Name: Mayday
Genre: Documentary

Mayday Episode 5.09 Mixed Signals (Birgenair Flight 301)

Mayday Episode 5.09 Mixed Signals (Birgenair Flight 301)

Episode Premiere

June 4, 2008

Genre

Documentary

Production Company

Cineflix Productions

Official Site

http://www.discovery.ca/Shows/Mayday

Information

Episode Premiere

June 4, 2008

Genre

Documentary

Period

2003 -

Production Co

Cineflix Productions

Distributor

Official Site

http://www.discovery.ca/Shows/Mayday

Cast and Crew

Director

Tim Wolochatiuk

Screenwriter

Dave Gabriel Bene

Main Cast

Stephen Bogaert

Additional Cast

Hrant Alianak
Jorge Molina
Sam Tabar
Francisco Trujillo Avalos-Davidson
Philip Shepherd

Synopsis

On 6 February 1996, Birgenair Flight 301 is scheduled to fly from Puerto Plata to Frankfurt. On takeoff, the captain finds that his airspeed indicator (ASI) is not reading properly, though the co-pilot's ASI is showing the correct speed; the aircraft subsequently crashes in the Atlantic Ocean. The pilots became confused and believed that both ASIs were malfunctioning, leading to loss of control of the aircraft. All 13 crew members and 176 passengers died. The cause of the disaster was believed to be a wasp that built a nest in one of the aircraft's pitot tubes, which was incorrectly left uncovered during the aircraft's extended stay at Puerto Plata airport.