All language subtitles for Air.Disasters.S11E09.Deadly.Discussions.1080p.PMTP.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-maldini_track3_[eng]

MARISA (English Dub): The
plane begins to take off,

but instantly it starts shaking.

NARRATOR: A business
trip to Argentina's capital

becomes a
nightmare for Marisa Beiró.

MARISA (English Dub):
I was bracing myself.
Something bad was happening.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
What the hell?

NARRATOR: LAPA Flight
3142 is in serious trouble.

MALCOLM: The airplane
crossed a busy highway,

killed people who
were in their cars.

NARRATOR: Marisa
fights for her life.

Then she fights for justice.

MARISA (English Dub): And
then I started researching,

asking why it had happened.

NARRATOR: The stunning answer
leaves a nation in shock.

MALCOLM: To me
that was unprecedented.

It's difficult to imagine
that someone would do that.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: It's 8:30 p.m.
at Jorge Newbery Airfield

in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Wind zero-two-zero at five.

Altimeter
three-zero-decimal-one-zero.

NARRATOR:
A Boeing 737, the workhorse
of the aviation industry,

prepares to taxi.

It is operated by the
Argentinean airline LAPA.

MARISA: We made it.

NARRATOR: Marisa Beiró is a
cosmetics rep from Córdoba.

MARISA (English Dub):
I was traveling with
eight of my coworkers.

One of them was my best
friend and sister-in-law.

NARRATOR: She's heading home
after a lengthy business trip

to the capital with
a group of colleagues.

MARISA (English Dub): It had
been ten days since we left,

and it was time to go home.

In fact, we had all
arranged with our families

to pick us up at the airport,

and we wanted to
go back to our kids.

CAPT. WEIGEL: Jamaica?
FLIGHT ATTENDANT: No.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Hey, Captain.
FLIGHT ATTENDANT: Hey.

NARRATOR: The captain of LAPA
Flight 3142 is Gustavo Weigel.

He's an experienced pilot

who's been flying
for more than 20 years.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Everything okay?

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Fine. Everything's fine.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: We're
just waiting on our fuel.

NARRATOR: First officer
Luis Etcheverry has logged

more than 500 hours in the 737.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Total
fuel required 8,500 kilograms

to be transferred to the wings.

NARRATOR: Tonight's
flight is a short one,

400 miles west from Buenos
Aires to the city of Córdoba.

Time in the air should
be a little over an hour.

Along with the two pilots, there
are three flight attendants

and 95 passengers on board.

MARISA (English Dub):
I noticed something.

There was no
safety card in our seat.

And that stood out to me because
I always check the safety card

when I board a plane, always.

NARRATOR:
In 1999, the airline industry
in Argentina is booming.

Industry
deregulation five years earlier

has led to rapid growth
for budget airlines like LAPA.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
One-three-five turn right
heading zero-six-zero.

Descend and maintain 5,000,

slow to
two-two-zero knots and hold.

CAPT. WEIGEL: Come on. Come on.

ROBERT: It's best to understand
LAPA as a low-cost carrier

making considerable inroads
into a transportation system

in a very large country that
needed airline transportation.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Austral two-three-six,
you're next in line for takeoff.

Please proceed
to runway and hold.

NARRATOR: In Argentina, the
commercial airline industry

is run by the military.

MALCOLM: The Air Force
Defense Program was responsible

for both civilian
and military aviation.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Before start checklist.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Before start checklist.

NARRATOR: First
Officer Etcheverry

oversees some last
minute procedures.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Cockpit preparations?

CAPT. WEIGEL: Completed.

NARRATOR: The flight attendants
prepare the cabin for takeoff.

MARISA (English Dub):
We bought some gossip
magazines for the flight.

Some of the girls were
flying for the first time, so

I gave them chewing gum for
the air pressure on the plane.

We were just flipping through
magazines, very relaxed.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Ready to taxi, 3142.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
3142, ready to taxi Charlie-five
to runway one-three.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Charlie-five to one-three.

NARRATOR: Jorge Newbery
is a single runway airport,

and tonight,
departures are running

a little bit behind schedule.

CAPT. WEIGEL: You have an
experienced crew in the cabin.

Please let them know if
there's anything they can do

to make your
flight more comfortable.

On behalf of First
Officer Etcheverry and myself,

we hope you have
an enjoyable flight.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
You guys should come
for dinner in Córdoba.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: That sounds
good. What should we bring?

FLIGHT ATTENDANT: You
can bring the ice cream.

HORACIO (English Dub):
The relationship between the
crew seemed to be very close.

It appeared that they had
known each other for a while,

and that beyond being
coworkers they were friends.

MARISA (English Dub): I
was sitting near the door

and I noticed the
door was half open.

The cockpit door is
usually completely closed.

Not this time.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: You
know, we're seconds away.

You should probably get
back there and strap in.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
All right guys, it's been
a pleasure. See you soon.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Hurry, hurry.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Cleared for takeoff, LAPA 3142.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Taking off.

MARISA (English Dub): The
airplane is on the runway,

accelerating,
getting faster, you know,

when you can feel how
the airplane is getting

the amount of velocity
necessary for takeoff.

NARRATOR: As the aircraft lifts
off, it is immediately apparent

that something is wrong.

MARISA (English Dub): The
plane begins to take off but

instantly it starts shaking,
like it was going to fall apart.

Something bad was happening.

I was bracing
because my gut told me to.

We all knew
something was going wrong.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
What the hell?

NARRATOR: Hurtling
forward at 160 knots,

the 737 slams
violently back to the ground.

ROBERT: There was a clear
zone at the end of that runway,

and yet the aircraft
continued to proceed

at a relatively high speed.

NARRATOR: They're now headed
straight for a busy highway

and an industrial gas plant.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Stop, stop, stop, stop.

MARISA (English Dub):
It was very quick.

I just looked at my
friends and I braced my head.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
No, no, no, no, no.

MALCOLM: The airplane crossed
a busy highway without warning,

killed people who were commuting
at that time in their cars.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: No! No! No!

MARISA (English Dub): Everything
went dark, literally all dark.

It was like the people
around me were no longer there.

I was squeezed between the front
seat and the seat behind me

that got pushed forward.

I could feel
extreme heat all around me.

I was suffocating
and I needed to get out.

But I couldn't
release my seat belt.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Emergency. LAPA Flight 3142

just crashed through
the airfield perimeter.

NARRATOR: Rescuers race
to the site of the crash,

but survivors on
board don't have much time.

Fire threatens to
consume the entire plane.

MARISA (English Dub):
I felt like I was dying.

And something happened
that I still can't explain.

Maybe an angel, or
God, I don't know,

but it gently
released my seat belt.

And someone said
to me, "Get out."

NARRATOR: As Marisa
struggles to escape,

she sees that none of
her friends have survived.

MARISA (English Dub):
They were all already
dead. It was instant.

NARRATOR: Though badly injured,
Marisa is one of the lucky ones.

HORACIO (English Dub):
Many of the evacuation doors

could not be
used due to the fire.

That meant that many
passengers couldn't get out.

RESCUER (Archive, English Dub):
The plane was fully engulfed.

People were screaming for help.

I went in and got four
of them with some help.

But I saw the bodies
burning. It was terrible.

NARRATOR: The crash
has killed 60 passengers,

three crew members
and two motorists.

It's a disaster unlike anything
Buenos Aires has seen before.

ROBERT: It was a major calamity.
It involved automobiles.

It involved a natural
gas regulating plant.

There had been a
major sustaining fire,

so it was a
major disaster scene.

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: News of the LAPA crash

spreads quickly through
the Argentinean Capital.

Because they live and
work in Buenos Aires,

members of the nation's
Accident Investigation Unit

are on the scene in
minutes, getting a rare glimpse

of the immediate aftermath.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
It's a lot of smoke.
Hard to see anything.

NARRATOR: Horacio Larrosa
is a senior investigator.

HORACIO (English Dub):
You try to focus on the job

and look for details
that later on could be

harder to find once the rescue
teams have finished their work.

So you have to be
paying attention to details,

and make sure nothing slips.

AUGUSTO (English Dub):
This was my first
experience with a big accident.

Even though we were
trained and we were prepared

for this type of situation,
it's something else to see

a catastrophe with so
much movement of ambulances,

wounded people,
police, and all the rest.

It was very complicated.

INVESTIGATOR 2:
Neither pilot survived.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Okay. Thank you.

NARRATOR:
Both Captain Weigel and First
Officer Etcheverry are dead.

Any hope of finding out what
went wrong lies in the wreckage.

AUGUSTO (English Dub):
The first thing is

doing a visual inspection
of the site looking at all

of the components trying to put
oneself in the situation, which

is very difficult when there
is so much damage and fire.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
They lift off here,
barely get off the ground.

They leave the runway here
and finally come to rest here.

NARRATOR: Because the destroyed
aircraft was American made,

the U.S. National
Transportation Safety Board

sends a team to
assist the Argentines.

ROBERT: Whatever you
need, we're here to help.

ROBERT: I was the
accredited representative

from the United States to
the official investigation.

MALCOLM: It's a case
where there was just

a tremendous
amount of public concern

and a great deal
of encouragement

to try to solve this
definitively and quickly.

ROBERT: In any takeoff accident,

you're looking at a
variety of factors.

Some of them
relate to engine power.

Were the engines producing
a proper amount of power?

HORACIO (English Dub):
When you look at the
engines after an accident,

there are very
clear signs that show

if the engine was
functioning or not.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Look there and there.

It looks like these
blades were spinning.

NARRATOR: The type of damage
sustained by the rotor blades

tells investigators that the
engines were working normally

when they hit the ground.

There was no engine failure.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Well, would you look at this?

NARRATOR: But something
else related to the engines

raises an immediate red flag.

One of the plane's
thrust reversers is deployed.

ROBERT: I recall
vividly the doors

on that thrust
reverser appeared to be open.

NARRATOR:
Thrust reversers are only
supposed to deploy on landing.

They help slow the plane down
by redirecting engine exhaust.

ROBERT:
There are doors that drop
down into the exhaust plume,

kind of like a
reverse gear in a way

that's pushing
against the forward motion.

NARRATOR: If a reverser
were to deploy on takeoff,

it could cause a
catastrophic thrust imbalance.

ROBERT: So we were
very concerned about how

those thrust reversers had
ended up in that position.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: Look
here. The flaps aren't extended.

NARRATOR: Investigators study
the wings of the downed plane

and soon make another discovery.

HORACIO (English Dub):
I was able to observe
with some of my colleagues

that the aircraft's flaps
were apparently not extended.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: Let's
get this wing piece out of here.

NARRATOR: For
takeoff, 737 pilots

must always extend
the plane's wing flaps.

The flaps increase the area of
the wing and give it extra lift.

Without them, a fully loaded 737

cannot take off on
a standard runway.

Investigators need to determine

how the flaps ended
up in this position.

Did they retract
during the crash,

or were they not
deployed in the first place?

ROBERT: When you see something
that's out of place such as

the flap position, you begin
to wonder: What has happened?

Has someone raised the
flaps, or has some electronic

or hydraulic intervention
made the flaps come up?

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: We
need to study the entire system.

HORACIO (English Dub): So we had
to collect all the evidence,

observe everything we could
and try to prove what happened.

NARRATOR: With both the
reverser doors and the flaps

needing more intensive
study, the team focuses

on searching for the
plane's black boxes.

ROBERT: The
importance of flight recorders

in accident investigation
cannot be overemphasized.

MALCOLM: They are often the
most central pieces of evidence

in an investigation.

NARRATOR: It's not long
before they track them down.

But there's a problem.
Like the thrust reversers,

both recorders are
badly damaged, and

there's no facility in Argentina
equipped to analyze them.

NARRATOR: They need to go to
Washington, 5,200 miles north.

It will cost the
investigation valuable time.

MALCOLM: There was a
good deal of pressure

to get back the
cockpit voice recorder

and the flight recorder
information in a timely way.

We had to reassure the public
and reassure the media that

the investigation was proceeding
and was being done quickly.

NARRATOR: For now, they're left
with one or two intriguing clues

and a nation
that's demanding answers

about why LAPA Flight
3142 ended in tragedy.

NARRATOR: The wreckage
of LAPA Flight 3142 lies

in a busy Buenos
Aires neighborhood.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
I don't wanna leave
anything behind. It all goes.

NARRATOR: Any of the
thousands of pieces of debris

could be a valuable clue.

HORACIO (English Dub): We
needed to move the remains

to a hangar where we could
spread out all the mechanisms

and take detailed pictures

and also collect data from
the remaining instruments.

NARRATOR: At the same
time, investigators wonder

what the air traffic
controller can tell them

about the fatal takeoff attempt.

INVESTIGATOR 2:
Anything out of the ordinary
that you can remember?

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
There was a bit of a delay.

We were pretty backed up.

These are all the
takeoffs that night.

NARRATOR: They learn that Flight
3142 didn't take off on time.

The controller also
reveals that the LAPA crew's

radio calls were unusual.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Cleared for takeoff, LAPA 3142.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Taking off.

NARRATOR: The first officer
sometimes failed to repeat

instructions or to give
the flight's call sign.

INVESTIGATOR 2: Well, if
you can think of anything else,

please give me a call.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: Sure.

NARRATOR: Unfortunately for
investigators, the controller

can't give them much
new information to go on.

Why the LAPA flight
went so horribly wrong

is still a mystery.

ROBERT: What the
hell is that doing there?

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
I have no idea.

NARRATOR: When it
hurtled off the airfield,

the 737 hit an
industrial gas plant.

Its proximity to the airport
has set off alarm bells.

ROBERT: It was a major question
when we looked at the wreckage.

We had a public building
with a gas facility in it.

NARRATOR: If there's a gas plant
this close to the airport,

they wonder what other risks the
airfield might have presented.

ROBERT:
The LAPA crash brought up
the question of runway length.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Twenty-one hundred meters.

NARRATOR: Was the runway
long enough for a fully fueled

and loaded 737 to get
off the ground safely?

ROBERT:
We had a performance engineer
look at the acceleration,

the distances, the
performance of the aircraft.

He went out and measured
every one of those distances

and tried to apply them.

ROBERT: They should have been
able to get off the ground.

ROBERT:
In the end, we found that the
runway was of sufficient length.

NARRATOR: Investigators
find nothing about the runway

that would have made
the takeoff more difficult.

AUGUSTO (English Dub): Even
though it was an urban airport

with everything
involved in that,

there were no
infrastructure deficiencies.

NARRATOR: The team presses
on in the search for clues.

ROBERT: Okay. Let's
start with the most obvious:

thrust reversers.

ROBERT: Once the wreckage
had been removed to the hangar,

there was an opportunity
to carefully look at

some of the external
damage on the metal surfaces,

particularly of
the thrust reversers.

ROBERT: This thing
is really beaten up.

NARRATOR: They find damage
on the thrust reverser that

doesn't seem to have come
from impact with the ground.

A broken light from the end
of the runway provides a clue.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
There's nothing
else on that plane

that could have hit
something this low.

NARRATOR: Damage to the light
and to the thrust reverser

confirms that the
reverser must have been

in the deployed
position before impact.

ROBERT: We knew then that one
of the thrust reverser doors

struck a runway light
at the end of the runway.

That was a very
elemental thing in confirming

that a thrust
reverser had been deployed.

NARRATOR: The thrust reverser
remains a possible culprit.

The other primary suspects
are the retracted flaps.

ROBERT: The flaps are very,
very important, particularly

as they allow the
slower speeds for takeoff

and the slower
speeds for landing.

NARRATOR: Were the flaps on LAPA
3142 ever extended for takeoff?

To try to answer
that critical question,

the team carefully examines
the entire flap mechanism --

every wire, gear and screw.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
The actuators seem fine.

NARRATOR: The part that controls
the movement of the flaps

is called a jackscrew.

The jackscrew acts much
like a jack used to lift a car.

As it turns, it moves a nut that
extends or retracts the flaps.

ROBERT: That nut
travels along the shaft.

It stops at various places
to indicate various degrees

of flap extension from a
zero position up at one end

to a fully extended
position at the other.

NARRATOR:
Studying the jackscrews,
they make a crucial find.

ROBERT: We had discovered
the nuts on the screw

were in the retracted position.

NARRATOR: It means the
flaps were not extended

as the plane
raced along the runway.

HORACIO (English Dub): It's not
possible for the screw to move

during the accident
because that thread and nut

are very strong. It can't slip.

Six out of eight
screws were found,

and they were all
in the same position.

NARRATOR:
The flap lever from the
cockpit confirms the finding.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
The lever's pretty banged up,

but it sure looks like
it's in the flaps up position.

HORACIO (English Dub):
It had left a mark with the
flap lever in the up position.

So there was no chance that it
had moved during the accident.

NARRATOR: All signs are pointing
to a baffling conclusion.

It seems the pilots never
extended the flaps for takeoff.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Taking off.

NARRATOR: In light of this
evidence, investigators now face

an even more difficult question.

ROBERT: How could an
attempted takeoff be made

with the flaps in this position?

NARRATOR: The 737 cockpit
is equipped with systems

designed to prevent pilots
from attempting to take off

without first
extending the wing flaps.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Approaching
runway one-three, LAPA 3142.

NARRATOR:
Investigators now wonder:

Did those systems
somehow fail on Flight 3142?

They examine a
cockpit indicator...

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Easy does it.

NARRATOR: ... that
lights up once the flaps

are properly
extended for takeoff.

Perhaps the
lights malfunctioned.

If they came on while the
flaps were still retracted,

that may have
fatally misled the pilots.

AUGUSTO (English Dub):
In order to understand
how this might have happened,

we had to do a lot of analysis.

NARRATOR:
When a light is off, the
filament is cold and brittle.

In a crash, impact forces
usually break cold filaments.

But a hot filament
from a burning light

can stretch instead.

The tiny bulb soon
provides an important clue.

The filament is broken.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: They
weren't seeing any flap lights.

HORACIO (English Dub): The light
bulb filaments were analyzed,

and we found that
they had been off.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Taking off.

NARRATOR: The flap
indicator did not malfunction.

The lights never came on because
the flaps were never extended.

But the pilots, for some reason,

began their
takeoff approach anyway.

Investigators know that
the cockpit warning systems

have built-in
redundancy for added safety.

Along with flap indicator
lights, there's also an alarm

that sounds if pilots
begin takeoff without flaps.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
The alarm would have gone off
as soon as they started moving.

ROBERT: How could the
takeoff warning system

not alert the crew
to this condition?

We needed to
figure out if that system

had indeed failed
to provide a warning.

NARRATOR: In 1987, a
Northwest Airlines crew

forgot to extend their
flaps and crashed on takeoff

from Detroit,
killing 156 people.

Investigators
discovered that the alarm

designed to warn
the crew did not sound

because the pilots had
pulled a fuse to disable it.

They didn't want
the alarm to sound

as they taxied to the runway.

Did the pilots of Flight
3142 make the same mistake?

Did they deliberately disconnect
the configuration warning?

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Everything's where it should be.

HORACIO (English Dub): We were
able to verify whether the fuse,

which is behind the
co-pilot, was removed or not,

and it wasn't. It was fine.

NARRATOR:
The pilots did not deliberately
deactivate the warning.

There must be
another explanation

for the doomed takeoff.

Meanwhile, across
Argentina, frustration

at the lack of answers about
the crash continues to grow.

ROBERT: It was a
major disaster for them,

and they really hadn't had
something like that ever before.

HORACIO (English Dub): When you
get home and turn on the TV,

the accident is all
they're talking about.

But you have to keep
your professionalism and try

not to be influenced by anything
that is said in the media.

NEWS ANCHOR:

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: Can we
get the FDR data on the screen?

NARRATOR: Finally, the
crucial black box data

arrives from Washington.

Investigators hope it
can tell them precisely

what was happening as Flight
3142 attempted to lift off.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Great. Let's go to

the flap positions
and engine performance.

HORACIO (English Dub):
The flight data recorder

recorded 10 parameters
from the 11 expected.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Like we thought -- no flaps.

NARRATOR: The data confirms
their earlier findings.

HORACIO (English Dub):
That was one of the
most important parameters.

The flaps were at zero during
the whole time on the runway.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
No issues with the
engine performance.

ROBERT:
When we looked at the engine
pressure ratios, the EPRs,

it just further
confirmed the idea

that there had been a
normal attempted takeoff.

NARRATOR: The FDR
doesn't indicate whether

the thrust reversers
were deployed or not.

But the engine power data
provides a strong indication.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
It looks like the
reversers were deployed here.

NARRATOR: When the
thrust reverser is deployed,

pilots also
increase engine thrust

to maximize stopping
power and slow the plane.

The data suggests
that at the last moment,

in an effort to avert
disaster, the pilots deployed

their thrust
reversers and increased thrust.

ROBERT: The EPR came up and then
the EPR came down. Very clear.

And then it came back up again,

most assuredly
by thrust reverse.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Back to full data, please.

The reversers had nothing
to do with this accident.

Let's take a look at speed.

NARRATOR: The data also shows
that the plane had enough speed

and runway available
to lift off safely...

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Rotate.

NARRATOR: ... if the
flaps had been extended.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: So
here's what the data tells us.

At V-1 they're here, 840 meters
of runway still ahead of them.

MALCOLM: By the time you
get to V-1 it's no longer safe

to try to stop on
the runway because

you do not have
enough runway left to stop.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
No flaps. They stall.

They get the
plane back down here,

50 meters from the
end of the runway.

There's no way they
could stop in time.

NARRATOR: Investigators are
left with a puzzling question.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
They had until right here

to abort their takeoff
safely. Why didn't they?

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
What the hell?

NARRATOR:
Why an experienced cockpit
crew attempted to take off

without first
extending their wing flaps

is the troubling question

at the heart of the
LAPA 3142 investigation.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: No,
no, no, no, no, no, no!

AUGUSTO (English Dub):
You find yourself wondering

what happened in this aircraft,

what happened in this operation.

Why did this
action not take place

when it is
indispensable for flight?

NARRATOR:
Investigators turn to the

cockpit voice
recorder for answers.

HORACIO (English Dub):
The only possibility
was in the voice recorder.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Everything okay?

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Fine. Everything's fine.

NARRATOR: They
begin by listening to

what was happening
just before takeoff.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Just
waiting on our fuel.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
So besides him, any other
guys you're interested in?

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Yes, but you don't know him.
I haven't seen him in a while.

NARRATOR: What they hear
from the crew is astounding.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT: The whole
thing's getting complicated.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
You're breaking my heart.

NARRATOR: Not only unexpected,
but entirely unprofessional.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
They should be running
checklists. What's going on?

MALCOLM:
They're required to have a
sterile cockpit, it's called.

Once you start the
engines up to 10,000 feet,

you talk only about
operational procedures.

You don't talk
about personal issues.

You don't talk
about non-related issues.

And this is to
prevent distraction.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
You guys should come
for dinner in Córdoba.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: That sounds
good. What should we bring?

FLIGHT ATTENDANT: You
can bring the ice cream.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Okay.
Before start checklist.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Before start checklist.

MALCOLM: They're talking
about planning a meal together.

They're talking about
their romantic lives.

And this is interspersed
with the checklist.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Hey.
You know I'm with you

in the good times
and the bad, moron.

It's a good thing
I'm nothing like you.

CAPT. WEIGEL:
You're full of it. You're
only with me for the good times.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Cockpit preparations?

CAPT. WEIGEL: Completed.

MALCOLM: The
checklists were interrupted

and were performed incorrectly.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Dinner. Boyfriends.
Cockpit preparations?

MALCOLM: They're not following
the normal procedures.

Either one of them
could have insisted on it.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Flaps are part of the
Before Takeoff Checklist.

Do they even do that?

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Parking brake?
CAPT. WEIGEL: Set.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Paper?

CAPT. WEIGEL: We
don't have paper.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
I can't even tell

what checklists
they're looking at.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Anti-ice?
CAPT. WEIGEL: Off.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Start levers?
CAPT. WEIGEL: Idle stop.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Ready to taxi, 3142.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
3142, ready to taxi

Charlie-five to
runway one-three.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Charlie-five to one-three.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
No mention of flaps.
They're starting to taxi.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Approaching
runway one-three, LAPA 3142.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Don't smoke all of it.
Give me a puff at least.

NARRATOR: Investigators now
hear something that cements

their view of an
irresponsible crew.

CAPT. WEIGEL: Even a puff
can make you old and gray.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT: Thanks.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
They're actually
smoking in the cockpit.

MALCOLM: They were sharing a
cigarette, the same cigarette.

The three of them
were passing a cigarette,

which is
prohibited by the company.

They're not supposed to be
smoking in the cockpit at all.

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
We're seconds away.

You should probably head
back there and strap in.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
All right, guys.

NARRATOR:

The reason the crew failed to
extend the flaps is now clear.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Hurry, hurry.

NARRATOR:
They were simply too distracted
by their own careless behavior.

AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER:
Cleared for takeoff, LAPA 3142.

NARRATOR: Investigators
now wonder if the pilots heard

an alarm warning
them of their fatal error

as they
accelerated down the runway.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Taking off.

ROBERT: One
primary question was:

Do you hear any takeoff
warning on the recording?

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
There it is!

HORACIO (English Dub): The
sound of the alarm was loud.

It could be heard perfectly in
the voice recorder many times.

AUGUSTO (English Dub): It was
a system alarm that warned that

in this situation the
aircraft could not fly.

It was not capable
of a safe takeoff.

CAPT. WEIGEL: What's
that? What the hell is that?

FO. ETCHEVERRY:
Is it on the left?

NARRATOR: Incredibly, the pilots
seem undisturbed by the warning.

CAPT. WEIGEL: I don't know
what the alarm is, my friend.

Everything seems fine.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: Okay,
pause. How can they ignore that?

MALCOLM: The captain heard
the configuration warning.

He talks about it twice and says
he doesn't know what it is,

and yet he
proceeds with the takeoff.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: Play.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Eighty knots.
CAPT. WEIGEL: Check.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Takeoff speed.

They've been listening to
that alarm for 36 seconds.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: V-1.

MALCOLM: The configuration
warning was so loud

that you can hardly hear
them talking underneath it.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: Rotate.

MALCOLM: It was
designed specifically

to warn the
pilots not to take off.

NARRATOR: The investigative
team is now at a loss.

How could a crew
forget to perform one of

the most basic
takeoff procedures

and then go on to ignore
the loud, persistent warning

designed to alert them
to their serious mistake?

HORACIO (English Dub): I
believe they didn't understand

the importance of this alarm,

which was absolutely
critical for takeoff.

NARRATOR: Sixty-five
people lost their lives because

the crew wasn't paying attention
to what they were doing.

The essential question now is,

how did this crew end up in
command of a passenger plane?

MALCOLM: In seeing the crew's
behavior, it raises questions

about the company and about
the oversight of the company

as well as about the individual.

CAPT. WEIGEL: No. Stop.
Stop, stop, stop, stop.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR: What
kind of pilot was this guy?

MALCOLM: One of the standard
parts of our investigation

was to examine the training
records for each of the pilots.

NARRATOR: A background check
shows Captain Gustavo Weigel

had been flying for
more than 20 years.

He'd never been in a
serious accident before,

but his work
history suggests he'd been

on thin ice for quite a while.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Not exactly a perfect record.

MALCOLM:
In the case of the captain,
there were deficiencies noted

over time and over
different airplanes

that he was slow to
respond to emergency situations

or critical situations.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
Imprecise cockpit coordination,

lack of
procedural knowledge. Yikes.

NARRATOR: His history is riddled
with reports of inadequacies.

MALCOLM: You have to wonder why
he kept passing his training,

and why he was promoted.

NARRATOR: Beyond his promotions,
investigators wonder

why LAPA even chose to hire this
captain in the first place.

A close look at the
company's corporate records

offers a possible explanation.

It seems the airline
was expanding so quickly

it struggled to
maintain high standards

of pilot training and oversight.

MALCOLM: Often in times of major
change, there can be cases

where issues such as discipline
in the cockpit are not enforced

as tightly as they could be if
the company was more focused.

ARGENTINEAN INVESTIGATOR:
They couldn't keep up
with their own success.

AUGUSTO (English Dub): If
an organization is expanding

and extending itself
to have many more planes,

with more crews managing
greater numbers of passengers,

it is always a risk factor
if it's not well managed.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Everything okay?

CAPT. WEIGEL:
Fine. Everything's fine.

NARRATOR: No one is more
dismayed by LAPA's failings

than Marisa Beiró.

She lost eight close friends
and suffered agonizing injuries.

MARISA (English Dub): When
they took me to the hospital,

60 percent of my
body had been burned.

I had a serious
burn in my trachea

because of the
inhalation of smoke and heat.

Today you'd never
know it looking at me,

but if you look at my clinical
record I was at death's door.

For the first five
months that I was in hospital,

I was not allowed to talk, hear

or watch any
news about the crash.

Then I started researching,

following the
investigative reports,

finding out more
about the pilot's life.

I started asking
why it happened.

NARRATOR:
When she finally learns
the cause of all her pain,

Marisa is horrified.

MARISA (English Dub):
If the alarm went
off and it warned that

the flaps weren't configured,
why didn't they do something?

NARRATOR: For their
lack of proper oversight,

six former LAPA managers

face charges of criminal
negligence causing death.

Marisa advocates on
behalf of the victims.

MARISA:

NARRATOR: In the end,
no one goes to prison.

MARISA (English Dub):
My friends couldn't defend
themselves in that moment.

I put myself in their place in
trying to defend such injustice.

FO. ETCHEVERRY: No,
no, no, no, no, no.

CAPT. WEIGEL: No. Stop.
Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop.

MARISA (English Dub):
With anger, with rage,

wishing I could get
an explanation: Why?

FO. ETCHEVERRY: No! No! No!

♪ ♪

NARRATOR: In their final report,
investigators stress the need

for pilots to always comply
with the sterile cockpit rule,

the rule that
restricts crew conversation and

helps minimize distractions
during key parts of the flight.

They also call for better
pilot training to ensure crews

can recognize and
respond to cockpit alarms.

In the past two decades,
Argentina has made great strides

in improving aviation safety.

ROBERT: In the big picture
of things, the LAPA crash

was the initiator of
the aeronautical progress

that has been made in Argentina.

HORACIO (English Dub): The final
objective of any investigation

is to improve the system.

That's what
accident investigations do.

There is always a lesson to
be learned and communicated

in order to improve air safety.