8.1/10197 votes#1 - Hanging by a Thread
Season 3 Episode 1 - Aired 9/14/2005
On 28 April 1988, Aloha Airlines Flight 243 is en route from Hilo to Honolulu in Hawaii, when the upper half of the front fuselage is torn off, blowing out a flight attendant. The aircraft subsequently lands safely at Kahului, Maui. The fuselage failed from corrosion damage and metal fatigue.
Director: Andy Webb
Writer: Andy Webb
7.8/10158 votes#2 - Attack over Baghdad
Season 3 Episode 2 - Aired 9/21/2005
On 22 November 2003, a European Air Transport Airbus A300 operating on behalf of DHL is climbing away from Baghdad International Airport, when the left wing explodes, causing a massive loss of hydraulic fluid which immobilizes the flight control surfaces. The crew flies the aircraft by changing the engines' thrust for control and make a safe landing 16 minutes later. A surface-to-air missile had been launched at the aircraft.
Director: Phil Comeau
Writer: Andrew Weir
8.2/10187 votes#3 - Out of Control
Season 3 Episode 3 - Aired 9/28/2005
On 12 August 1985, the rear pressure bulkhead bursts on a Boeing 747SR operating as Japan Airlines Flight 123, destroying the vertical stabilizer and severing all four of the aircraft's hydraulic systems. The crew manages to keep the aircraft flying for 32 minutes until it clips Mount Osutaka and crashes, killing all but four people out of the 524 passengers and crew aboard.
Director: Doug Williams
Writer: David Darlow
8.1/10189 votes#4 - Fight for Your Life
Season 3 Episode 4 - Aired 10/5/2005
On 7 April 1994, Auburn Calloway, a disgruntled employee, attempts to hijack Federal Express Flight 705 armed with hammers and a speargun. Despite sustaining serious injuries, the crew successfully subdues Calloway and returns the aircraft safely to Memphis International Airport.
Director: Karl Jason
Writer: David Bedard
7.7/10139 votes#5 - Bomb on Board
Season 3 Episode 5 - Aired 10/12/2005
On 11 December 1994, a bomb explodes on Philippine Airlines Flight 434 on the second leg of a service from Manila to Tokyo via Cebu City, killing a passenger, injuring many and damaging some of the aircraft's control systems. The crew successfully lands the aircraft at Naha Airport in Okinawa. Ramzi Yousef, a terrorist, smuggled the bomb aboard the aircraft on the first leg of its flight.
Director: Michael Barnes
Writer: Michael Sheehan
7.8/10150 votes#6 - Mistaken Identity
Season 3 Episode 6 - Aired 10/19/2005
On 3 July 1988, during the Iran–Iraq War, the USS Vincennes launches missiles which bring down Iran Air Flight 655, killing all 290 people on board. The crew of the Vincennes claimed that, despite its high-tech equipment, it mistook the airliner for an Iranian Air Force Grumman F-14 Tomcat fighter. Iran believes that the US deliberately shot down its civilian airliner.
Director: Jonathan Dent
Writer: Michael Sheehan
8.2/10175 votes#7 - Helicopter Down
Season 3 Episode 7 - Aired 10/26/2005
On 19 January 1995, the crew of Bristow Flight 56C is forced to perform an emergency autorotation to a ditching in the sea, after lightning damages the tail rotor of their helicopter. Despite the rough sea conditions, the 16 oil rig workers and pilots are rescued by nearby ships.
Director: Jim Kaufman
Writer: Heather Forrester
7.9/10148 votes#8 - Death and Denial
Season 3 Episode 8 - Aired 11/2/2005
On 31 October 1999, EgyptAir Flight 990, from New York to Cairo, Egypt, dives out of the sky and crashes into the ocean, killing all 217 people on board. The cause of the crash is disputed: the Egyptian government claims mechanical failure associated with the elevator controls caused the crash, but the US government claims the aircraft was deliberately crashed by the Relief First Officer Gameel Al-Batouti in a suicide/homicide.
Director: Mike Douglas
Writer: Andrew Weir
8.1/10145 votes#9 - Kid in the Cockpit
Season 3 Episode 9 - Aired 11/9/2005
On 23 March 1994, Aeroflot Flight 593 is en route to Hong Kong, when it stalls and crashes, killing all 75 people on board. The pilot's 15-year-old son accidentally disabled the autopilot while in the captain's seat, causing the aircraft to bank heavily to the right, inducing the stall.
Director: Jim Donovan
Writer: Greg Gransden, Tim Conrad
6.0/102 votes#10 - Head On Collision
Season 3 Episode 10 - Aired 11/16/2005
On 8 February 1986, a Via Rail passenger train and a 118-car Canadian National Railway freight train collide, killing 23 people. The freight train crew did not stop at a red railway signal on a section of a passing loop, possibly because they were asleep. Note: This is a Crash Scene Investigation episode.
Director: Phil Comeau
Writer: Michael Sheehan
7.0/103 votes#11 - Collision Course
Season 3 Episode 11 - Aired 11/23/2005
On 26 September 2000, waves push the MS Express Samina off course, causing it to hit a group of rocks off Paros and sink, killing 80 people. The ferry was on autopilot, with the crew not monitoring the ship's course. They were instead watching an association football match. Note: This is a Crash Scene Investigation episode.
Director: Andy Webb
Writer: Brenda Newman
5.0/101 votes#12 - Runaway Train
Season 3 Episode 12 - Aired 11/30/2011
On 12 May 1989, a 69-car freight train goes out of control while descending from California's Cajon Pass. It derails in a residential neighbourhood of San Bernardino after reaching speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour (160 km/h). Two residents and two train crew members are killed in the initial crash. More than a week later, an underground gasoline pipeline, damaged by earth-moving equipment during the post-crash clean-up, ruptures and sparks a fire that kills another two people. A clerical error had caused the train's weight to be greatly underestimated, and it had been assembled without enough locomotives to provide adequate braking. Additionally, several of the engines had completely inoperable brakes, but this information was not passed on to the crews. Note: This is a Crash Scene Investigation episode.
Director: Tim Wolochatiuk
Writer: David Bedard, Tim Conrad
6.0/101 votes#13 - Ocean Landing
Season 3 Episode 13 - Aired 12/7/2005
On 23 November 1996, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 is forced to ditch after running out of fuel. The aircraft breaks up as the wings hit the water, killing 125 people. The aircraft had been hijacked and ran out of fuel because the hijackers did not believe the pilot's insistence that there was not enough fuel aboard to make it to the hijackers' planned destination: Australia.
Director: Karl Jason
Writer: Léo Singer
The Best Episodes of Mayday Season 3
Every episode of Mayday Season 3 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Mayday Season 3!
Major real-life air disasters are depicted in this series. Each episode features a detailed dramatized reconstruction of the incident based on cockpit voice recorders and...
Genres:DocumentaryDramaCrime
Season 3 Ratings Summary
"Hanging by a Thread" is the best rated episode of "Mayday" season 3. It scored 8.1/10 based on 197 votes. Directed by Andy Webb and written by Andy Webb, it aired on 9/14/2005. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "Attack over Baghdad".