All language subtitles for Air.Disasters.S18E10.Flying.Blind.1080p.SMIT.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-maldini_track3_[eng]

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Ladies and gentlemen,

we are starting our approach.

PILOT: We lost both engines.

PILOT: Masks will be lowered.

Emergency declared.

PILOT: Mayday, mayday.

FLIGHT ATTENDANT:
Brace for impact!

[muffled chatter]

PILOT: It's gonna crash!

[radio chatter]

ATC LIMA: We're observing
you crossing the 260 of Lima

at 31 miles west.

Level is 10,700 velocities.

NARRATOR: In October of 1996, a
state of the art passenger jet

careens out of control
for 30 horrific minutes,

then crashes into
the Pacific Ocean.

[warning alarm]

ERIC SCHREIBER: I've got her.
I've got it.

ATC LIMA: Climb!

Climb, Aeroperu 603.

ERIC SCHREIBER: We're
gonna turn over.

[radio chatter]

NARRATOR: What
could have brought

down Aeroperu flight 603?

The answer to the mystery may
be found in the airplane's

black box flight
recorder, a puzzle

which investigators must solve.

The story they uncover
is how simple human error

set off a chain of events
that ended in tragedy.

2 cent of American money
brought down a $75 million

aircraft and killed 70 people.

This kind of a problem
that they faced that night

was probably one of 10 over
the last 20 or 30 years.

You never lose hope
immediately, you know?

It takes time for you
to get to the point

that you will accept the fact
that there's no people that

got out of there alive.

DAVID FERNANDEZ:
We're gonna turn over.

NARRATOR: Lima, Peru.

Jorge Chavez
International Airport.

Aeroperu flight 603 prepared
for takeoff for Santiago, Chile.

The plane was a
four-year-old Boeing 757,

a state of the art
passenger jet known

for its reliability and safety.

Aeroperu's 603 was flown by two
of the national airline's best

pilots, Captain Eric
Schreiber, 58, and First

Officer David Fernandez, 42.

261 passengers and 9
crew members were aboard.

Most were Chileans
on their way home.

Others were Peruvian,
British, Italian, Spanish,

and one New Zealander and
other Latin Americans.

Among them are
the brother-in-law

and a close friend of Mexican
businessman Monus Albert

Our companies do
business in South America.

We export.

And every so often we will go
to our clients, and on this trip

Kenny and Abraham went to see
some clients in Peru and Chile.

I had a very good
relationship with both them.

With my brother-in-law, of
course, we were like brothers.

I loved the guy.

He married my only sister, so
we had a great relationship.

NARRATOR: Checklists
complete, First Officer

Fernandez hailed the tower.

Lima tower, Aeroperu
603, runway 15.

Ready for takeoff.

ATC LIMA: Aeroperu 603,
use noise abatement.

When calm, ready for
takeoff on runway 15.

One five, one five.

Transponder?

Flaps, one five.

Takeoff briefing complete.

NARRATOR: The captain
joked about the precision.

Takeoff 41.

It's that accurate.

We are not even the Swiss.

Rolling.

NARRATOR: The Aeroperu 757
was among a new generation

of computer controlled
aircraft in which pilots are

trained to rely
on a central data

system designed
to reduce errors,

both mechanical and human.

Power's set.

NARRATOR: On takeoff, the
757 performed perfectly.

80 knots.

Check.

ERIC SCHREIBER: V1, rotate.

V2.

Gear up

All right.

NARRATOR: Within moments,
the pilots received

a highly unusual reading.

V2 plus 10.

The altimeters are stuck.

NARRATOR: The altimeter
indicates the height

of the aircraft off the ground.

It reads zero, though they
were obviously flying.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: The
altimeters have stuck.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Yeah.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: All of them.

This is really new.

Keep V2 plus 10.

NARRATOR: The 757 is
equipped with three

altimeters, one for the
pilot, one for the copilot,

and one backup.

All three were
dead, then they lost

another crucial instrument,
the airspeed indicator.

The speed.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Eh?

DAVID FERNANDEZ: The speed.

What's going on?

We're not climbing.

No, I am climbing,
but the speed.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Hold it.

Maintain speed.

NARRATOR: Aeroperu 603
left the lights of Lima

and headed out towards
the Pacific Ocean

with no airspeed or
altitude instruments,

the pilots were
now flying blind.

The air traffic
controller in Lima

maintained contact
with the plane,

noting its altitude and course.

He did not hear when the
pilots got a new minor warning

that they must adjust
the rudder, which steers

the aircraft left and right.

ERIC SCHREIBER: 603,
we are descending.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Rudder ratio.

ERIC SCHREIBER: That's strange.

Turn to the right.

NARRATOR: Alan MacLeod is
a veteran Air Canada pilot.

They got a rudder ratio
warning, which consists

of an amber light that
would come flashing on there

with a little beeping
horn and a message

on this engine crew alerting
system saying, rudder ratio.

That's just a system that
reduces the amount of rudder

the airplane has
that can be used

as the airplane accelerates
and goes faster and faster.

Because it was sensing wrong
or improper information,

it sends default so it
gave a warning to the crew.

NARRATOR: The
erratic warnings were

being generated by the
plane's central computer.

But the pilots could
not understand why.

[warning alarm]

Then the dead altimeters
sprung to life.

Climb.
Climb.

Climb.

Climb!

DAVID FERNANDEZ: I am.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Climb.

You're going down, David.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: I
am up, but the speed.

Yeah, but it's stuck.

Mach trim, rudder ratio.

Climb.

Climb, climb, climb, climb!

Set heading 100.

Well, now you're-- it's
OK on this heading.

Set the climb thrust.

Center autopilot in command.

NARRATOR: Just as
suddenly, the altitude

readings returned to normal.

The moment of calm
would be brief.

Just one minute after
takeoff, Captain Schreiber

attempted to engage
the autopilot

to give them time to think.

There is no command.

NARRATOR: The autopilot
requires identical data

from two of the aircraft's
three flight control computers.

But Schreiber's
instrument ratings

were so different from
those of Fernandez,

the autopilot disengaged.

Then, another alert.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Mach trim.

Mach trim.

NARRATOR: Mach trim indicates
that the aircraft is not

flying in a level
position, yet the 757

seemed to be flying normally.

Let's go to basic instruments.

Everything's going to hell.

ALAN MACLEOD: Mach
speed trim is a system

that trims the airplane.

It changes the angle of
the horizontal stabilizer

in the back end of
the airplane and that

has to be changed
as the airplane

accelerates to a higher speed.

It was getting false
indications so they got

a warning that they
had an overspeed,

which, of course, they didn't.

That warning would consist
of, again, the master caution

and a master warning, which
is a red light associated

with a an oral warning as well.

NARRATOR: Despite confusing
warnings and no autopilot,

the aircraft was controllable.

If necessary,
Schreiber could have

kept the plane aloft for
hours, but he decided to land.

He instructed his first officer
to declare an emergency.

We are in an emergency.

Aeroperu-- 603, Lima.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: We are
declaring an emergency.

We have no basic
instruments, no altimeter,

no airspeed indicator.

Declaring emergency.

ATC LIMA: Received.

Altitude?

DAVID FERNANDEZ: We don't have.

We're up to 1,000 feet,
approximately 1,700.

ATC LIMA: 603, confirm if
possible if you can change

your frequency to
119.7 to make sure

you can receive
radar instructions.

NARRATOR: Just 40
miles from Lima,

the pilots of Aeroperu 603
now made their first attempt

at an emergency landing.

[warning alarm]

Puzzled by their problems,
the captain and first officer

of flight 603 began to suspect
that the Aeroperu ground crew

had tampered with the aircraft.

[warning alarm]

DAVID FERNANDEZ: We
changed to 119.7.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Autothrottle
disconnected by itself.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Those [bleep]
at maintenance move everything.

What [bleep] have they done?

I'll take the controls now.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: OK,
you have control.

NARRATOR: The pilots did not
know that their suspicions

were close to the truth.

But there was no time
to speculate further.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Lima, 603.

ATC LIMA: Aeroperu 603, Lima.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: We request
vectors for ILS, runway 15.

NARRATOR: They sought
the runway with the help

of a guidance transmitter
called the instrument

landing system, or ILS.

The ILS provides
information on their course

while altitude information
comes from the aircraft's

transponder.

Affirmative.

Maintain present altitude.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: What
level do we have?

We have 4,000 feet.

Can you confirm for us?

Correct.

Maintain 4,000.

NARRATOR: Schreiber
and Fernandez

have never experienced nor been
trained for this emergency.

Autothrottle disconnect.

Really, we don't
have any control.

We don't have any control,
not even the basics.

Let's see.

Check everything.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: The
airplane was controllable,

but you first have to
diagnose what's wrong.

And it's very easy
from 20/20 hindsight,

sitting here in a chair on
a nice sunny day, to say,

this is what he
should have done.

But in the cold, dark night with
bells and whistles going off,

it's very difficult to analyze
conflicting information

that you're getting.

This kind of a problem
that they faced that night

was probably one of 10 over
the last 20 or 30 years

that has been similar to this.

NARRATOR: Over the
dark Pacific Ocean,

the pilots could not determine
altitude nor speed by sight.

They requested that the
tower help guide them in.

Responding.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Airspeed
is zero, all speeds.

Crazy.

Can you give us
the airspeed, please,

if you have us on the radar?

ATC LIMA: Yes, affirmative.

As of 10 seconds,
it seems that you're

climbing at level 6,000 at 22
miles south on heading 195.

NARRATOR: The air traffic
controller's computers

calculated a correct airspeed
by measuring the plane's

movement over the ground.

OK, we have that.

We are on heading
190 and we have

7,000 feet on the altimeter.

Yes, correct.

You're now reaching 7,000.

NARRATOR: But neither the pilots
nor the air traffic controller

knew that the altitude indicated
on the scope was incorrect.

It was coming from the
plane's erratic computer.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: The air traffic
controller would try to help

the pilot, but he was
receiving the wrong information

on altitude.

He was receiving
wrong indications

from the captain's altimeter.

NARRATOR: Investigators would
later discover that Aeroperu

603 was drifting downward
while the altimeter showed them

at a near constant 10,000 feet.

The passengers were as of
yet unaware of the drama

unfolding in the cockpit.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Avoid
large or abrupt radar

inputs if normal left hydraulic
system pressure available.

Left hydraulic system available.

Yes, crosswind.

Do not attempt an auto land.

Said left hydraulic
system available.

Yes, crosswind.

Do not attempt an auto land.

NARRATOR: In Lima,
the air traffic

controller continued to
guide Aeroperu 603 back

to the ground.

ATC LIMA: Aeroperu 603,
we are observing you now

at level 9,200.

What is your heading now?

We're heading level 205.

ATC LIMA: Affirmative.

You are turning slowly
to the right, correct?

No, we are maintaining course
to stay away from the coast.

NARRATOR: With incorrect
altitude information being

transmitted from the
aircraft to the tower,

they did not realize that
the plane was descending.

Your distance is 30 miles.

Do you want a heading to
proceed to the localizer?

Correct?
DAVID FERNANDEZ: Correct.

We're going to suggest
course north 360.

360.

We have problems here
reading the instruments.

You're going to have to help me
with altitudes and air speeds,

if it is possible.

OK, received.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Let's go.

DAVID FERNANDEZ:
The approach is set.

NARRATOR: The 757 computers
sent critical warnings,

information that the
pilots were trained to obey

but could not trust.

Let's try to make a
descent on this heading.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: It's climbing.

NARRATOR: The airspeed
plummeted to below stall speed

and then raced up again.

ERIC SCHREIBER: Let's
go down to 10,000 feet.

Why does the speed
go away so fast?

Could it be the real speed?

DAVID FERNANDEZ:
That's what worries me.

No, I don't think so.

Can you verify
our speed, please.

320 is indicated.

We have 350, but the--

The engines are
on idle but we keep

accelerating and accelerating.

ATC LIMA: OK, received.

NARRATOR: Nerves were
now stretched tight.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: Both
pilots were really confused.

They didn't know what to do.

They didn't know how to act,
and they did inhuman efforts

to save the aircraft.

But I mean, they
were really tired

of all the work and all the
confusion and all the alarms.

NARRATOR: Fernandez
suggested that they

try the speed brakes used to
rapidly slow the aircraft.

Extend the speed brakes.

NARRATOR: For a moment,
it appeared to be working.

Then another warning.

All three indicators
are fine on speed.

Fine on-- overspeed.

NARRATOR: Overspeed means that
the plane is flying too fast.

The pilots didn't believe it.

But if it was right, the
757 could be torn apart.

They were forced
to make a decision

to speed up or slow down.

If they got it wrong,
70 people would die.

15 minutes had
passed since takeoff.

Then the computerized brain
of Aeroperu flight 603

sent another burst of
contradictory warnings.

Rudder ratio.

Can't be.

Nothing's disconnecting.

All engine instruments are OK.

[bleep]

What can our real speed be?

ATC LIMA: The speed
indications are OK.

NARRATOR: Lima tower provided
their only chance of survival.

We are observing you
crossing the 260 of Lima

at 31 miles west.

Level is 10,700.

Velocity is approximately
280 over the ground.

Perfect.

NARRATOR: The controller's
altitude reading was incorrect,

junk information being
generated by the 757's computers

and radioed to the tower.

Overspeed.

NARRATOR: The brakes
were on, but now

another overspeed warning.

Then the stall warning sounded.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Let's descend.

Can't be overspeed.

We're still flying.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: In
aviation, you always

figure, what's gonna kill me?

What is the critical thing?

Let's take care of that
first, and then we'll

take care of the other,
lesser issues later on.

When you get a stall
warning or when

you get an overspeed
indication, you need to pay

attention to those immediately.

In this case, they were
getting both a stall

warning and an overspeed.

Well, which is right?

NARRATOR: First
Officer David Fernandez

finally realized that the odds
were against a safe landing.

We request, is
there any plane that

can take off and rescue us?

Acknowledged.

Rescue has been alerted.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: Any plane
in the area to guide us?

An Aeroperu that
may be in the area?

Anybody?

Oh, don't say
anything like that.

Yes, because right
now we are in a stall.

NARRATOR: A stick shaker
vibrated violently,

indicating that the
757 was going to slow

and could fall from the sky.

Aeroperu 603, we have a 707
that is leaving for Pudahuel.

We will advise him.

We are not in a stall.

It's a false alarm.

NARRATOR: Schreiber's airspeed
indicator read 350 knots,

well above stall speed.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: No,
we have stick shaker.

It has to be.

ERIC SCHREIBER: But even with
speed brakes and everything

we're maintaining 9,500 feet.

Why aren't we getting
the same reading?

ALAN MACLEOD: When the
airplane is slowed up

to a point in the air that
it can no longer sustain

itself in flight, it stalls.

The wing stalls or stops flying.

There's a warning system built
into the airplane that tells

the pilots when that's
happening and it's

known as a stick shaker,
along with a voice

warning, which we just heard.

When the stick shaker goes off
because the airplane has slowed

down too much, you get a warning
like this where the control

column is shaking and vibrating
along with the voice warning

saying that the
airplane is stalling.

And of course, the
pilots would go

into the aircraft stall recovery
procedure at that point.

NARRATOR: In the battle
between man and machine,

the deranged 757 was winning.

The pilots now had no sense of
where they were or how high.

They had gradually been
descending and were now

just 1,000 feet over the sea.

Lima tower, misguided
by Aeroperu 603's

incorrect transponder,
reassured the pilots

that they were at 10,000 feet.

ATC LIMA: Aeroperu 603, you
are now flying on course 120.

We observe you to
be at level 10,000.

Your speed is approximately
220 and a distance from Lima

of 33 miles to the northwest.

The 707 will be
ready in 15 minutes

to fly west to help you.

NARRATOR: The pilots
had to abandon

their attempt at landing.

The best hope now is
that another aircraft

could get airborne and guide
the 757 back to the airport.

Terrain.

Too low.
Terrain.

What's happening?

Too low, terrain?

NARRATOR: Now the
pilots received the most

terrifying warning of all.

It is called the
ground proximity

alarm, meaning a collision
with the Earth is imminent.

The tower had told them
they were at 10,000 feet.

Course of 300.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: We
have the terrain alarm

and we're supposed
to be at 10,000 feet?

ATC LIMA: According to
the monitor, you have 105.

Too low, terrain.

Too low, terrain.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: There is
no checklist for if you have

these seven or eight warnings
going off-- which they did,

and they couldn't shut them off.

It's a very rattling experience.

I could play that tape for
you and you hear those things.

Whoop, whoop.

Pull up.
Terrain.

Terrain.

And all of these things going
off, and the stick shaker.

[imitates boing]

It's a very unnerving
environment.

All the computers
are going crazy here.

Too low, terrain.

Too low, Terrain.

NARRATOR: Schreiber turned
the aircraft toward the sea,

away from a possible collision
with a mountain or skyscraper.

Despite the erroneous warnings,
the terrain alarm was correct.

ALAN MACLEOD: There's a system
on board the aircraft crowned

the ground proximity
warning system,

and it senses a rate of
descent in the airplane.

The irony of the
situation was they were

getting warnings
from that saying too

low, terrain, terrain, too low.

That probably, in
all probability,

was a true warning.

But because they'd been
subjected to so many warnings

and ongoing false warnings
and horns, bells, and whistles

that they didn't
really, I don't think,

react to that too seriously.

NARRATOR: The tower
confirmed that the 757

had turned away from the airport
out toward the open Pacific.

ATC LIMA: Observing 42
miles flying to the west.

Course 250.

We are over water, aren't we?

ATC LIMA: Affirmative.

Over the water.

You are 42 miles to the west.

NARRATOR: Now in
darkness and heavy haze,

the pilots had another
problem with their speed.

Are we going down now?

We have 370 knots.

Are we descending now?

We're showing the same speed.

You have 200 knots
speed approximately.

Speed 200 knots?

ATC LIMA: 220 ground speed,
reducing speed slightly.

NARRATOR: The
pilots were stunned.

200 knots was precariously
close to stall speed.

Damn, we're gonna
stall right now.

Let's go up.

Let's see.

Let's go up here.

NARRATOR: The two men struggled
with a deadly situation.

A computer that warns them
of flying too fast, too

slow, and too low all at once.

[warning alarm]

Too low, terrain.

Terrain.

NARRATOR: Schreiber now decided
to risk a second attempt

at landing, seeking the
signal known as the ILS

to guide the aircraft
to the runway. too

Low, terrain.

I wanna try to
intercept the ILS.

I'm trying to descend.

Lima, Aeroperu 603.

We will try to
intercept the ILS.

Let us know if we are in.

ATC LIMA: Received,
Aeroperu 603.

You show now level 9,700.

NARRATOR: The instruments
seemed to be working.

For a moment, there
was a glimmer of hope.

This one's right.

This one's OK too.

NARRATOR: The air
traffic controller

attempted to raise the pilot
spirits with good news.

Standby to verify speed.

The 707 is about to take off.

It is on taxi.

DAVID FERNANDEZ:
Confirm our speed.

It is very important.

We do not have any speed
indications on board.

ATC LIMA: Understood.

You're starting to
turn and we observe

your ground speed at 270.

Stay there, Eric.

270 is OK.

NARRATOR: They now
knew their speed,

but altitude remained
fatally wrong.

ATC LIMA: Altitude is 9,700.

Your speed is 240 knots
ground speed on the monitor.

How can we be
flying at this speed

if we're descending
with engines on idle?

Give me the altitude, please.

ATC LIMA: Yes, you
are maintaining 9700

according to the scope, sir.

9,700?

ATC LIMA: Yes, correct.

What is your indicated altitude?

Do you have any
visual reference?

DAVID FERNANDEZ: 9,700?

But it is indicating
too low terrain.

Are you sure you have us
on the radar at 50 miles?

Hey, look.

We're 370.

We have--

370 of what?

Do we lower gear?

Aeroperu 603, Lima.

What do we do with the gear?

NARRATOR: Suddenly they
realize the awful truth.

We're hitting water!

Pull it up!

Climb!

Climb, Aeroperu 603.

If you need to, pull up.

NARRATOR: For 20 seconds the
pilots struggled for altitude.

[warning alarm]

I've got her.

I've got it.

We're gonna turn over!

[warning alarm]

ATC LIMA: Aeroperu 603, Lima.

Aeroperu 603, Lima.

[suspenseful music]

NARRATOR: The next morning,
Mexican businessman

Monus Albert learned that an
Aeroperu flight had crashed.

REPORTER: Five minutes after
takeoff, the crew informed

the tower that they
were having an emergency

and they requested
clearance to return to Lima.

During the process, contact with
the aircraft was lost at 01:10,

with the latest position of
the aircraft being 50 miles

north of the city of Lima.

About 6 o'clock in the morning
I got up and turned on the news

channel, and I heard
there was a crash,

an airplane crash of
Aeroperu, but the news

mentioned New York to Lima.

REPORTER: Rescue operations
are underway by authorities.

The aircraft was
carrying 261 passengers

and nine crew members.

NARRATOR: His brother-in-law
and his business partner

were on Aeroperu 603.

MONUS ALBERT: So I
went to the shower

and didn't pay a
lot of attention.

But when I came out
they corrected the news

and they said from
Lima to Santiago,

and I knew in that lane Kenny
and Abraham were flying.

The news was very vague.

So they mentioned there
might be some survivors

and they mentioned that the
plane crashed on the Pacific

Ocean, and they didn't
have a lot of news

and the crash was at night.

So in my mind I thought that the
plane sort of landed on water

and most people got out.

NARRATOR: Guido Fernandez
had just been appointed

Peru's accident investigator.

Aeroperu was his first case.

The co-pilot David
Fernandez was his nephew.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: I was in bed.

It was about 4:30 in the
morning, and they called me.

Your nephew is lost
in an airplane.

They asked me, I mean, how do
you feel that your nephew was

the co-pilot?

My gosh, I feel very bad.

But I'm a professional
and I have to do a job.

I have to comply and complete
my duty, so that's what I did.

NARRATOR: Fernandez
rushed to the crash

site in a Navy helicopter.

It was clear there
were no survivors.

Nine bodies were
floating in the debris.

The rest sank to the
bottom with the 757.

Fernandez met with the
air traffic controller

at Lima tower.

His account was baffling.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: Well, the
controller really didn't know.

He was just trying to help, so
he did all he could to help.

But unfortunately for him,
it was a new emergency too.

[radio chatter]

NARRATOR: Fernandez put thoughts
of his nephew out of his mind.

His job was to
retrieve the aircraft's

flight data and voice recorders
to determine what happened.

He needed help.

[radio chatter]

Fernandez contacted the National
Transportation Safety Board

in Washington DC, the world's
leading agency for air

accident investigations.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: They
had found the aircraft.

It was pretty well
documented by radar.

The Navy, the Peruvian Navy,
had gotten a fix on the flotsam

and the wreckage in the ocean.

And the only thing
left to do was find it

on the bottom of the
ocean, which they did

not have the facilities for.

NARRATOR: Rodriguez flew to
Lima to join Guido Fernandez's

effort to find answers.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: I
found out that his nephew

was the first officer.

I suggested that perhaps
they should consider removing

Captain Fernandez from
the investigation because

of emotional involvement
and what have you.

NARRATOR: The American
investigators'

concerns soon vanished.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: He was
very objective, I would say.

An excellent investigator
considering that it

was not a distant nephew.

I mean, it was his
very close relative.

He did an outstanding job.

NARRATOR: The black
box in the Boeing 757

can emit a locator beacon for 30
days before batteries run dead.

The US Navy provided
underwater remote operated

vehicles to survey the debris
field, seeking the black boxes.

The wreckage confirmed that the
plane went down in one piece.

The data recorders were
retrieved from the 757

and brought to the surface.

The boxes were placed in
coolers full of fresh water

to keep them from oxidizing.

They were taken back to
Washington for analysis

by the NTSB.

The cockpit recorder
could offer the evidence

investigators sought.

Every word spoken by pilots
Schreiber and Fernandez

and every unnerving alarm
was recorded on audiotape.

[warning alarm]

The recorded voices were faint
and sometimes hard to make out,

but the chaos in
the cockpit rang

through with chilling clarity.

[warning alarm]

[spanish]

The tape was digitized
into a computer,

filtered, and enhanced.

[warning alarm]

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ:
It was clear to us

that they were really
experiencing a problem

with airspeed and altitude,
and the airspeed and altitude

indications in the aircraft are
strictly a function of what we

call the pitot-static system.

NARRATOR: The
pitot-static system

is found on all
aircraft, large or small.

External ports
measure outside air

pressure to provide data
on altitude and speed.

If these ports are blocked,
the plane's computers

receive false data and
generate false warnings.

But why these ports would
be blocked was a mystery.

Robotic vehicles
searched for the missing

piece of the puzzle.

What they found
stunned investigators.

Captain Schreiber's
static port was

completely blocked with tape.

Investigators now
learned what happened.

Just before Aeroperu 603
lifted off from Lima,

maintenance workers
cleaned the aircraft.

A worker covered
the static ports

with take to protect them.

This is standard procedure, but
he forgot to remove the tape.

It was a small oversight
with catastrophic results.

The inspector who
is supposed to quality

check his work did not do it and
the supervisor out on the line

that night was not there.

He was sick, and there
was a regular mechanic

who was filling that role.

He did not see it.

And the captain or the pilot--
in this case, the captain

did the pre-flight.

They do a walk around looking
for just that kind of thing.

The captain did the
pre-flight that night

and he did not detect it either.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: A
little piece of paper

with glue caused an accident.

But the paper and the
glue are not to blame.

Humans are to blame
because humans

use that tape in the wrong
place for the wrong purpose.

NARRATOR: Another
accident shockingly

similar to Aeroperu 603
had happened just eight

months earlier to another 757.

In February 1996, 189 people
died when a Turkish charter

called Bergen Air crashed five
miles after takeoff from Puerto

Plata, Dominican Republic.

The NTSB assisted in
the investigation.

A survey of the wreckage
revealed that one pitot tube,

the other critical part of
the pitot-static system,

was blocked.

As with Aeroperu 603, night
was the pilot's worst enemy.

The Bergen Air pilot flipped
the plane upside down

before crashing into the sea.

[warning alarm]

Three months after
the Bergen Air crash,

bulletins were issued
to all airline carriers

about pitot-static problems.

But Aeroperu had not yet
implemented the changes.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: The
bulletins and the-- let's call

it the fruits of the Dominican
Republic investigation

of Bergen Air, had not yet
reached Aeroperu at the time

this accident occurred.

The Peruvian government
very correctly

made a point of that in
their report on the accident,

saying that they should
have given more impetus

to those recommendations
to get them

out to the industry quicker.

DAVID FERNANDEZ: 9,700?

But it is indicating
to low terrain.

NARRATOR: Even if Schreiber
and Fernandez had known

about Bergen Air,
it may not have

helped them to survive
given the high pressure

of their situation.

Do we lower gear?

It's easy to sit
here in the 757 cockpit

and play the Monday morning
quarterback having heard

the bells and the overspeed
warnings, the ground proximity

warning, the stall warning.

It was very easy
to do that and sit

here and say what
I would have done

being an experienced pilot.

But to put yourself into the
position of those two pilots

that night, they were in
an extremely difficult

situation to fly that
airplane and recover

from that experience.

NARRATOR: In November 1996, a
Miami lawyer took on the case

on behalf of 41
of the passengers

and crew of flight 603, arguing
that the manufacturer, Boeing,

was liable for the accident.

MIKE EDISON: Boeing
has to foresee

the misuse of their product.

In other words, the
manufacturer of a product

is legally liable for the
foreseeable misuse of their

product if it can be corrected.

In other words, Boeing
builds the airplane

with potential hazard in it.

That hazard is that in
order to clean the airplane

you have to cover
the static port,

and if you don't take it
off, the airplane can crash.

MONUS ALBERT: I
wanted them back.

And since I couldn't
get them back,

at least I wanted the wives of
the victims to get compensated.

How much is that worth?

I don't know.

I didn't know.

Abraham had three daughters, and
now they don't have a father.

So what is the compensation?

The best compensation is, if
can be done, is get him back.

Give them life back again.

But because that
is not possible,

then the other possibility is
to get a monetary compensation.

And then you fight for the
best compensation you can get.

NARRATOR: Boeing
argued that Aeroperu

was at fault, not its 757.

An Aeroperu worker had
taped the static port, which

is marked with clear warnings.

Boeing also blamed
Captain Eric Schreiber.

It was his job to
visually inspect

the aircraft before taking off.

But investigator
Richard Rodriguez

can understand how
Schreiber overlooked

the tape on the static port.

RICHARD RODRIGUEZ: One of the
reasons is it's very high.

It's about maybe 15,
17 feet up in the air.

And at night with a flashlight--

and this happened to
be duct tape, which

you're not supposed to use.

They specify the tape, and it
was duct tape, which is silver.

So it would not
distinguish itself

against the background of
the fuselage of the aircraft.

So basically three
or four people

failed to detect the tape on
the aircraft prior to departure.

NARRATOR: As the
search for blame

continued the worker
who taped the ports

was jailed for his negligence.

GUIDO FERNANDEZ: Lawyers, they--

lawyers, you know, sometimes
they confuse the matters

and they send a guy and
ask people questions.

And these questions are the
one that stuck the tape was

the painter, was the lowest
cultured and the one that knew

less about what could happen,
and the judge resolved that he

was the one responsible.

And he was in jail.

MIKE EDISON: So if you
only lose the airplane

because a maintenance man
making $2 an hour down in Peru

makes a mistake,
it's foreseeable

that that kind of a person
is gonna make a mistake.

That's human nature they're
gonna make a mistake,

and you build your system so
you don't lose your $50 million

airplane because a maintenance
guy makes a simple mistake.

NARRATOR: Schreiber
and Fernandez

were also scrutinized.

TIM VON BEVEREN:
It always becomes

a problem when pilots are
reduced to be push buttonists.

The man-machine
interface has to work

and has to work as humans are
to operate these airplanes.

They have to be
designed appropriately

for the use of a human being.

Of course, you can put in all
digits and numbers and computer

gimmicks and you can--

but still, it's man who has
to operate and survey it.

And I believe a human
being should be in charge.

NARRATOR: In 1999, Boeing and
Aeroperu decided to settle

the lawsuits out of court.

Families and loved ones received
an exceptional settlement

averaging a million
dollars US per victim.

The damages were high
because of the terrible way

the passengers and crew
on Aeroperu 603 died.

MIKE EDISON: We were able to
show that a lot of the people

were alive.

In a crash like this,
a lot of the people

would survive the crash
and then die of drowning.

There was no
question in our minds

that the people suffered
terrible, terrible terror

and pain when this
happened to them.

They were horrified.

They were awake.

They knew what happened.

NARRATOR: The disaster
helped sink Aeroperu.

Combined with increased
competition and rising debt,

the national airline
went bankrupt in 1999.

Boeing increased training
on pitot-static problems

and issued new regulations about
unapproved static port covers.

The case was settled.

The industry repented
and moved on.

Such is the world of
commercial aviation.

But it was little
consolation for those

whose lives were scarred forever
by an insignificant piece

of tape.

MONUS ALBERT: It's
suddenly sad that a guy

doesn't exist anymore.

It's very hard to swallow that.

It's very hard to
understand, and it

took me a long time to accept.

So the memory is
still there and it

will be there for a long time.

I'm not gonna let go.

I don't wanna let go.