All language subtitles for Air.Disasters.S09E01.Fatal.Transmission.1080p.PMTP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-maldini_track3_[eng]

NARRATOR: Scorched
wreckage is all

that's left after a fatal
air disaster in Illinois.

TOM HAUETER: It was really
a molten mess to be frank.

NARRATOR: Witnesses
recount a stunning detail.

I could hear
passengers shouting out.

NARRATOR: Everyone who died
survived the initial impact.

You evacuate.

I'll shut down.

NORA MARSHALL: To know that
they survived an accident

and weren't able
to get out is hard.

Open the door!

PAUL WALKER: I tried everything
that I could do in the world,

and I could not get
that door to unlatch.

NARRATOR: Investigators face a
tragic and puzzling question.

Why didn't that door open?

Hurry!

Oh God.

I'm sorry, Kate.

I was literally
their last hope.

Ladies and gentlemen, we
are starting our approach.

We lost both engines.

Put the mask over your nose.
Emergency descent.

Mayday, Mayday.

Brace for impact!

He's going to crash!

NARRATOR: It's late afternoon.

The crew of United
Express Flight 5925

is nearing the end
of a long workday.

Doors and windows
are closed and locked.

Load's checked.

NARRATOR: Captain Kate Gathje
and First Officer Darren

McCombs have been on
the job for 12 hours,

piloting a string of commuter
flights across the Midwest.

Battery is on.

Avionics are off.

NARRATOR: They're about
to start their final leg,

a short 20-minute flight.

There are 10 passengers
in the cabin,

but on a short hop like
this, no flight attendants.

The pre-flight
announcement is automated.

AUTOMATED VOICE:
Welcome aboard.

Before we begin
our flight, we'd

like to review some
important safety features.

Please observe this--

PAUL WALKER: The automated
message, it's human nature.

Most of us really aren't
paying that much of attention.

When it's a recording,
it's like a commercial

in the background.

Who's really paying
attention at all?

AUTOMATED VOICE: There are four
exits aboard this aircraft,

please take a few
moments to familiarize--

NARRATOR: The
Beechcraft 1900C is

a twin engine
turboprop often used

as a regional commuter plane.

V1.

V2.

Positive rate.

NARRATOR: This is
the eighth takeoff

of the day for the pilots.

Gears up.

Lights are up.

NARRATOR: Starting
in Quincy, Illinois,

they've puddle-jumped
from one airport

to the next across
three states.

They switched planes in Chicago
and now they're on their way

back to where they
started, Quincy.

PAUL WALKER: takeoffs
and landings is

very challenging for a pilot.

You're increasing your chance
of an accident much more than,

let's say, a captain on
a major airline who's

flying a large airliner
or in flying to Asia,

he takes off once, 14
hours later, he lands once

and he gets two days
off and he comes home.

In those last three days,
the commuter pilot's

done 30 landings.

Climb power set.

Checks complete.

NARRATOR: 30-year-old Kate
Gathje was born to fly.

Her family runs a flight
school in Minnesota,

where she made her first solo
flight when she was just 16.

She's recently been
promoted to captain,

a big step towards her dream
of flying for the majors.

What's the winds down there?

NARRATOR: First
Officer McCombs is

nearly 24 years old with nearly
2,000 hours of flight time.

For this final leg,
he's at the controls

and the captain is
handling the radio.

PAUL WALKER: That's done a lot
to get the first officers more

experience and get
them up to speed

so that they can
transition into being

a full-time captain.

Winds are 060 at 8,
12 miles visibility.

NARRATOR: Their final
destination is Quincy Regional

Airport where Paul Walker
is working as chief pilot

for a flight school.

PAUL WALKER: It's
not real busy,

but it's not completely
quiet either.

You're able to see anything
from a little single place

home-built airplane to a C-5
Galaxy sitting on the ramp.

NARRATOR: There are
three intersecting

runways at Quincy.

Most planes take off and land
on runway 13 or runway

number 4.

The small airport is one of
thousands across the country

without a control tower.

That means there are no
controllers to direct traffic,

pilots must communicate
directly with each other

during takeoff and landing.

It's now 9 minutes
before touchdown.

About 30 miles to
the North of the field.

Inbound for landing
runway 13 at Quincy.

Any traffic in the
area, please advise.

NARRATOR: Captain Gathje
radios in on an open frequency

used by all pilots at Quincy.

All right.

Power is set.

At an airport like
Quincy that is non-towered,

you cannot be too vigilant
when you're flying an airplane.

You have to have a
situational awareness

to realize what's probably
going to be coming next

and where other aircraft are.

Look at that sunset, man.

That's gorgeous.

NARRATOR: As they begin
their descent with no tower

to guide them,
Captain Gathje's radio

communications are critical,
but she's used to it.

Uncontrolled airports
are a commuter

pilot's bread and butter.

PAUL WALKER: Well,
there's rules

and there's regulations
under proper procedures

to fly in and out of
airports without towers,

non-towered airports.

There is still control, but
there's just not somebody

there sitting watching.

LAURA BROOKS (ON RADIO): King
Air 1127, delta's taxiing out.

Takeoff on runway 4.

They're using 4.

NARRATOR: A King Air A90, a
much smaller twin turboprop,

is taxiing out to runway 4.

The pilot is Neal Reinwald,
a retired TWA captain.

Today, he's instructing
Laura Brooks.

OK, let's review
procedures before takeoff.

What's our takeoff weight?

NARRATOR: A far less
experienced pilot,

Brooks is looking to
build up her flight

hours on multi-engine planes.

It's her first
time in a King Air.

You'll be using
13 still, right?

Yeah, unless it
doesn't look good.

PAUL WALKER: Aviation, just
as when you drive a vehicle,

is a see and be seen world.

Pilots are taught to
look out the windows,

and this works well every
day all over the world.

King Air 1127, delta
holding short of runway 4

to taking the runway
for departure.

NARRATOR: The commuter plane
is now 90 seconds to touchdown.

The King Air is in
position and holding.

Position hold is
when an aircraft

pulls onto the
end of the runway,

turns, points down the
runway prepared for takeoff,

and just what it says,
holds its position.

5-mile final for
runway 13 at Quincy.

You're down.

3 green.

Fuel check.

OK.

Navigation is set, and
radar is set for takeoff.

PAUL WALKER: For Captain,
it was a nice day.

The winds were light.

He's thinking about, OK, we
got a nice, easy flight home.

The first officer's
going to do some flying.

I'm going to do
some instructing.

NARRATOR: As the
commuter plane descends--

AUTOMATED VOICE: 500.

NARRATOR: --an automated
voice in the cockpit

gives the pilots
their altitude.

On short final for runway 13.

AUTOMATED VOICE: 400.

The aircraft going to hold
in position on runway 4 or you

guys are going to take off?
AUTOMATED VOICE: 300.

LARRY BEDFORD (ON
RADIO): 7646 Juliet,

holding for departure
on runway 4--

AUTOMATED VOICE: 200.

LARRY BEDFORD (ON RADIO):
--behind on the King Air.

OK, we'll get through
your intersection

in just a second, sir.

We appreciate that.

Finals are complete.

NARRATOR: At the
same moment, flight

instructor Paul Walker is in
a hangar at Quincy airport.

PAUL WALKER: I'd walked about
10, 15 feet inside the door.

While all this
had been going on,

the King Air had been
starting taxiing out.

Max reverse.

Oh, Christ!

What the hell?

We heard this explosion
that-- that rattled the walls

and the windows shook.

I ran for the door.

And as I came
outside, what I saw

looked like a mushroom cloud
from when you see the films

of the atomic bombs going off.

I thought the King Air had
had some sort of malfunction

and crashed on takeoff.

NARRATOR: But the disaster
unfolding in Quincy, Illinois,

is far worse than
Paul Walker imagines.

At Quincy Airport, Paul
Walker rushes toward burning

wreckage on the runway.

I would say I was at
the crash site in less

than a minute and a half.

NARRATOR: As he draws
closer to the fire,

Walker makes a
bone-chilling discovery.

It's not only the King
Air engulfed in flames,

two planes are on fire.

I could see through the smoke
the Beech 1900 said United

Express on it, at which time I
had the most sickening feeling

in the world that that airplane
could be completely full

of people.

You evacuate.

I'll shut down.

NARRATOR: The lives of 4
pilots and 10 passengers

are now at risk
with no firefighters

at the tiny airport to
help with the rescue.

TOM HAUETER: Well,
as an investigator,

always was worried about, is
this going to happen and when?

And we've been
lucky many times.

At Quincy, the luck ran out.

Open the door!

Please!

Someone help!

Open the door!

NARRATOR: Another pilot comes
to help Walker on the runway.

Where's the door?

PAUL WALKER: It
appeared to me to be

that he was just in shock.

Hey, I hear people in there.

We have to get
inside that plane.

The main door,
it's over here.

NARRATOR: United
Express pilot Mike

Rowe was supposed
to fly the 1900

on its next scheduled flight.

The main exit,
an airstair door,

is directly behind the cockpit.

PAUL WALKER: I
grabbed the handle

and attempted to open the door.

The heat was just very intense.

Obviously, the most heat I
have ever felt in my life.

Tremendous amount of smoke.

The aircraft was rapidly
being consumed by the fire.

When I wiggled the
handle a little bit,

somebody on the inside
wiggled it the other way.

I can't get it open.

Open the door.

Help!

NARRATOR: As he hears the
captain's desperate cries,

Walker suddenly realizes--

Oh, God.

It's you.

Hang in there, Kate.

NARRATOR: --he's met
Kate Gathje before.

Open the door.

PAUL WALKER: When I came around
the wing of the commuter,

I did not expect
there'd be someone in it

that I actually knew.

Please help!

The fact that
you actually know

somebody in that
situation at that time

just added more to it.

Hang in there, Kate.

Just hurry.

Open the door.

OK, OK, hang on.

Here.

You have to push the button
before turning the handle.

PAUL WALKER: The
other gentleman

goes up and pushes the button.

I thought, aha, I
didn't push the button.

Oh, God, I can't.

NARRATOR: Mike Rowe
rushes to get more help,

leaving Paul Walker yanking
desperately on the door

of the burning plane.

PAUL WALKER: When I went back
to the door the second time,

there was no doubt
in my mind I was

going to get that door open.

I'm 6 foot 3 20 years
ago and thought I was

10 foot tall and bulletproof.

I tried everything that
I could do in the world,

and I could not get
that door to unlatch.

Oh, God.

I'm sorry, Kate.

I can't do this.

I'm going to get help.

PAUL WALKER:
Leaving the airplane

was one of the more
difficult things

I've ever done in my life.

When I looked at
the captain, there

was part of me that knows
that she knew that by the time

I got back it would be--

it would be too
late, that-- that I

was literally their last hope.

Please!

NARRATOR: Moments later, all
hope for the crash survivors

is lost.

PAUL WALKER: It was
easily less than 2 minutes

from the time I was
standing by the left wing

till it exploded.

I felt like I failed.

NARRATOR: Despite Paul
Walker's heroic efforts,

4 pilots and 10
passengers are dead.

It's one of the worst
runway accidents

in North American history.

PAUL WALKER: Over
the years, I've

come to rationalize it in
my mind that, you know,

there were 10 or 12
people at the airport.

And of 10 or 12 people, only 2
of us went to the crash scene,

and I was the first
one to it, and I

was the last one to leave.

And that's helped me.

At least I tried.

I may have failed, but I tried.

NARRATOR: It's a tragedy
the likes of which

the small city of
Quincy has never seen.

And in Minnesota, the
Gathje family is devastated.

REPORTER: Kate's
dreams of someday

flying the big jets began
right in her own backyard.

That's where her family's
flying school is.

I think Katie did everything
she could have to get out

of that situation and to
protect the people she

had in her plane.

NARRATOR: By early
morning, a team

of investigators from the
National Transportation

Safety Board gets to work.

Tom Haueter is
lead investigator.

It's his job to determine how
a seemingly routine landing

ended with so many deaths.

TOM HAUETER: You could
sort of make out airplanes

that it was very burnt.

You could see wingtips.

You could see parts.

He said, yes, those
are two airplanes,

but it was really a
molten mess to be frank.

NARRATOR: With no survivors
from either plane,

investigators must rely
on physical evidence

to tell them what went wrong.

They put down an
awful lot of rubber.

NARRATOR: Skid
marks on runway 13

reveal that the
United Express pilot

hit the brakes hard 475 feet
before the point of impact.

TOM HAUETER: There's just
these two massive black lines

going from just after
touchdown to where

the two planes collided.

So he was on the
brakes the whole time.

Certainly, flat spot of
the tires, in my opinion,

probably blew the
tires in the process.

NARRATOR: Skid marks on
the intersecting runway

tell a similar story.

It seems both planes
braked hard and swerved,

but couldn't stop
from colliding.

How did this happen?

It was also a clear
day with good weather.

So everything looks
like this accident

shouldn't have occurred.

So trying to put it together,
what happened on this day,

where did the faults come
into play that caused

these airplanes to collide
at the intersection of

two runways.

NARRATOR: Haueter
studies the wreckage

trying to piece together
a detailed picture

of the fatal collision.

OK, let's figure
this thing out.

Most of the wreckage is
destroyed or badly scorched,

but a few key pieces
tell the tale.

Well, we have some missing
paint and a good-sized dent.

This is definitely
from the collision.

OK.

NARRATOR: The nose of
the King Air is dented,

and its blue paint
has been scraped away.

And here, this is the
prop for the United,

which means that blue paint
came from the King Air.

TOM HAUETER: So you can look
at the paint transfer marks

and you have a pretty good idea
that the angle the airplanes

came together.

This is a sideswipe.

It looks like they tried
to squeak past each other,

but then their noses
touched and then they

just got tangled up together.

TOM HAUETER: They
essentially hit side to side.

Max reverse.

NARRATOR: Investigators
calculate the United

Express plane touched down with
a speed of 120 miles per hour.

Oh, Christ.

What the hell?

NARRATOR: By the time the crew
saw the plane on runway 4,

it was too late.

The King Air is accelerating
towards the same point

at about 115 miles per hour.

It takes just 7 seconds for
the two planes to collide.

The team now knows how
the two planes met,

but they still have no
idea what caused the crash.

TOM HAUETER: Why did these
two airplanes come together?

Is there something in
the aircraft, something

the pilots did?

NARRATOR: To fully understand
the tragedy at Quincy,

Haueter needs answers to
those critical questions.

The town of Quincy,
Illinois, is in mourning.

14 people are dead
after a fiery crash.

NTSB investigators
are under the gun.

Amidst the charred
debris, they make

a major find, the
cockpit voice recorder

from United Express 5925.

TOM HAUETER: The
cockpit voice recorder

is very important in
a situation like this.

What was the crew saying?

What were they thinking?

When both the crew are fatal,
the only thing you have

is a CVR to tell you exactly
what happened at that moment.

NARRATOR: They rush
the CVR to NTSB

headquarters in Washington.

Investigators are
hoping the data

inside has survived the fire.

As head of the
operations group,

David Ivey focuses his
attention on pilot behavior.

DAVID IVEY: This
accident is probably

one of the most unusual that I
had investigated in my career.

NARRATOR: Somehow, the pilots
didn't see each other coming

despite the clear skies.

On short final for runway 13.

TOM HAUETER: Why did
all this, on such

a clear night with no
restrictions to

visibility, occur?

NARRATOR: While
Ivey waits for word

on the all important
cockpit voice recorder,

he gets what he
can from witnesses.

Hi, Dave.

I'm Paul.

Come on in.

Have a seat.

PAUL WALKER: I had personally
never been around a crash

investigation of any type.

I was very impressed with it.

What they came in and did,
just a very class act,

very professional.

I raced out
there as fast as I

could after I heard the crash.

NARRATOR: Walker didn't
see the collision,

but he provides
investigators with a chilling

detail about the accident.

I could see Kate.

She was crying out for help.

Hurry!

Quickly!

I can't.

Open the door.

I could hear passengers
shouting out too.

NARRATOR: There's no doubt
passengers on board Flight

5925 survived the
collision, but the aircraft

had two over wing
emergency exits

on the right and
another on the left

as well as the main door
Walker tried to open.

So why couldn't anyone escape
the smoke filled plane?

Hurry, hurry!

Get the door open!

OK, hang on.

DAVID IVEY: The fact that they
all perished in this accident

was overwhelmingly a tragedy,
but I felt the obligation

to find out why this occurred.

NARRATOR: Investigators
now face a dual challenge,

figuring out why two planes
collided on the runway

and why none of the crash
survivors got out alive.

I can't get it open.

Open the door!

NARRATOR: Nora
Marshall is an expert

in crash survival factors.

Why no one escaped
Flight 5925 is a puzzle

she wants to solve.

The thing that
stands out in my mind

is that these people had
a chance, if the exits

had opened, to survive.

NARRATOR: Right away,
Marshall is struck

by how little fire damage
the left side of the plane

has sustained.

NORA MARSHALL: The left
side of the airplane

was not part of
the original fire.

So we knew there
was an opportunity

for people to get
out the airstair

door or the left wing exit.

So why didn't that happen?

NARRATOR: Autopsy reports on
the passengers and crew only

add to the mystery.

In every case, the cause of
death was smoke inhalation.

There are no physical
injuries severe enough

to have caused death.

NORA MARSHALL: The fact that
there was no blunt force

trauma indicates that the
passengers and the crew

would have been capable
of moving to an exit,

and that's a critical fact.

NARRATOR: Marshall
painstakingly

tracks the final
positions of the bodies

and uses them to
recreate the passengers'

movements after the collision.

NORA MARSHALL: And
there were actually

more of the remains
in the forward cabin,

and there were fewer
remains in the back.

So it allowed us to know
that people from the back

had moved forward in the
cabin before being overcome.

NARRATOR: The most
likely explanation?

The terrified passengers
rushed for the main door,

forgetting about
the over wing exits.

TOM HAUETER: In
moments of panic,

people normally tend to go to
the door they came in from.

People rarely think about
the over wing exits,

especially in these
smaller aircraft.

It immediately
becomes the question of,

why wasn't the door opened?

OK, guys.

Thanks.

So what position was it in
when you first got there?

Like-- like this.

NARRATOR: The air stair
door now becomes the focus

of Marshall's investigation.

Yeah, I'm 100%
sure that's it.

NARRATOR: As the first
person to reach the door,

Paul Walker's testimony is key.

He's certain he found
the handle in the 6

o'clock or open position.

NORA MARSHALL: Finding the
handle in the 6 o'clock

position suggested to me
that the first officer

had moved the handle
to the open position.

NARRATOR: It's the first
officer's responsibility

to open the exit doors.

Someone help!

NARRATOR: Emergency
procedures call

for the captain to shut
down the airplane while

the evacuation is underway.

I can't get it open.

Open the door!

NARRATOR: First
Officer McCombs'

body was found
between the main door

and the left over wing exit.

The position makes
sense to Marshall.

NORA MARSHALL: Crew
members are taught,

if your door doesn't open,
don't waste a lot of time,

get to another exit.

And I believe where we
found him indicates that he

was moving to another exit.

NARRATOR: But in the
overpowering smoke and heat,

First Officer McCombs never
made it to another exit.

NORA MARSHALL: Had the airstair
door opened right away,

it may have allowed
everybody off the airplane.

NARRATOR: 12 lives
might have been saved

if only the door had opened.

Please!

NORA MARSHALL: To know that
they survived an accident

and weren't able
to get out is hard.

It's very hard.

With the handle like
this, the door should open.

NARRATOR: The focus now
shifts to the mechanics

of the door itself.

OK.

NARRATOR: Fire in
the cabin severely

damaged the door frame,
but the main components

have all been recovered.

OK, let's see what
this can tell us.

NARRATOR: The locking
mechanism is simple with three

cam locks on each side.

A single cable connects the
door handle to the cams.

When the handle turns, the
cable rotates all the cams

to lock or unlock the door.

The cams have to
rotate about 150

degrees from the locked
position for the door

to be open.

We found that the
cams were all either

locked or partially locked.

NARRATOR: What could have
prevented them from unlocking?

What have we here?

NARRATOR: Marshall
discovers the locking cable

is fractured.

This could be the smoking
gun she's been looking for.

NORA MARSHALL: With the
cable having been snapped,

you would want to
understand that,

because if it was
not intact, it wasn't

going to rotate the cams.

NARRATOR: But confirming the
theory requires more analysis.

If she can prove that the
cable snapped on impact,

Marshall will have
solved the mystery

of the jammed door that
cost 12 people their lives.

I can't get it open!

NARRATOR: Lab
tests on the cable

that locks and unlocks the
main door are a disappointment.

The critical component
did not break on impact.

NORA MARSHALL: The
cable had broken

and the metallurgist determined
that that was a result of heat

and stress from the
post-crash fire.

Hurry, hurry!

OK, OK, hang on.

NARRATOR: In other
words, the critical cable

didn't break until after the
fire killed everyone on board.

What jammed the door
is still a mystery.

NORA MARSHALL:
Then we're back to,

OK, why didn't the door open?

NARRATOR: The plane's
manufacturer advises Marshall

that the airstair
door on the 1900C

will not open if there's
even a small amount

of slack in the locking cable.

NORA MARSHALL: If there
was a 1/4 inch of slack

or greater in the cable, that
the cams would not rotate.

Slack in the cable?

Is that what happened?

NARRATOR: It's a
slim margin of error,

and it leads to a new theory.

NORA MARSHALL: During the
collision, the door frame

or the door itself could
have been deformed in a way

that would introduce slack.

NARRATOR: A tragedy of
small fairs, a damaged door,

a bit of slack in a cable
might have been the difference

between life and death.

Oh God, I'm sorry, Kate.

I'm going for help.

I can't do this.

NARRATOR: If he had more
time, First Officer McCombs

might have reached
the over wing exit,

which could have saved lives.

TOM HAUETER: We're
used to accidents

where people are so badly
injured they can't get out.

Here all the indications are
everybody survived the impact

and could have
gotten out had they

had a little bit more time.

NARRATOR: But the
doors would never

have been an issue if there
hadn't been an accident.

Why the two planes collided
on a clear autumn evening

remains the biggest mystery.

OK, let's go.

NARRATOR: There was
no cockpit voice

recorder in the King Air.

Smaller planes
don't require one,

but investigators hope to find
some answers in the cockpit

recording from flight 5925.

DARREN MCCOMBS (ON RADIO):
What's the winds down there?

Oh, that's First
Officer McCombs.

KATE GATHJE (ON RADIO):
Winds are 060 at 8,

12 miles visibility.

Stop.

And that's Captain Gathje.

TOM HAUETER: Getting the
CVR back in this case

was very important.

It allowed us to
understand what

was the tone of the cockpit,
what were they doing,

was anything missed trying
to understand the sequence

of events that occurred.

KATE GATHJE (ON
RADIO): About 30 miles

to the North of the field.

Inbound for landing
runway 13 at Quincy.

So far so good.

TOM HAUETER: As the Beech
1900 approached Quincy,

it made all the
required radio calls.

Quincy traffic were
approaching the area,

we're this far out,
Quincy traffic,

we're now this far out.

13 at Quincy.

Any traffic in the
area, please advise.

NARRATOR: Captain Gathje
gives other pilots

a chance to let her know if
they want to use the runway.

She gets no response.

More than 3 minutes pass
before Laura Brooks radios

in from the King Air.

LAURA BROOKS: King Air
1127, delta's taxiing out.

Takeoff on runway 4.

It sounds like the students
handling the radio calls.

They're using 4.

Stop.

See, that tells
me they heard the King Air.

They know it was
approaching the runway,

and they were watching for it.

NARRATOR: Kate Gathje is
making all the right calls,

but it isn't clear if the
pilots in the King Air

heard any of them.

We'll be inbound to enter
on the left base for runway 13

at Quincy.

Any other traffic,
please advise.

No response?

Where's the King Air?

NARRATOR: It's more
than two minutes

before Laura Brooks makes her
second and final transmission.

King Air 1127, holding
short of runway 4.

Taking the runway
for departure.

NARRATOR: Less than a
minute to touchdown,

the King Air is still holding.

Captain Gathje double
checks whether the King

Air intends to stay
put on runway 4

while she lands on 13.

The aircraft going to
hold in position on runway 4

or you guys going to take off?

AUTOMATED VOICE: 300.

NARRATOR: What
investigators hear next

comes as a complete surprise.

7646 Juliet, holding for
departure on runway 4.

AUTOMATED VOICE: 200.

Who the hell
is answering her?

That's not the King Air.

NARRATOR: It's a
stunning development.

There was a radio call
from a second plane

waiting to take the runway.

That little communication
was critical to what

happened on this accident.

Hi, yes.

I need some help tracking
down a pilot who was at Quincy

airport on November 19.

NARRATOR: Tom Haueter is now on
the hunt for a mystery pilot.

He was right there
when it happened.

So we wanted to talk to him.

What did you know?

What did you see?

What was going on?

She knew the
King Air was there.

She announced her intentions.

How did the King
Air not get that she

was coming in to land?

King Air 1127,
delta's taxiing out.

Takeoff on runway 4.

They're using 4.

NARRATOR: It's clear the
United Express crew knew

the location of the King Air.

It's not clear if the King
Air crew ever heard Captain

Gathje, but her
plane would have been

clearly visible in the sky.

Did something prevent the King
Air pilots from seeing it?

Computer simulations
show that posts

in the King Air's
windscreen might have

obstructed the pilot's view.

I think we need to put
ourselves in a real plane.

NARRATOR: But to be sure,
Ivey wants to return

to the scene of the crash.

I don't think there's
anything better than a pair

of eyes in a real
situation that

is as similar or as
close to what occurred

during the accident sequence.

NARRATOR: David Ivey
tries out both pilot

seats in the King Air while
in position on runway 4.

He watches as a Beech
1900C sea approaches

with its landing lights on.

DAVID IVEY: It flew
downwind, made a left turn

to a final approach.

And we were looking
at what we could see,

the lights, how visible
was the airplane.

I can see clear as day.

DAVID IVEY: It was readily
visible the entire time.

There were no obstructions
due to the window

post, whether it was forward
or the aft window post.

NARRATOR: Landing aircraft
always have the right of way.

It seems inconceivable
that a pilot would roll

onto an intersecting runway
knowing another plane was

on final approach.

DAVID IVEY: It's incumbent upon
you to look both directions

before you get out there.

We learned that as children
crossing the street,

look both ways.

NARRATOR: Ivey comes to
an astonishing conclusion,

the King Air pilots
must not have

checked for incoming
planes before starting

down the runway.

You look at something
as basic a scene avoid,

which pilots are
taught from day one,

how could that go missing?

Oh, Christ.

What the hell?

NARRATOR: David Ivey turns his
attention to King Air pilot

Neal Reinwald combing
through his FAA records

and talking to people
he's worked with.

DAVID IVEY: He had been an
Air Force reserve pilot.

He had been a pilot for
Trans World Airlines.

His resume looked tremendous.

NARRATOR: Why would such
an experienced pilot

taxi onto a runway while
another plane is landing.

Ivey keeps digging and soon
makes a stunning discovery.

DAVID IVEY: We found out
that he failed a check ride.

He was given another
check and he failed that,

and they removed him
from a pilot position

to flight engineer, which
is a non-flying pilot.

He failed two checks.

This guy's skills
were slipping.

NARRATOR: After his demotion,
Reinwald retired from TWA,

but he stayed
active as a charter

pilot and flight instructor.

Six months before
this accident,

Reinwald was an instructor
on a training flight

that landed with the
landing gear is still up.

DAVID IVEY: Did some damage
to the prop, the engine

and to the fuselage.

NARRATOR: Reinwald was
assigned remedial training

after the incident,
training that

was still underway when
he boarded the King

Air for his final flight.

OK, Laura, let's go home.

NARRATOR: Students
describe him as

skilled and confident,
a real go-getter,

but with a tendency to rush.

On the day of the fatal
crash, witnesses say he

seemed in a hurry to get home.

DAVID IVEY: I think impatience
was part of the problem.

Get-there-itis, that's
a term we use a lot.

King Air 1127,
delta's taxiing out.

Takeoff on runway 4.

NARRATOR: Student pilot
Laura Brooks was handling

radio calls in the King Air.

She was totally
new to the King Air.

NARRATOR: Reinwald may
have been preoccupied

with his flight lesson,
unaware of the commuter plane

approaching from his left.

What's our takeoff weight?

PAUL WALKER: When
you're instructing,

it can take you out of
the situational awareness.

8,117 pounds.

PAUL WALKER: You might
be trying to teach

them how to program something.

You might be discussing
with them about.

Power settings before takeoff.

There's so many
different things

you could be discussing.

TOM HAUETER: Whether
they were engaged

in conversation about the
aircraft, we don't know.

But there was no announcement
of takeoff, which is unusual.

Oh, Christ.

What the hell?

They weren't looking
at the big picture

of where they were
at and what was going

on around them in the world.

NARRATOR: The story
of the Quincy crash

has one final twist, an
incredible coincidence

involving the mystery
pilot investigators have

been desperately
waiting to hear from.

So tell us what happened.

NARRATOR: A Piper
Cherokee waits to take

off moments before the crash.

At the controls is rookie
pilot Larry Bedford.

We were in the run up
area behind the King Air.

Any traffic in the
area, please advise.

NARRATOR: Bedford hears both
the King Air and the commuter

plane's transmissions--

KATE GATHJE (ON
RADIO): King Air 1127.

NARRATOR: --but he isn't
always sure who's talking.

Both pilots were female.

The aircraft going to
hold in position on runway 4

or you guys going to take off?

NARRATOR: When the
King Air doesn't

respond to Captain Gathje's
question, Bedford steps in.

7646 Juliet, holding--

TOM HAUETER: There was
no reason for the pilot

of the Cherokee, who's
not on the active runway,

who's not going to take
off, to have made that call.

He did not use his
type of airplane.

If he had said Cherokee,
that would have

served as a clarifying point.

7646 Juliet, holding
for departure on runway

4 behind on the King Air.

DAVID IVEY: Holding
behind the King Air

was the statement
he said he made.

LARRY BEDFORD (ON
RADIO): Holding

for departure at runway 4--

AUTOMATED VOICE: 200.

LARRY BEDFORD (ON RADIO):
--behind the King Air.

There was a mechanical
device in that Beech 1900

that at the appointed
time said 200.

Departure on runway 4--

AUTOMATED VOICE: 200.

LARRY BEDFORD (ON RADIO):
--behind the King Air.

DAVID IVEY: And that masked
the word "behind" the King Air.

NARRATOR: Captain
Gathje thinks the call

is coming from the King Air.

OK, we'll get through
the intersection

in just a second, sir.

AUTOMATED VOICE: 100.

We appreciate that.

TOM HAUETER: Unfortunately for
the commuter aircraft crew,

they believed they were now
safe to land because the King

Air would hold for them.

Finals are complete.

TOM HAUETER: They thought
they were good to go.

Oh, Christ.

What the hell?

NARRATOR: A split second
mechanical message

combined with a rookie's
confusing radio call caused

a fatal misunderstanding.

The final NTSB report concludes
that the crew of United

Express Flight 5925
acted appropriately

in their approach and landing.

Probable cause
of the accident

was the failure of the
pilots in the King Air A90

to effectively monitor
the common traffic

advisory frequency or to
properly scan for traffic.

NARRATOR: The
investigation also

concludes that Neal
Reinwald may not

have placed
sufficient importance

on the basics of safe flying.

TOM HAUETER: The collision
was certainly avoidable.

Had the King Air saw
the other airplane,

they probably would have
aborted their takeoff.

So it was preventable
several times.

But as the airplanes are
closer and closer together,

those timing ran out.

Contributing to
the loss of life

was the failure of the airstair
door in the Beech 1900C

to open.

Open the door!

NARRATOR: But the failure of
a single door on an airplane

with three other exits should
not result in the death

of everyone on board.

TOM HAUETER: It's
critical of passengers

listen to safety briefings--

AUTOMATED VOICE:
Welcome aboard.

TOM HAUETER: --to understand
where is the closest exit,

where is it behind you,
to think about how you get

out of this if you have to.

NARRATOR: In the
wake of the accident,

training is improved
to emphasize

the importance of
clear communication,

especially at airports
with no tower.

PAUL WALKER: The FAA has
been dealing with this issue,

I think, in a very
good manner, trying

to get people to realize
the awareness of it.

The most dangerous place
to be in an airplane

is around an airport.

TOM HAUETER: There have
been a lot of basic changes

since the Quincy accident.

And I think they've worked.

We haven't had action
like this since.

However, we can't
rest on our laurels.

The pilots who are flying
the commuter airplanes

in an uncontrolled
airspace like a Quincy,

they have no memory of
what happened at Quincy.

So it's important to
remind them occasionally.

We have to keep our
corporate memory going.

And that becomes very critical.