
Catastrophic incidents in aviation history are meticulously re-enacted, providing insight into what went wrong and if the crashes and near-disasters could have been prevented; accounts from survivors combine with cockpit recordings and computer images to weave the gripping tales and expert testimony reveals the hows and whys behind the events, some of which have resulted in important changes to aviation safety and regulations.

During a storm, a strong gale slams Delta Air Lines Flight 191 to the ground killing most people on board.

A pilot heads for a decommissioned air force base, not knowing it is hosting a weekend family event, when the passenger jet he is flying unexpectedly runs out of fuel.

A design fault leads to an explosion on a DC-10 and two years later the same design fault causes another tragedy.

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