

The disaster is only the beginning of the story.
Catastrophic incidents in aviation history are meticulously reenacted, providing insight into what went wrong and if the crashes and near-disasters could have been prevented. Accounts from survivors combine with cockpit recordings and computer images to weave the gripping tales, and expert testimony reveals the hows and whys behind the events, some of which have resulted in important changes to aviation safety and regulations.
The show's tagline is: "The disaster is only the beginning of the story."
The series spans 25 seasons with 281 episodes in total (avg. 11 per season).
Each episode runs approximately 45 minutes.
The show is currently in production with new episodes still being made.
Originally aired on Smithsonian Channel.

2003
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 air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitnesses recounts and interviews with aviation experts.

2025
Across nine episodes, the series chronicles some of the most recent devastating disasters - including the Maui wildfires, the Amtrak 501 derailment, Superstorm Sandy, and the sinking of the Costa Concordia - through firsthand accounts from survivors and rare archival footage.

2014
Garth Barnard has a lifelong passion and unshakeable resolve to investigate how thousands of young Airmen from the Second World War died in catastrophic air accidents and training crashes.

2021
In official collaboration with the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, this documentary series takes viewers through harrowing moments of the historic morning of September 11, 2001.

1997
Docudrama in two parts, based on the abduction of the president of the employer's association of Germany, Hanns Martin Schleyer, by the Baader-Meinhof gang in the Autumn of '77.

2022
The last words of the investigation report, published by Malaysian officials, thicken the plot instead of resolving it. A handful of experts still searching for the truth reexamine the facts via a critical study of the official documents to separate right from wrong, identify hypotheses and finally understand what happened during the night of 8 March 2014.

2024
Join pilot and journalist Kate Broug for a global adventure that brings to life the extraordinary individuals and audacious achievements that have defined the world of flight.

2018
In this spinoff of Mayday/Air Crash Investigation, every episode examines multiple aviation disasters that prove to have similarities including; engines that separated from their aircrafts mid-flight, mismatched pilot pairings that led to deadly crashes, and improvised landings with tragic consequences.

2019
Want to learn something new and have a little fun along the way? Join curator Matthew Burchette as he goes behind the scenes to explore some of history’s most iconic aerospace treasures.
Great
16 votes
Air Disasters
Returning Series
Yes
12
English
Canada
5/15/2011
3/29/2026
