The Best Episodes Directed By George D'amato

On 9 October 2002, Northwest Airlines Flight 85 is cruising above the Bering Sea, when the lower rudder segment suddenly deflects to the left. The pilots divert the aircraft to a successful emergency landing at Anchorage, Alaska, by using engine thrust for control. The incident was attributed to a fatigue failure of the rudder hydraulic control module, resulting in part of the module's metal casing breaking off.

On 17 January 2008, British Airways Flight 38 is on its final approach to land, when the autothrottles command increased thrust from the engines. The engines do not respond to the control inputs and remain at idle. The captain raises one notch of flaps to give the aircraft a few more feet of flying distance; it crash-lands just short of the runway without causing any fatalities. The fuel flow to both engines was restricted because of ice crystals causing a blockage in the fuel-oil heat exchangers.

On 15 January 2009, US Airways Flight 1549 suffers a bird strike with a flock of Canada geese approximately 1.5 minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. Both engines fail, and less than two minutes later, the crew members successfully ditch the aircraft in the Hudson River. All on board survive.

En route to Hong Kong, Cathay Pacific Flight 780 is high over the South China Sea when both of the plane's engines fail, turning the Airbus A-330 into a 200-ton glider; the captain takes over manual control and manages to power up one engine.

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.

On 8 June 1983, Reeve Aleutian Airways Flight 8's propeller separates from the aircraft over Cold Bay, Alaska, causing an explosive decompression and loss of control. The pilots manage to land the aircraft safely at Anchorage, Alaska. The propeller fell into the sea, and the cause of the separation is undetermined.

On 28 December 1978, the crew of United Airlines Flight 173 is 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, killing 10 and seriously injuring 24 of the 189 on board. According to the NTSB, the pilot failed to acknowledge the warnings of the remaining crew regarding the aircraft's fuel state, while the remaining crew failed to adequately communicate the situation. The NTSB recommendation from this event led to the industry-wide implementation of Crew resource management (CRM) protocols.

On 2 June 1983, a fire breaks out on Air Canada Flight 797 in the aircraft's toilet. An emergency landing is made in Cincinnati, but the aircraft is engulfed by flames on the runway, killing 23 people, including musician Stan Rogers. The opening of the aircraft's doors after the landing caused a flashover.

A Gol Transportes Aéreos Boeing 737 and a brand-new Embraer Legacy business jet on its delivery flight collide in mid-air over the Amazon. The 737 crashes but the Legacy manages to make a safe landing. 154 people die.

On 31 October 1994, American Eagle Flight 4184 falls out of the sky, killing all 68 people on board. The crash was caused by ice developing on the wing in a manner that the on-board deicing system could not remove.

On 17 July 2007, TAM Airlines Flight 3054 careens off runway 35L at Brazil's Congonhas Airport, crashes at high speed into a warehouse adjacent to a filling station and explodes. A total of 199 people on board the aircraft and on the ground are killed. Incorrect engine throttle settings upon landing caused one engine to reverse thrust while the other increased power, resulting in the loss of control.

Competing in a highly-modified P-51 Mustang at the Reno Air Races, Jimmy Leeward is determined to set a new speed record, but half way through the race, his plane spirals out of control and crashes onto the tarmac in front of the stands.

On 23 June 1985, Air India Flight 182 explodes in mid-air and disintegrates over the coast of Ireland, killing all 329 passengers and crew members on board. Investigators discovered that a bomb from Sikh militant group Babbar Khalsa caused the explosion.

Shortly after leaving London Heathrow airport in December 1988, Pan Am flight 103 exploded above Lockerbie , Scotland killing 270 people. Investigators soon discovered that a bomb in the forward cargo compartment had taken down the plane.

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.

On 3 April 1996, while attempting to land at Dubrovnik Airport in Croatia during heavy fog, a United States Air Force Boeing CT-43 strays off course and flies into a mountain. All 35 people on board are killed, including the United States Secretary of Commerce, Ron Brown. The non-precision approach procedure the crew needed to follow required the use of two automatic direction finders, but the aircraft was only fitted with one.