursday, July 24
Kobe Bryant
Season 17 • Episode 10
Basketball legend Kobe Bryant is killed in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.
Thursday, July 24
Cockpit Failure
Season 18 • Episode 1
Bad weather and a series of errors lead to the crash of a plane on its approach to Zurich Airport.
Thursday, July 24
Engines Out
Season 20 • Episode 4
An aircraft loses total engine power; investigators determine what went wrong.