8.8/102 votes#1 - Cruel Skies (Bad Weather)
Season 8 Episode 2 - Aired 6/17/2009
Southern Airways Flight 242, Delta Air Lines Flight 191, American Airlines Flight 1420, British Airways Flight 9. This special looked at the role of bad weather in disasters and examines the US Aviation Weather Center in Kansas City, Missouri, to see how information on weather is transmitted to pilots in the sky.
Director: Larry Bambrick
Writer: Christopher Blow
8.2/102 votes#2 - System Breakdown (Next Generation Air Transportation System)
Season 8 Episode 1 - Aired 6/10/2009
1956 Grand Canyon mid-air collision, 1986 Cerritos mid-air collision, Avianca Flight 52, Gol Transportes Aéreos Flight 1907, Überlingen mid-air collision. This special looked at the role of air traffic controllers in the airline industry, and took a look at the Next Generation Air Transportation System, a new technology meant to eliminate mid-air collisions by reducing overall dependence on radar and radio, as well as delegating some of the air traffic controllers' tasks to computers on board each plane.
Director: Larry Bambrick
Writer: Christopher Blow
8.0/102 votes#3 - Deadly Myth (Comair Flight 3272)
Season 17 Episode 2 - Aired 2/27/2017
When a commuter flight to Detroit ends in a harrowing death spiral, it's up to investigators to determine the cause and prevent it from ever happening again. They sort through the shattered wreckage in search of clues, and a close analysis of the flight data eventually leads them to a stunning realization-What doomed Flight 3272 is a danger the industry has known about for years.
Director: Tim Wolochatiuk
Writer: Christopher Blow
8.0/101 votes#4 - Cabin Catastrophe
Season 21 Episode 5 - Aired 5/2/2021
On 17 April 2018, Southwest Airlines Flight 1380 makes an emergency landing at Philadelphia International Airport after its left engine explodes. A passenger dies after being partially ejected from the aircraft.
Director: Mark Mainguy
Writer: Christopher Blow
8.0/102 votes#5 - Pacific Plunge
Season 22 Episode 1 - Aired 1/10/2022
When Alaska Airlines Flight 261 suddenly nosedives into the Pacific, investigators uncover a critical maintenance issue with deadly implications.
Director: Tim Wolochatiuk
Writer: Christopher Blow
7.7/103 votes#6 - Cleared for Disaster (USAir Flight 1493)
Season 9 Episode 4 - Aired 9/29/2010
On 1 February 1991, USAir Flight 1493 collides with a waiting SkyWest Airlines aircraft on the runway, killing 34 people. An air traffic controller mistakenly assigned the inbound Flight 1493 to land on a runway where SkyWest Flight 5569 was waiting to take off.
Director: Su Rynard
Writer: Christopher Blow
7.5/102 votes#7 - Sight Unseen (1996 Charki Dadri mid-air collision)
Season 7 Episode 2 - Aired 11/11/2009
Find out what went wrong when a Kazakhstan Airlines jet and a Saudi Airways plane collided in the worst mid-air crash in aviation history, killing 349 people on November 12, 1996.
Director: James Hyslop
Writer: Christopher Blow
7.0/103 votes#8 - Fire in the Hold (ValuJet Flight 592)
Season 12 Episode 2 - Aired 8/10/2012
On 11 May 1996, 10 minutes after takeoff, ValuJet Flight 592 crashes into the Florida Everglades, killing all 110 people on board. The cause was an in-flight fire which was started by the accidental triggering of a chemical oxygen generator improperly shipped as cargo.
Director: Su Rynard
Writer: Christopher Blow
7.0/101 votes#9 - Cockpit Killer
Season 20 Episode 8 - Aired 2/27/2020
(LAM Mozambique Flight 470) When an African airliner mysteriously crashes, Namibian investigators rule out a host of possible causes before reaching a chilling conclusion.
Director: Mark Mainguy
Writer: Christopher Blow
7.0/101 votes#10 - Turboprop Terror
Season 22 Episode 7 - Aired 2/21/2022
After a turboprop crashes in North Carolina, investigators resort to a risky test flight—and uncover an industry-wide safety problem.
Director: Mark Mainguy
Writer: Christopher Blow
6.7/103 votes#11 - Southern Storm (Southern Airways Flight 242)
Season 5 Episode 3 - Aired 4/23/2008
On 4 April 1977, Southern Airways Flight 242, a flight from Huntsville, Alabama, to Atlanta, Georgia, flies through a severe thunderstorm and is hit by large hailstones. Both engines of the DC-9-31 fail, and the aircraft makes an emergency landing on a highway in New Hope, Paulding County, Georgia. However, it collides with a gas station and explodes, killing 62 people on board and eight on the ground. Two more die later of injuries sustained during the crash.
Director: Ian Robertson
Writer: Christopher Blow
6.5/102 votes#12 - Pilot Betrayed (Scandinavian Airlines Flight 751)
Season 10 Episode 6 - Aired 12/3/2011
On 27 December 1991, Scandinavian Airlines Flight 751 crash-lands without loss of life in Gottröra moments after taking off due to both engines failing. Clear ice from the tops of the wings had been sucked into both engines, causing internal damage. An automatic system (of which the pilots were unaware) to increase the engines' thrust contributed to their failure.
Director: Su Rynard
Writer: Christopher Blow
6.5/102 votes#13 - Break Up Over Texas (Continental Express Flight 2574)
Season 11 Episode 4 - Aired 12/29/2011
On 11 September 1991, Continental Express Flight 2574 is nearing the end of its intra-state flight from Laredo, Texas, to Houston. As the pilots are preparing to land, the aircraft tips into a dive and falls out of the sky as the left wing tears apart. All 14 people on board die. Improper maintenance caused a section of the horizontal stabilizer to break loose during flight, after which the pilots had no control.
Director: Su Rynard
Writer: Christopher Blow
6.5/102 votes#14 - Holding Pattern
Season 22 Episode 5 - Aired 2/7/2022
When Flydubai Flight 981 nosedives into the runway at Russia’s Rostov Airport, investigators uncover one of the most lethal traps in aviation.
Director: Mark Mainguy
Writer: Christopher Blow
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The Best Episodes Written By Christopher Blow
Every TV Episode Written by Christopher Blow Ranked from Best to Worst by Thousands of Voters
Christopher Blow Ratings Summary
"Cruel Skies (Bad Weather)" is the best rated episode written by Christopher Blow. It scored 8.8/10 based on 2 votes. It was directed by Larry Bambrick. It aired on 6/17/2009 and is rated 0.6 points higher than their second-best episode, "System Breakdown (Next Generation Air Transportation System)".