1 00:00:03,551 --> 00:00:05,068 The crew of a passenger jet 2 00:00:05,172 --> 00:00:06,931 search in vain for their airport. 3 00:00:07,034 --> 00:00:08,413 Look carefully. 4 00:00:08,517 --> 00:00:11,310 Rain is making it impossible to see. 5 00:00:11,413 --> 00:00:13,379 Not in sight. Missed approach. 6 00:00:13,482 --> 00:00:14,620 Go around! 7 00:00:14,724 --> 00:00:19,793 More than 2-hundred passengers are onboard. 8 00:00:23,724 --> 00:00:26,241 As I turned around, a huge fireball came out. 9 00:00:26,344 --> 00:00:33,068 Investigators search for clues. 10 00:00:33,172 --> 00:00:35,586 Could a vital missing piece of equipment be 11 00:00:35,689 --> 00:00:37,241 responsible for the crash? 12 00:00:37,344 --> 00:00:39,172 I think the best way to describe that 13 00:00:39,275 --> 00:00:40,655 would have been irresponsible. 14 00:00:40,758 --> 00:00:44,275 I know a lot of people 15 00:00:44,379 --> 00:00:45,931 could have walked off that plane that night. 16 00:00:47,137 --> 00:00:48,379 Nothing will change my views on that. 17 00:01:17,172 --> 00:01:19,586 Nimitz Hill, Guam. 18 00:01:21,517 --> 00:01:24,137 Once the site of fierce American offensives during 19 00:01:24,241 --> 00:01:30,586 World War Two, for over fifty years there has been peace here. 20 00:01:38,482 --> 00:01:42,103 Now the hill is peaceful, invaded by hunters 21 00:01:42,206 --> 00:01:44,965 and the normal quiet is broken by the roar of jumbo 22 00:01:45,068 --> 00:01:46,655 jets as they fly overhead. 23 00:01:51,586 --> 00:01:55,000 Every night commercial pilots must fly over this tall 24 00:01:55,103 --> 00:01:58,862 rocky outcrop and land at Guam's Agana International Airport. 25 00:02:07,379 --> 00:02:10,551 Flights come from airports all across Asia. 26 00:02:10,655 --> 00:02:15,310 Just past midnight, on August 6th, 1997, Korean Airlines 27 00:02:15,413 --> 00:02:19,137 flight 801 is on its way to Guam from Seoul, South Korea. 28 00:02:20,965 --> 00:02:24,758 42-year-old Captain Park Yong-Chol is at the controls. 29 00:02:27,758 --> 00:02:29,689 A former Korea air force pilot, 30 00:02:29,793 --> 00:02:33,000 Park has been flying 747s for more than 6 years. 31 00:02:35,517 --> 00:02:38,103 Just a few months ago, he received a flight safety 32 00:02:38,206 --> 00:02:41,275 award from the president of Korean Air for successfully 33 00:02:41,379 --> 00:02:44,758 handling a 747 engine failure at low altitude. 34 00:02:47,896 --> 00:02:50,793 Park is supposed to be flying to the United Arab Emirates 35 00:02:50,896 --> 00:02:53,413 tonight but a scheduling change has put him 36 00:02:53,517 --> 00:02:55,793 in command of this shorter flight to Guam. 37 00:02:58,965 --> 00:03:02,758 In the cabin, Korean, Japanese and Western tourists 38 00:03:02,862 --> 00:03:04,896 are heading for Guam's pristine beaches. 39 00:03:10,793 --> 00:03:14,413 Guam is a US territory run under US law. 40 00:03:14,517 --> 00:03:18,896 The island is tiny, fewer than 6-hundred square kilometers 41 00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:21,241 but there's enough sand to keep people coming. 42 00:03:21,344 --> 00:03:30,068 24-year-old Sean Burke and his girlfriend 43 00:03:30,172 --> 00:03:34,241 Wendy Bunten are planning to make the most of Guam's beaches. 44 00:03:34,344 --> 00:03:37,482 They're flying in from San Diego for a vacation. 45 00:03:37,586 --> 00:03:40,551 Sean and Wendy were going to Guam to do some 46 00:03:40,655 --> 00:03:45,586 scuba diving, reef driving and at the same time they were 47 00:03:45,689 --> 00:03:49,068 gonna visit her brother who was in the navy over there. 48 00:03:49,172 --> 00:03:50,241 He was a navy doctor. 49 00:03:50,344 --> 00:03:56,275 Flight 801 is taking Barry Small back to work. 50 00:03:56,379 --> 00:03:59,482 He is returning to Guam from New Zealand for another 6-month 51 00:03:59,586 --> 00:04:02,000 contract as a helicopter pilot. 52 00:04:02,103 --> 00:04:03,517 But he does it with a heavy heart. 53 00:04:03,620 --> 00:04:08,896 The night before I left my father had a heart attack 54 00:04:09,000 --> 00:04:13,000 and I had to CPR him until the ambulance arrived 55 00:04:14,275 --> 00:04:19,172 and decided to cancel the contract so I could help him 56 00:04:19,275 --> 00:04:23,034 but he was insistent that you must carry on with your job. 57 00:04:23,137 --> 00:04:30,620 The flight is still a couple of hours from Guam 58 00:04:30,724 --> 00:04:33,103 when the calm evening is brutally interrupted. 59 00:04:44,137 --> 00:04:46,172 Watch the speed. It could be severe turbulence. 60 00:04:48,827 --> 00:04:50,241 Make an announcement to have everyone 61 00:04:50,344 --> 00:04:51,344 in their seats with seatbelts on. 62 00:04:51,448 --> 00:04:53,827 Ladies and gentlemen, 63 00:04:53,931 --> 00:04:56,310 this is your first office speaking. 64 00:04:56,413 --> 00:04:58,310 Even an experienced flyer 65 00:04:58,413 --> 00:05:00,241 like Barry Small is surprised. 66 00:05:00,344 --> 00:05:04,241 There was no lead up to this turbulence and anybody that 67 00:05:04,344 --> 00:05:07,586 wasn't strapped down was going to be airborne, that's for sure. 68 00:05:07,689 --> 00:05:09,000 The lockers were rattling 69 00:05:09,103 --> 00:05:13,275 and anything in those lockers was bound to break. 70 00:05:13,379 --> 00:05:15,586 It was a horrendous shudder. 71 00:05:15,689 --> 00:05:27,275 It's heavy turbulence but the crew ride it out. 72 00:05:28,379 --> 00:05:30,344 Eventually the flight returns to normal. 73 00:05:30,448 --> 00:05:34,137 We're through it. Let the passengers know. 74 00:05:34,241 --> 00:05:39,310 Ladies and gentlemen, 75 00:05:39,413 --> 00:05:42,310 this is your first officer speaking. 76 00:05:42,413 --> 00:05:44,413 We have cleared the turbulent area. 77 00:05:44,517 --> 00:05:51,689 But it's left some of the passengers shaken. 78 00:05:51,793 --> 00:05:55,620 Shhh. It's okay Rika. We'll be there soon. 79 00:05:55,724 --> 00:05:59,482 Ma'am, if you don't mind 80 00:05:59,586 --> 00:06:01,344 I'm gonna move this duty free up here for you. 81 00:06:01,448 --> 00:06:08,310 The cabin crew cleans up 82 00:06:11,586 --> 00:06:13,965 and the passengers settle in for the rest of the trip. 83 00:06:14,068 --> 00:06:19,379 Because of the twelve hour stopover in Seoul 84 00:06:19,482 --> 00:06:23,965 and no change of clothes, it was getting rather 85 00:06:24,068 --> 00:06:28,103 uncomfortable in a tropical environment and I took my 86 00:06:28,206 --> 00:06:32,517 shoes off just to relax a little bit and feel more comfortable. 87 00:06:32,620 --> 00:06:38,931 Captain Park and his crew begin looking ahead. 88 00:06:41,620 --> 00:06:43,724 They know there's more unsettled weather coming. 89 00:06:47,655 --> 00:06:51,103 Rain has been hitting Guam on and off all day. 90 00:06:51,206 --> 00:06:54,793 In fact, August is the heart of the island's rainy season. 91 00:06:54,896 --> 00:06:58,655 Small showers can pop up, making visibility unpredictable. 92 00:06:58,758 --> 00:07:01,724 In that particular part of the world 93 00:07:01,827 --> 00:07:03,931 they have what's called a top hat thunderstorm. 94 00:07:04,034 --> 00:07:05,827 That is a very small thunderstorm that 95 00:07:05,931 --> 00:07:09,655 builds up all times of the day and it's very short lived. 96 00:07:09,758 --> 00:07:12,275 So it wouldn't hamper the pilot's ability to actually 97 00:07:12,379 --> 00:07:13,482 conduct the approach. 98 00:07:13,586 --> 00:07:16,931 It's gonna just obscure his view for some period of time 99 00:07:17,034 --> 00:07:18,275 while they're transiting through it. 100 00:07:18,379 --> 00:07:23,344 Just past one in the morning, 101 00:07:23,448 --> 00:07:26,620 Korean Air flight 801 makes initial radio contact 102 00:07:26,724 --> 00:07:30,034 with Kurt Mayo, the radar controller at Guam's airport. 103 00:07:30,137 --> 00:07:33,586 Guam Center, Korea 801 leaving 104 00:07:33,689 --> 00:07:37,827 level four one zero for two thousand, six hundred. 105 00:07:37,931 --> 00:07:39,413 Korean Air 801, roger. 106 00:07:39,517 --> 00:07:46,689 The crew aren't the only ones preparing to land. 107 00:07:46,793 --> 00:07:49,517 After more than three hours of flying through the night, 108 00:07:49,620 --> 00:07:51,275 the passengers get ready for the airport. 109 00:07:51,379 --> 00:07:57,241 I saw the lights of Guam and I knew exactly where 110 00:07:57,344 --> 00:08:00,379 the aircraft was because I'd been there many times before. 111 00:08:00,482 --> 00:08:06,241 Captain Park has navigated Nimitz Hill 9 112 00:08:06,344 --> 00:08:09,931 times before, but this time there's a major difference. 113 00:08:11,586 --> 00:08:13,137 At airports around the world, 114 00:08:13,241 --> 00:08:15,931 pilots land with the help of a glide slope, 115 00:08:16,034 --> 00:08:19,241 an electronic system that helps planes safely touch down. 116 00:08:23,827 --> 00:08:26,896 If pilots follow the directions given by the glide slope, 117 00:08:27,000 --> 00:08:28,931 it guides them to the foot of the runway. 118 00:08:30,793 --> 00:08:33,344 The glide slope beacon at Guam Airport has been 119 00:08:33,448 --> 00:08:35,862 removed for extensive maintenance. 120 00:08:37,379 --> 00:08:39,241 Without the airport transmitter, 121 00:08:39,344 --> 00:08:43,551 Park's glide slope indicator in the cockpit is useless. 122 00:08:43,655 --> 00:08:47,000 Landing without a glide slope is rare, but it does happen. 123 00:08:48,310 --> 00:08:50,448 In Guam, the transmitter is scheduled to be 124 00:08:50,551 --> 00:08:53,413 out of service for more than two months. 125 00:08:53,517 --> 00:08:57,137 But impaired navigation is only part of the problem. 126 00:08:57,241 --> 00:08:59,413 Captain Park is fighting exhaustion. 127 00:08:59,517 --> 00:09:02,724 They make us classic guys work to the maximum. 128 00:09:02,827 --> 00:09:05,827 Probably this way hotel expenses are saved on cabin crews 129 00:09:05,931 --> 00:09:11,310 and they maximize flight hours. Really sleepy. 130 00:09:11,413 --> 00:09:15,103 Now, as the plane approaches Guam, 131 00:09:15,206 --> 00:09:17,275 clouds and rain block their way. 132 00:09:17,379 --> 00:09:19,827 Captain, Guam condition is no good. 133 00:09:19,931 --> 00:09:22,344 It's raining a lot. 134 00:09:22,448 --> 00:09:25,793 It's been several hours since Captain Park 135 00:09:25,896 --> 00:09:27,896 and his crew left Seoul. 136 00:09:28,000 --> 00:09:31,586 Now the rain is making the late flight more difficult. 137 00:09:31,689 --> 00:09:34,137 Tired and fighting the weather, 138 00:09:34,241 --> 00:09:37,103 the captain begins the final approach to the airport. 139 00:09:42,896 --> 00:09:48,206 August 6th 1997. It's close to one thirty in the morning. 140 00:09:48,310 --> 00:09:51,862 On Korean Airlines flight 801, a tired captain is 141 00:09:51,965 --> 00:09:55,000 preparing to land at Agana Airport on the island of Guam. 142 00:09:56,793 --> 00:09:59,965 In the cabin, 2-hundred and 37 passengers are getting 143 00:10:00,068 --> 00:10:02,793 ready to begin their holidays, or get back to work. 144 00:10:02,896 --> 00:10:05,000 The flight, other than the turbulence, 145 00:10:05,103 --> 00:10:07,310 was totally normal. 146 00:10:07,413 --> 00:10:09,862 We had our meals and it was just 147 00:10:09,965 --> 00:10:11,862 a totally normal flight in every way. 148 00:10:11,965 --> 00:10:16,620 As the jet approaches Guam, an erratic storm 149 00:10:16,724 --> 00:10:20,620 pushes rain and clouds between the plane and the airport. 150 00:10:20,724 --> 00:10:22,620 It's hard to see. 151 00:10:22,724 --> 00:10:24,448 The captain wants to make a small change 152 00:10:24,551 --> 00:10:26,586 in course to avoid the worst of the weather. 153 00:10:26,689 --> 00:10:29,758 Request 20 mile deviation to the left 154 00:10:29,862 --> 00:10:30,965 as we are descending. 155 00:10:31,068 --> 00:10:35,344 Guam Center, Korea 801 request deviation 156 00:10:35,448 --> 00:10:37,482 one zero miles left of track. 157 00:10:37,586 --> 00:10:40,137 Korean Air 801, roger. 158 00:10:40,241 --> 00:10:46,655 Veering around cloud cover, Captain Park Yong-Chol 159 00:10:46,758 --> 00:10:49,137 struggles to get a clear view of his approach. 160 00:10:52,896 --> 00:10:55,448 And finally he sees what he's been looking for. 161 00:10:55,551 --> 00:10:58,827 It's Guam. Guam. Good. 162 00:10:58,931 --> 00:11:01,689 Today the weather radar helped us a lot. 163 00:11:01,793 --> 00:11:10,862 Korean Air 801 cleared for ILS runway six left approach. 164 00:11:10,965 --> 00:11:12,137 Glide slope unusable. 165 00:11:12,241 --> 00:11:15,931 Air traffic controller Kurt Mayo reminds the crew 166 00:11:16,034 --> 00:11:19,793 that the airport's glide slope equipment is out of service. 167 00:11:19,896 --> 00:11:22,379 It would normally help them find the runway, 168 00:11:22,482 --> 00:11:25,689 but since it's under repair it isn't sending out any signals. 169 00:11:28,413 --> 00:11:30,103 Then, with the crew in the middle 170 00:11:30,206 --> 00:11:33,000 of their landing sequence, something unexpected happens. 171 00:11:36,206 --> 00:11:39,344 The glide slope appears to come to life. 172 00:11:39,448 --> 00:11:41,862 Is the glide slope working? The glide slope? 173 00:11:41,965 --> 00:11:47,448 Yes. Yes it's working. Why is it working? 174 00:11:47,551 --> 00:11:49,620 It's a confusing moment. 175 00:11:49,724 --> 00:11:51,241 Unsure what's happening, 176 00:11:51,344 --> 00:11:53,517 the crew continue to prepare for their landing. 177 00:11:53,620 --> 00:11:55,896 Six D check. Gear down. 178 00:11:56,000 --> 00:11:59,586 Check. Approaching 1400. 179 00:11:59,689 --> 00:12:02,965 Since today's glide slope condition is not good, 180 00:12:03,068 --> 00:12:05,206 we need to maintain one thousand four hundred forty. 181 00:12:05,310 --> 00:12:11,482 Please set it. Set. 182 00:12:11,586 --> 00:12:13,965 At 40 minutes after one in the morning, 183 00:12:14,068 --> 00:12:16,275 Guam controller Kurt Mayo once again 184 00:12:16,379 --> 00:12:17,689 makes contact with the crew. 185 00:12:17,793 --> 00:12:19,103 Korean Air 801, 186 00:12:19,206 --> 00:12:21,517 contact the Agana tower one one eight point one. 187 00:12:21,620 --> 00:12:24,724 He passes the plane on to the airport tower 188 00:12:24,827 --> 00:12:26,965 and says goodbye in Korean. 189 00:12:27,068 --> 00:12:30,034 Ahn nyung hee ga sea yo. Soo ga ha sip is yo. 190 00:12:30,137 --> 00:12:30,965 One eighteen one. 191 00:12:31,068 --> 00:12:32,758 It's the last time he'll ever 192 00:12:32,862 --> 00:12:34,827 talk to the crew of the jetliner. 193 00:12:34,931 --> 00:12:36,655 The guy working here probably was 194 00:12:36,758 --> 00:12:38,310 a GI in Korea before. 195 00:12:38,413 --> 00:12:44,379 Agana Tower, Korean Air 801 to intercept 196 00:12:44,482 --> 00:12:45,896 the localizer six left. 197 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:50,793 Korean Air 801 heavy 198 00:12:50,896 --> 00:12:53,344 Agana Tower runway six, cleared to land. 199 00:12:53,448 --> 00:12:55,965 Korean 801 roger, cleared to land six left. 200 00:12:56,068 --> 00:12:59,517 Flaps thirty. Flaps thirty. 201 00:12:59,620 --> 00:13:04,344 As the plane descends, clouds and rain close in again. 202 00:13:04,448 --> 00:13:05,827 They've lost sight of the airport. 203 00:13:05,931 --> 00:13:07,241 Look carefully. 204 00:13:07,344 --> 00:13:12,103 Ladies and gentlemen, we're preparing for landing 205 00:13:12,206 --> 00:13:14,482 at Agana International Airport in Guam. 206 00:13:14,586 --> 00:13:16,551 Please return your seats to the upright position, 207 00:13:16,655 --> 00:13:23,620 fasten your seatbelts and prepare for landing. 208 00:13:23,724 --> 00:13:29,241 Set 560 feet. Set. 209 00:13:29,344 --> 00:13:31,896 As the plane flies closer to the ground, 210 00:13:32,000 --> 00:13:35,275 the crew expects they'll see the airport any second. 211 00:13:35,379 --> 00:13:37,482 But the rain makes it hard to see anything. 212 00:13:37,586 --> 00:13:53,379 Isn't the glide slope working? Wiper on! 213 00:13:53,482 --> 00:13:56,413 Then a computerized voice fills the cockpit. 214 00:13:56,517 --> 00:13:57,689 Five hundred. 215 00:13:57,793 --> 00:13:59,931 It's the Ground Proximity Warning System, 216 00:14:00,034 --> 00:14:02,344 which tells the crew they're just 5-hundred feet 217 00:14:02,448 --> 00:14:06,310 in the air, but they still can't see the runway. 218 00:14:06,413 --> 00:14:13,827 I'd done this flight many, 219 00:14:13,931 --> 00:14:18,000 many times before and when I estimated we were about 220 00:14:18,103 --> 00:14:21,724 thirty seconds from landing, I bent down to put my shoes on. 221 00:14:21,827 --> 00:14:26,448 Two hundred. 222 00:14:26,551 --> 00:14:29,172 The plane is now just 2-hundred feet 223 00:14:29,275 --> 00:14:32,482 above the ground but still the crew can't see the runway. 224 00:14:32,586 --> 00:14:34,172 They're quickly running out of time. 225 00:14:34,275 --> 00:14:35,931 Let's make a missed approach. 226 00:14:37,310 --> 00:14:39,655 Not in sight. 227 00:14:39,758 --> 00:14:44,206 Not in sight. Missed approach. Go around. 228 00:14:48,655 --> 00:14:51,103 Go around! Flaps. 229 00:15:05,103 --> 00:15:15,000 One hundred. Fifty. Forty. Thirty. Twenty. 230 00:15:26,620 --> 00:15:28,379 I had no idea, thought it was still just a normal 231 00:15:28,482 --> 00:15:34,000 landing and the aircraft went on and was decelerating 232 00:15:35,655 --> 00:15:39,862 quicker than normal, but nothing to really alarm me. 233 00:15:39,965 --> 00:15:54,724 Things were getting pretty serious then. 234 00:15:54,827 --> 00:15:56,517 The aircraft was starting to break apart. 235 00:15:56,620 --> 00:16:04,275 I forced myself up to look and there was just bottles, 236 00:16:04,379 --> 00:16:06,724 bags, everything you can imagine was coming out. 237 00:16:06,827 --> 00:16:12,103 The only way I can really describe it is 238 00:16:12,206 --> 00:16:16,586 like about a thousand 737s landing all at once. 239 00:16:16,689 --> 00:16:20,137 On a wooded hillside in Guam, 240 00:16:20,241 --> 00:16:23,000 the shattered plane finally grinds to a halt. 241 00:16:47,206 --> 00:16:50,862 I was too scared to undo my seatbelt at that stage 242 00:16:50,965 --> 00:16:54,379 'cause I was waiting for the next bounce to go 243 00:16:54,482 --> 00:16:57,620 over another ravine or whatever was going to happen next. 244 00:17:05,068 --> 00:17:06,655 Miraculously, 245 00:17:06,758 --> 00:17:09,275 11-year-old Rika Matsuda has survived 246 00:17:09,379 --> 00:17:16,517 and is virtually unhurt, but her mother is trapped and injured. 247 00:17:19,793 --> 00:17:27,827 Momma, momma. Hello - Help! 248 00:17:27,931 --> 00:17:29,413 Barry Small is also injured 249 00:17:29,517 --> 00:17:32,206 and terrified that fire is sweeping through the plane. 250 00:17:32,310 --> 00:17:38,172 The fire started in the front 251 00:17:38,275 --> 00:17:41,068 and proceeded from the front to the back towards me. 252 00:17:42,586 --> 00:17:45,068 There was no floor light or anything like that 253 00:17:45,172 --> 00:17:46,655 but the fire was so intense 254 00:17:46,758 --> 00:17:48,482 there was no problems to see where I was going. 255 00:17:52,068 --> 00:17:55,000 Momma, momma. 256 00:18:07,310 --> 00:18:10,137 If help doesn't arrive soon, those who survived 257 00:18:10,241 --> 00:18:12,793 the initial crash may be trapped inside the cabin. 258 00:18:21,965 --> 00:18:26,655 Korean Air 801 heavy tower, how do you hear? 259 00:18:26,758 --> 00:18:28,689 Everyone in the cockpit has been killed. 260 00:18:29,965 --> 00:18:32,482 But airport authorities still have no idea what's 261 00:18:32,586 --> 00:18:33,896 happened aboard flight 801. 262 00:18:34,000 --> 00:18:44,034 Hurt by the crash and desperate to escape the ruined plane, 263 00:18:44,137 --> 00:18:47,000 Barry Small stumbles towards an opening in the cabin. 264 00:18:47,103 --> 00:18:51,241 I got back these six seats 265 00:18:51,344 --> 00:18:54,137 and then there was about a six foot drop down to the ground. 266 00:18:54,241 --> 00:18:55,793 The undercarriage had gone completely. 267 00:18:57,655 --> 00:19:02,344 I came across an obstacle that I had to cross because it 268 00:19:02,448 --> 00:19:03,793 was the only path that wasn't burning. 269 00:19:09,413 --> 00:19:12,137 Go! Get over it! 270 00:19:17,103 --> 00:19:22,241 Momma! Rika. 271 00:19:22,344 --> 00:19:23,137 Rika's mother tells her daughter 272 00:19:23,241 --> 00:19:24,620 to get out of the burning plane. 273 00:19:24,724 --> 00:19:34,689 Go. Go, go now. Get out of here! Go! Now go, go! 274 00:19:39,551 --> 00:19:46,965 You must go. Go! You must go. Go now! Go! 275 00:19:47,068 --> 00:19:49,344 The fire is spreading quickly. 276 00:19:49,448 --> 00:19:52,310 As passengers struggle to deal with the disaster, 277 00:19:52,413 --> 00:19:55,137 rescue workers don't even know the plane's gone down. 278 00:19:55,241 --> 00:20:17,137 The fire engulfed both the Asian gentleman 279 00:20:17,241 --> 00:20:23,758 and myself to the extent that it burnt my arms, and my watch got 280 00:20:23,862 --> 00:20:27,793 that hot it was melting into my flesh and I had to flick it off. 281 00:20:27,896 --> 00:20:31,793 Minutes earlier, Kurt Mayo had passed 282 00:20:31,896 --> 00:20:35,034 the passenger jet on to the local tower controllers. 283 00:20:35,137 --> 00:20:37,034 Now he learns that it hasn't landed yet. 284 00:20:38,620 --> 00:20:39,965 Approach Agana, did Korean Air 285 00:20:40,068 --> 00:20:41,931 come back to you? No. 286 00:20:42,034 --> 00:20:44,620 I cleared him to land and I don't know where he's at. 287 00:20:44,724 --> 00:20:46,655 He didn't land? 288 00:20:46,758 --> 00:20:55,068 Negative. Oh my god! 289 00:20:55,172 --> 00:20:58,379 Within minutes, 290 00:20:58,482 --> 00:21:01,034 Guam Fire Chief Chuck Sanchez is en route. 291 00:21:01,137 --> 00:21:07,241 I was thinking my god, the 747, where is it at? 292 00:21:07,344 --> 00:21:10,551 Is it on the island? Is it on sea? What is the plan here? 293 00:21:10,655 --> 00:21:33,379 We both fell off the side of the container 294 00:21:33,482 --> 00:21:35,862 and the Asian gentleman disappeared into the jungle. 295 00:21:36,896 --> 00:21:38,413 So I rolled over onto my back 296 00:21:39,758 --> 00:21:41,344 and I managed to crawl with my elbows. 297 00:21:41,448 --> 00:21:43,758 There was still a little bit of skin on my elbows left. 298 00:21:43,862 --> 00:21:47,137 Small has a badly broken right leg. 299 00:21:49,344 --> 00:21:51,827 He crawls away from the wreckage. 300 00:21:51,931 --> 00:21:54,310 Many more people remain trapped inside. 301 00:21:54,413 --> 00:22:01,620 Lying there, it just sounded like a battlefield. 302 00:22:01,724 --> 00:22:03,965 It was just like a movie. 303 00:22:04,068 --> 00:22:07,827 Things were exploding short of me, going over top of me. 304 00:22:10,344 --> 00:22:14,586 Things were landing beside us on fire. It was just indescribable. 305 00:22:19,413 --> 00:22:24,793 There is only one way for emergency 306 00:22:24,896 --> 00:22:28,103 crews to get down to the wreck site - along a single 307 00:22:28,206 --> 00:22:30,793 access road that runs beside Nimitz Hill. 308 00:22:33,103 --> 00:22:34,896 As they race to the accident scene, 309 00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:38,000 rescue workers discover a major obstacle. 310 00:22:38,103 --> 00:22:41,206 A pipeline has been ripped out of the ground by the crash 311 00:22:41,310 --> 00:22:43,068 and thrown across the road. 312 00:22:43,172 --> 00:22:44,310 There's no way around it. 313 00:22:46,620 --> 00:22:48,862 Having heard about the crash, the island's 314 00:22:48,965 --> 00:22:52,000 Governor, Carl Gutierrez, has joined the rescue team. 315 00:22:52,103 --> 00:22:55,344 Engine company 7, get this thing out of the way. 316 00:22:55,448 --> 00:22:57,000 You guys, get the medic kits and come with me. 317 00:22:57,103 --> 00:23:02,758 We reached the closest point of approach to the 318 00:23:02,862 --> 00:23:06,103 crash site which was up the hill and probably about another 319 00:23:06,206 --> 00:23:12,310 hundred and fifty yards downhill I go gentlemen, turn on whatever 320 00:23:12,413 --> 00:23:16,000 lights you got to guide us down this path and let's do it. 321 00:23:16,103 --> 00:23:25,724 We started running and just listening to the screams 322 00:23:25,827 --> 00:23:28,517 so that we could guide ourselves because there was just 323 00:23:28,620 --> 00:23:30,517 nothing but overgrowth on the side of the road. 324 00:23:30,620 --> 00:23:35,137 At one point I stopped him. 325 00:23:35,241 --> 00:23:37,379 I go governor sir, 326 00:23:37,482 --> 00:23:40,448 I need you to make some serious decisions in this operation. 327 00:23:40,551 --> 00:23:43,172 I don't think I want you to move further. 328 00:23:43,275 --> 00:23:45,517 I'd like for you to stay on this side and, you know, 329 00:23:45,620 --> 00:23:47,172 I don't want you to get hurt. 330 00:23:47,275 --> 00:23:51,000 Let us do this job and he goes no, I want to help you guys. 331 00:23:51,103 --> 00:23:55,896 At the site of the crash, 332 00:23:56,000 --> 00:23:57,827 flames are devouring the wreckage. 333 00:24:03,103 --> 00:24:04,862 Hampered by his broken leg, 334 00:24:04,965 --> 00:24:07,827 Small can only look on as people cry out for help. 335 00:24:07,931 --> 00:24:16,344 I lay on that bank for the whole night. 336 00:24:16,448 --> 00:24:19,965 During that time hearing people call out in a foreign 337 00:24:20,068 --> 00:24:25,206 language which initially sounded like good healthy 338 00:24:25,310 --> 00:24:28,965 calls for help, then turned to screams as the fire got 339 00:24:29,068 --> 00:24:34,448 more intense and after a period of time the fire even grew 340 00:24:34,551 --> 00:24:37,586 worse and the screams faded away. 341 00:24:37,689 --> 00:24:43,517 Finally, almost an hour after the accident, 342 00:24:43,620 --> 00:24:45,689 Sanchez's crew reaches the site. 343 00:24:45,793 --> 00:24:52,068 I split them up into two rescue and search units. 344 00:24:52,172 --> 00:24:54,965 I need half of you guys to start from the tail end 345 00:24:55,068 --> 00:24:56,827 and I need the other half to start from the front 346 00:24:56,931 --> 00:24:59,482 end of this plane and let's meet in the middle and, 347 00:24:59,586 --> 00:25:02,724 you know, let's do what we can to help the survivors. 348 00:25:02,827 --> 00:25:08,344 Momma! 349 00:25:08,448 --> 00:25:12,275 Guam's Governor Carl Gutierrez sees Rika Matsuda 350 00:25:12,379 --> 00:25:14,620 all alone and crying out for her mother. 351 00:25:14,724 --> 00:25:32,275 Don't cry little angel. Everything will be okay. 352 00:25:32,379 --> 00:25:34,103 I did not dare let her go. 353 00:25:34,206 --> 00:25:36,827 It's something that I almost, like there was a bond 354 00:25:36,931 --> 00:25:40,620 between me and that young little girl and I found out later she 355 00:25:40,724 --> 00:25:43,068 was eleven but she looked really smaller than eleven years old. 356 00:25:43,172 --> 00:25:47,965 Fire Chief Chuck Sanchez finds 357 00:25:48,068 --> 00:25:49,827 Barry Small in the sword grass. 358 00:25:49,931 --> 00:25:52,689 Take my jacket. 359 00:25:52,793 --> 00:25:54,137 He gave me his fire jacket and put it 360 00:25:54,241 --> 00:25:55,551 under my head to comfort me. 361 00:25:59,241 --> 00:26:01,793 Yeah go. I'm all right. Let's go. 362 00:26:01,896 --> 00:26:04,103 Later on he was very distressed that he 363 00:26:04,206 --> 00:26:06,862 had to come back and get it back 'cause he was getting burnt 364 00:26:06,965 --> 00:26:09,068 dragging people and bodies out of the aircraft. 365 00:26:09,172 --> 00:26:18,068 We were cutting trees to use for splints. 366 00:26:18,172 --> 00:26:20,482 We were taking off our protective gear 367 00:26:20,586 --> 00:26:22,413 to cover the survivors. 368 00:26:22,517 --> 00:26:39,034 It's clear to rescue personnel that for many 369 00:26:39,137 --> 00:26:41,275 they have arrived too late. 370 00:26:41,379 --> 00:26:43,379 But Sanchez isn't giving up. 371 00:26:43,482 --> 00:26:46,068 He sends a team to search further into the wreckage. 372 00:26:46,172 --> 00:26:48,724 Group two start at the tail and work forward. Go. 373 00:26:54,724 --> 00:26:57,241 What I heard was this large explosion right where 374 00:26:57,344 --> 00:27:05,965 they were at, and I go did we lose our people? 375 00:27:06,068 --> 00:27:15,172 A Boeing 747 has crashed on a rugged 376 00:27:15,275 --> 00:27:19,310 hillside in Guam just a few miles short of the airport. 377 00:27:19,413 --> 00:27:22,931 There were 2-hundred and 54 people on board. 378 00:27:23,034 --> 00:27:25,310 Rescue workers comb through the wreckage 379 00:27:25,413 --> 00:27:28,172 when an explosion rips through the remains of the plane. 380 00:27:33,275 --> 00:27:35,448 There was no radio transmission at all. 381 00:27:35,551 --> 00:27:39,862 We lost all transmission. Then finally somebody came out. 382 00:27:39,965 --> 00:27:43,103 Sir, we're okay. We survived the explosion. 383 00:27:43,206 --> 00:27:44,448 Everybody's accounted for. 384 00:27:44,551 --> 00:27:52,000 It's not until the dawn finally comes that 385 00:27:52,103 --> 00:27:54,724 rescue workers can see the extent of the damage. 386 00:27:58,310 --> 00:28:00,241 The plane has spilled down the mountain 387 00:28:00,344 --> 00:28:02,517 and broken into several large pieces. 388 00:28:04,827 --> 00:28:07,344 Only 26 people survive the disaster. 389 00:28:18,448 --> 00:28:21,137 Friends and family are desperate for any news. 390 00:28:26,689 --> 00:28:28,965 Many bodies are badly burned. 391 00:28:29,068 --> 00:28:32,551 Although most of the passengers are Korean, Sean Burke 392 00:28:32,655 --> 00:28:35,000 and his girlfriend Wendy Bunten are among a few 393 00:28:35,103 --> 00:28:36,241 Americans on the flight. 394 00:28:44,517 --> 00:28:46,379 Thousands of kilometers away, 395 00:28:46,482 --> 00:28:48,758 news of the crash reaches Sean's parents. 396 00:28:49,862 --> 00:28:51,896 When she hears about the crash, 397 00:28:52,000 --> 00:28:55,275 Sean Burke's stepmother doesn't know if Sean is alive or dead. 398 00:28:55,379 --> 00:28:58,965 He could have been burned in the crash. 399 00:28:59,068 --> 00:29:03,068 He could be unconscious in a local hospital there 400 00:29:03,172 --> 00:29:06,379 and we just wanted to go over and bring him back. 401 00:29:07,655 --> 00:29:18,103 So I mean 'cause that kept going through our minds, that he 402 00:29:18,206 --> 00:29:20,379 possibly could be laying on the hillside. 403 00:29:20,482 --> 00:29:40,793 Since Guam is an American territory, 404 00:29:40,896 --> 00:29:43,206 the responsibility for investigating the crash 405 00:29:43,310 --> 00:29:45,862 falls to the National Transportation Safety Board. 406 00:29:47,344 --> 00:29:49,551 Greg Feith is the lead investigator. 407 00:29:51,275 --> 00:29:54,206 When he arrives on the site, he has to contend with more 408 00:29:54,310 --> 00:29:56,137 than just the carnage of the plane crash. 409 00:30:01,448 --> 00:30:04,517 Grieving family members surround the scene, making it 410 00:30:04,620 --> 00:30:06,965 especially difficult for investigators to work. 411 00:30:07,068 --> 00:30:15,896 As an accident investigator you 412 00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:17,827 have to keep your emotions in check. 413 00:30:17,931 --> 00:30:20,827 It's like being a doctor in an ER room. 414 00:30:20,931 --> 00:30:22,896 You have, you see this devastation, 415 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:26,448 you see this tragedy unfolding in front of you. 416 00:30:26,551 --> 00:30:30,344 You hear about all of the sad stories, especially 417 00:30:30,448 --> 00:30:33,551 when there are kids and innocent people involved 418 00:30:33,655 --> 00:30:36,103 and as an accident investigator you have to keep those 419 00:30:36,206 --> 00:30:39,034 emotions in check because you have to remain objective. 420 00:30:39,137 --> 00:30:41,206 You have to remain emotionless 421 00:30:41,310 --> 00:30:43,482 to be able to do your job effectively. 422 00:30:43,586 --> 00:30:45,862 And we had a whole building 423 00:30:45,965 --> 00:30:48,241 full of people just like us. 424 00:30:48,344 --> 00:30:50,448 They were all grieving and crying out. 425 00:30:50,551 --> 00:30:52,724 It was just horrible. 426 00:30:52,827 --> 00:31:10,758 One of the first things we did was we went out on site 427 00:31:10,862 --> 00:31:12,482 and we did what we call a site survey. 428 00:31:12,586 --> 00:31:15,034 We had to really get an understanding of what 429 00:31:15,137 --> 00:31:17,000 we were dealing with as far as the wreckage 430 00:31:17,103 --> 00:31:19,517 and how we were going to conduct the on-scene investigation. 431 00:31:19,620 --> 00:31:24,758 During the preliminary investigation, Feith finds 432 00:31:24,862 --> 00:31:28,172 that large sections of the plane are almost completely intact. 433 00:31:28,275 --> 00:31:33,827 The airplane landed relatively under control. 434 00:31:33,931 --> 00:31:36,310 That is that the pilot basically landed 435 00:31:36,413 --> 00:31:39,931 the airplane into the trees and into that terrain. 436 00:31:40,034 --> 00:31:42,103 Unfortunately, it was three miles from the airport. 437 00:31:42,206 --> 00:31:45,241 Investigators find a number of items that 438 00:31:45,344 --> 00:31:48,379 survived the crash and the fire that followed. 439 00:31:48,482 --> 00:31:51,034 Including the landing chart the crew was using as it 440 00:31:51,137 --> 00:31:53,000 approached Guam airport. 441 00:31:53,103 --> 00:31:56,448 Investigators also find Captain Park's travel bag, 442 00:31:56,551 --> 00:32:00,275 and in it discover a small plastic pill container. 443 00:32:00,379 --> 00:32:03,448 Captain Park had been prescribed a variety of drugs 444 00:32:03,551 --> 00:32:06,482 including pills containing Benzodiazepine, 445 00:32:06,586 --> 00:32:09,413 a class of drugs often used as a sedative. 446 00:32:09,517 --> 00:32:11,965 The pills and tissue samples from Captain Park's 447 00:32:12,068 --> 00:32:14,896 remains are sent for analysis. 448 00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:18,206 The landing chart becomes part of a growing pile of evidence. 449 00:32:20,689 --> 00:32:23,965 Using information from the jet's flight data recorder, 450 00:32:24,068 --> 00:32:27,689 investigators recreate the plane's flight path. 451 00:32:27,793 --> 00:32:30,413 The relatively gentle slope of its descent supports 452 00:32:30,517 --> 00:32:34,000 Feith's belief that the jet all but landed on the hillside. 453 00:32:35,034 --> 00:32:37,137 But the flight path shouldn't look like this. 454 00:32:37,241 --> 00:32:45,206 Korean Air 801 cleared for ILS runway six left approach. 455 00:32:45,310 --> 00:32:49,137 Glide slope unusable. Korean 801 roger. 456 00:32:49,241 --> 00:32:51,517 Cleared for ILS runway six left. 457 00:32:51,620 --> 00:32:54,034 The crew had been told that the glide 458 00:32:54,137 --> 00:32:56,689 slope at the airport wasn't working. 459 00:32:56,793 --> 00:32:58,896 It meant that the captain had to take more manual 460 00:32:59,000 --> 00:33:00,103 control of his plane. 461 00:33:00,206 --> 00:33:04,793 It's now up to the pilot to fly an established 462 00:33:04,896 --> 00:33:07,034 procedure called a step-down where 463 00:33:07,137 --> 00:33:10,896 he starts at an altitude of say two thousand feet. 464 00:33:11,000 --> 00:33:15,034 When he gets to a particular point located by what 465 00:33:15,137 --> 00:33:17,724 they call DME or Distance Measuring Equipment, 466 00:33:17,827 --> 00:33:21,620 he then starts a descent to another prescribed altitude. 467 00:33:21,724 --> 00:33:25,413 If the crew was following the step-down 468 00:33:25,517 --> 00:33:29,758 procedure, its flight path would resemble a set of stairs. 469 00:33:29,862 --> 00:33:31,310 But after the first step, 470 00:33:31,413 --> 00:33:33,586 the plane enters a long slow descent. 471 00:33:33,689 --> 00:33:38,206 If you don't hit those step-downs, and those 472 00:33:38,310 --> 00:33:41,413 altitudes are prescribed to give you terrain clearance, 473 00:33:41,517 --> 00:33:45,241 if you don't fly that as depicted on the approach chart, 474 00:33:45,344 --> 00:33:49,344 you run the risk of flying into an obstruction or high terrain. 475 00:33:49,448 --> 00:33:54,137 The plane's cockpit voice recorder has also 476 00:33:54,241 --> 00:33:56,448 been recovered from the debris. 477 00:33:56,551 --> 00:33:58,862 Feith and his team begin to analyze it, 478 00:33:58,965 --> 00:34:01,655 hoping to better understand what happened in the cockpit. 479 00:34:01,758 --> 00:34:08,482 Set five hundred sixty feet. 480 00:34:08,586 --> 00:34:10,896 On two separate occasions, Captain Park 481 00:34:11,000 --> 00:34:14,034 gave orders to descend long before he was supposed to. 482 00:34:15,310 --> 00:34:17,172 But there are other clues on the tape as well. 483 00:34:17,275 --> 00:34:19,758 The cockpit voice recorder provided us, 484 00:34:19,862 --> 00:34:21,862 the investigators, quite a bit of information. 485 00:34:23,241 --> 00:34:25,689 One of the key elements that we found was that the flight 486 00:34:25,793 --> 00:34:27,517 crew appeared to be tired. 487 00:34:27,620 --> 00:34:28,689 Very sleepy. 488 00:34:28,793 --> 00:34:31,896 This was a chartered flight so it would have 489 00:34:32,000 --> 00:34:35,034 put them on what we call back side of the clock flying. 490 00:34:35,137 --> 00:34:37,620 That is, they would be normally flying during the day. 491 00:34:37,724 --> 00:34:41,310 They are now flying at night and typically your body says 492 00:34:41,413 --> 00:34:43,206 you should be asleep when it's dark outside. 493 00:34:43,310 --> 00:34:45,827 The sedatives could have made 494 00:34:45,931 --> 00:34:48,758 a difficult situation even worse, 495 00:34:48,862 --> 00:34:52,448 but when the lab results come back they're conclusive. 496 00:34:52,551 --> 00:34:54,413 While he had the pills with him, 497 00:34:54,517 --> 00:34:57,000 there are no traces of them in Captain Park's system. 498 00:34:59,379 --> 00:35:01,137 When lead investigator Greg Feith 499 00:35:01,241 --> 00:35:03,310 returns to the cockpit voice recorder, 500 00:35:03,413 --> 00:35:06,344 he focuses on the captain's discussion of the glide slope. 501 00:35:06,448 --> 00:35:10,172 Is the glide slope working? The glide slope? 502 00:35:10,275 --> 00:35:14,896 Yes. Yes it's working. Why is it working? 503 00:35:15,000 --> 00:35:24,275 He started to see the glide slope needle move a little 504 00:35:24,379 --> 00:35:27,000 bit and started to question the other crew members as to 505 00:35:27,103 --> 00:35:29,793 whether or not the glide slope was actually working or not. 506 00:35:29,896 --> 00:35:33,310 It's early in the morning. 507 00:35:33,413 --> 00:35:36,448 After a long flight Captain Park is tired. 508 00:35:36,551 --> 00:35:38,413 Perhaps confused and distracted 509 00:35:38,517 --> 00:35:40,862 by the unexpected readings on his glide slope. 510 00:35:40,965 --> 00:35:44,275 It became very apparent listening to the cockpit 511 00:35:44,379 --> 00:35:47,413 voice recorder that in fact he got fixated. 512 00:35:47,517 --> 00:35:50,206 But Feith still doesn't understand why 513 00:35:50,310 --> 00:35:53,137 Park's glide slope appeared to be working. 514 00:35:53,241 --> 00:35:56,310 Was there a problem on this plane, or is the equipment 515 00:35:56,413 --> 00:35:59,482 susceptible to problems that could affect other jets as well? 516 00:36:01,724 --> 00:36:03,068 To find out, he brings in 517 00:36:03,172 --> 00:36:04,862 navigation expert Nelson Spohnheimer. 518 00:36:04,965 --> 00:36:10,862 I spent some time looking at the transcript 519 00:36:10,965 --> 00:36:14,068 trying to determine what the navigation issues were, 520 00:36:14,172 --> 00:36:18,655 why a good airplane was in the wrong place and to investigate 521 00:36:18,758 --> 00:36:24,034 the apparent confusion on the part of the crew who thought 522 00:36:24,137 --> 00:36:28,172 that the glide slope was working at least part of the time. 523 00:36:28,275 --> 00:36:32,034 Spohnheimer sends a team of investigators to Guam. 524 00:36:32,137 --> 00:36:35,206 They fly over the island trying to determine whether radio 525 00:36:35,310 --> 00:36:38,241 signals from a nearby military base could have acted on 526 00:36:38,344 --> 00:36:41,724 the plane, making it seem like the glide slope was working. 527 00:36:41,827 --> 00:36:45,655 Glide slope receivers can respond to non glide 528 00:36:45,758 --> 00:36:46,862 slope signals, particularly 529 00:36:46,965 --> 00:36:50,068 when the intended glide slope signal is absent. 530 00:36:50,172 --> 00:36:53,137 If there are spurious signals on the channel 531 00:36:53,241 --> 00:36:56,827 and they contain the right information, they can cause 532 00:36:56,931 --> 00:36:58,965 intermittent movements of the glide slope needle. 533 00:36:59,068 --> 00:37:02,620 Set five hundred sixty feet. 534 00:37:02,724 --> 00:37:05,310 But the signals wouldn't be sustained. 535 00:37:05,413 --> 00:37:07,965 Like a light switch turning quickly on and off, 536 00:37:08,068 --> 00:37:10,379 the glide slope indicator would give periodic 537 00:37:10,482 --> 00:37:13,034 indications that it was working, but not for long. 538 00:37:13,137 --> 00:37:17,000 My conclusion was that spurious signals, 539 00:37:18,206 --> 00:37:24,965 whether they be from other transmitters or failed 540 00:37:25,068 --> 00:37:27,413 ground equipment such as personal walkie-talkies 541 00:37:27,517 --> 00:37:30,896 could not cause a sustained warning flag movement. 542 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:34,517 If the glide slope was not fully operating, 543 00:37:34,620 --> 00:37:36,586 why did Park believe it was? 544 00:37:36,689 --> 00:37:38,482 And even if he did believe it was working, 545 00:37:38,586 --> 00:37:40,344 why did he crash into Nimitz Hill? 546 00:37:40,448 --> 00:37:42,758 Isn't the glide slope working? Wiper on. 547 00:37:42,862 --> 00:37:47,862 As investigators continue to try to piece 548 00:37:47,965 --> 00:37:51,724 together the causes of the crash, Barry Small is 549 00:37:51,827 --> 00:37:55,206 trying to understand why he and 25 others survived. 550 00:37:56,862 --> 00:37:59,137 I went to touch my shoes, we hit the ground 551 00:37:59,241 --> 00:38:01,758 and I was accidentally in the perfect crash 552 00:38:01,862 --> 00:38:05,862 position by some sort of miracle. 553 00:38:05,965 --> 00:38:08,655 An airline engineering apprentice 554 00:38:08,758 --> 00:38:11,862 and helicopter pilot, Small understands airplanes. 555 00:38:11,965 --> 00:38:16,965 I do firmly believe there are some changes that could 556 00:38:17,068 --> 00:38:18,137 be made to the aircraft. 557 00:38:18,241 --> 00:38:21,206 Small believes that the way crossbars are built 558 00:38:21,310 --> 00:38:24,862 into aircraft seats caused one of his legs to break. 559 00:38:24,965 --> 00:38:26,517 But luck saved his other leg. 560 00:38:26,620 --> 00:38:30,103 My right leg went forward and crashed into the bar 561 00:38:30,206 --> 00:38:34,689 in front of the seat and broke and my left leg was saved 562 00:38:34,793 --> 00:38:38,241 by my carry-on bag stopping my leg going forward into that bar. 563 00:38:38,344 --> 00:38:42,586 Still able to walk on his one good leg, 564 00:38:42,689 --> 00:38:45,965 Small escapes while others remain trapped inside. 565 00:38:53,310 --> 00:38:54,275 Since she's young, 566 00:38:54,379 --> 00:38:57,551 Rika Matsuda's legs are shorter than a normal adult. 567 00:38:57,655 --> 00:38:59,000 Sitting normally, her legs 568 00:38:59,103 --> 00:39:00,793 wouldn't have been pressed against the crossbar 569 00:39:00,896 --> 00:39:03,724 on impact, so she was able to escape the plane. 570 00:39:03,827 --> 00:39:06,310 Go, go now. Get out of here! 571 00:39:06,413 --> 00:39:07,413 While her mother died. 572 00:39:11,103 --> 00:39:14,000 Small is also convinced that the flames that first spread 573 00:39:14,103 --> 00:39:17,310 through the cabin of Korean Air Flight 801 were preventable. 574 00:39:17,413 --> 00:39:23,482 They estimate that those top lockers had over four 575 00:39:23,586 --> 00:39:27,655 hundred and sixty-two litres of burnable alcohol on board. 576 00:39:27,758 --> 00:39:29,448 Had the plane been full, 577 00:39:29,551 --> 00:39:31,517 it could be at least twice that amount. 578 00:39:31,620 --> 00:39:34,655 During the crash, Small believes that the 579 00:39:34,758 --> 00:39:38,862 duty-free alcohol mixed with oxygen in the plane's ceiling. 580 00:39:38,965 --> 00:39:42,310 The combination ignited with deadly results. 581 00:39:42,413 --> 00:39:44,620 It's a fire he thinks could have been prevented. 582 00:39:44,724 --> 00:39:53,896 Why have this risk, alcohol and oxygen? 583 00:39:54,000 --> 00:39:58,724 I thought, you know, for aircraft is about safety 584 00:39:58,827 --> 00:40:03,103 and this is just a blatant breaking of the rules 585 00:40:03,206 --> 00:40:04,655 of safety as far as I'm concerned. 586 00:40:04,758 --> 00:40:08,724 As he continues to recover from the accident, 587 00:40:08,827 --> 00:40:11,689 Small is determined to prevent what had happened to him 588 00:40:11,793 --> 00:40:13,758 from happening to others. 589 00:40:13,862 --> 00:40:17,172 He decides to push for changes on how seats are made, 590 00:40:17,275 --> 00:40:19,206 and how duty-free alcohol is stored. 591 00:40:23,275 --> 00:40:25,931 For NTSB investigator Greg Feith, 592 00:40:26,034 --> 00:40:28,448 the biggest question still remains. 593 00:40:28,551 --> 00:40:30,793 How did an experienced pilot, 594 00:40:30,896 --> 00:40:34,275 one recently honoured by his company for his safety record, 595 00:40:34,379 --> 00:40:37,413 crash his plane 5-kilometers short of the airport? 596 00:40:43,793 --> 00:40:45,827 As the investigation continues, 597 00:40:45,931 --> 00:40:48,586 he discovers that the landing chart the crew was using 598 00:40:48,689 --> 00:40:51,275 was more than six months old and out of date. 599 00:40:54,344 --> 00:40:56,482 It's an indication that the crew could have been better 600 00:40:56,586 --> 00:40:57,827 prepared for the landing. 601 00:41:07,482 --> 00:41:08,620 When he reviews the training 602 00:41:08,724 --> 00:41:11,896 practices for Korean Airlines, Feith uncovers more 603 00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:14,172 gaps in the information that the crew received. 604 00:41:14,275 --> 00:41:18,517 We found that the Korean Airlines flight crew had 605 00:41:18,620 --> 00:41:21,758 all of their training based on airports with approaches 606 00:41:21,862 --> 00:41:26,379 where the DME was always co-located at the airport. 607 00:41:26,482 --> 00:41:29,724 DME is distance measuring equipment, 608 00:41:29,827 --> 00:41:31,896 electronic beacons that tell pilots where 609 00:41:32,000 --> 00:41:34,896 they are in relation to the airport. 610 00:41:35,000 --> 00:41:37,931 Often the final beacon is found at the foot of the runway. 611 00:41:39,758 --> 00:41:42,034 That was not the case in Guam. 612 00:41:42,137 --> 00:41:45,206 The airport was in fact 5-kilometers further on. 613 00:41:45,310 --> 00:41:48,172 Two hundred. 614 00:41:48,275 --> 00:41:50,655 Struggling to see through the rain Park was 615 00:41:50,758 --> 00:41:53,172 unable to find the airport. 616 00:41:53,275 --> 00:41:56,689 Distracted by the unexpected glide slope reading Park 617 00:41:56,793 --> 00:42:00,172 used the final beacon as a guide expecting it to take him 618 00:42:00,275 --> 00:42:01,482 right to the runway. 619 00:42:01,586 --> 00:42:03,000 Let's make a missed approach. 620 00:42:04,793 --> 00:42:07,137 Not in sight. 621 00:42:07,241 --> 00:42:08,034 Not in sight. Missed approach. 622 00:42:08,137 --> 00:42:11,310 Go around. 623 00:42:11,413 --> 00:42:18,379 Go around. Flaps! Flaps. 624 00:42:18,482 --> 00:42:20,724 It's clear that flight 801 flew 625 00:42:20,827 --> 00:42:24,310 an approach about three miles premature. 626 00:42:24,413 --> 00:42:27,310 In other words, the descent was about three miles early. 627 00:42:27,413 --> 00:42:29,000 It was a normal approach otherwise, 628 00:42:29,103 --> 00:42:30,586 just to the wrong location. 629 00:42:30,689 --> 00:42:33,034 We think that based on fatigue 630 00:42:33,137 --> 00:42:36,379 and some of their training, that in fact 631 00:42:36,482 --> 00:42:39,068 when the flight crew crashed the airplane, when the counter 632 00:42:39,172 --> 00:42:42,551 got to zero they thought the airport should be there. 633 00:42:42,655 --> 00:42:45,965 A fully loaded 747 weighs 634 00:42:46,068 --> 00:42:48,965 more than 200-thousand kilograms. 635 00:42:49,068 --> 00:42:52,413 Like an enormous ocean liner, it can't change course quickly. 636 00:42:52,517 --> 00:42:58,000 One hundred. Fifty. Forty. 637 00:42:58,103 --> 00:43:01,034 Blinded by rain and relying on their equipment, 638 00:43:01,137 --> 00:43:03,689 the crew of Korean Air flight 801 thought 639 00:43:03,793 --> 00:43:05,310 they were heading straight at the runway. 640 00:43:07,896 --> 00:43:12,620 When they realized something was wrong, it was too late. 641 00:43:16,758 --> 00:43:18,931 As the investigation continues, 642 00:43:19,034 --> 00:43:22,758 Feith and his team make a startling discovery. 643 00:43:22,862 --> 00:43:26,448 Equipment that would have given the crew more time to react 644 00:43:26,551 --> 00:43:29,620 had been disabled... on purpose. 645 00:43:34,517 --> 00:43:39,379 In August of 1997, the crash of Korean Air flight 801 took 646 00:43:39,482 --> 00:43:41,413 the lives of more than 200 people. 647 00:43:48,379 --> 00:43:51,172 The final accident investigation report is published 648 00:43:51,275 --> 00:43:54,241 more than two years after the crash. 649 00:43:54,344 --> 00:43:57,793 It lays blame on the Korean Airlines' training methods, 650 00:43:57,896 --> 00:44:01,896 and the crew's over-reliance on the jet's automation. 651 00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:05,310 But it also has sharp words reserved for the FAA, 652 00:44:05,413 --> 00:44:08,172 the body that regulates air travel in the United States. 653 00:44:13,172 --> 00:44:16,931 Because of an FAA decision, a critical piece of technology 654 00:44:17,034 --> 00:44:20,758 that could have saved flight 801 was intentionally disabled. 655 00:44:25,344 --> 00:44:29,655 The Minimum Safe Altitude Warning System, or M-SAW, 656 00:44:29,758 --> 00:44:33,965 is a standard piece of equipment at major American airports. 657 00:44:34,068 --> 00:44:36,931 But in Guam, the FAA had made a critical 658 00:44:37,034 --> 00:44:38,827 alteration to the way it was used. 659 00:44:41,517 --> 00:44:43,965 M-SAW uses radar to watch the planes 660 00:44:44,068 --> 00:44:45,896 as they come into the airport. 661 00:44:46,000 --> 00:44:48,896 If they're too low, a warning is given to air traffic 662 00:44:49,000 --> 00:44:52,448 controllers, who can then relay it to the crew. 663 00:44:52,551 --> 00:44:54,586 But in Guam, the system kept giving 664 00:44:54,689 --> 00:44:56,206 nuisance readings to controllers. 665 00:44:56,310 --> 00:45:02,034 The controllers kept getting these nuisance warnings. 666 00:45:02,137 --> 00:45:03,655 They redesigned the software 667 00:45:03,758 --> 00:45:07,793 and moved the limitations of the MSAW further away from the 668 00:45:07,896 --> 00:45:10,896 airport where it afforded no one a level of protection. 669 00:45:11,000 --> 00:45:14,275 Instead of watching the planes as they neared 670 00:45:14,379 --> 00:45:17,620 the airport, the system in Guam now tracked them when they 671 00:45:17,724 --> 00:45:20,724 were more than 80-kilometers away, over the ocean. 672 00:45:20,827 --> 00:45:24,586 I think the best way to describe that would have 673 00:45:24,689 --> 00:45:27,551 been and should be irresponsible 674 00:45:27,655 --> 00:45:31,448 because you've taken this system that was designed 675 00:45:31,551 --> 00:45:34,448 as a level of protection not only for the controller 676 00:45:34,551 --> 00:45:37,103 but you've taken the protection away from the flying public. 677 00:45:37,206 --> 00:45:41,793 For the passengers and crew of flight 801, 678 00:45:41,896 --> 00:45:45,586 the lack of the MSAW system sealed their fate. 679 00:45:45,689 --> 00:45:47,172 If the system had been working, 680 00:45:47,275 --> 00:45:49,827 the crash could have been avoided. 681 00:45:49,931 --> 00:45:52,586 Without it, the crew had no warning at all. 682 00:45:52,689 --> 00:46:02,586 The two pilots didn't want to die. They had families. 683 00:46:02,689 --> 00:46:08,000 No one wanted to die. We still do not blame them. 684 00:46:08,103 --> 00:46:12,206 I guess the bottom line is 685 00:46:12,310 --> 00:46:14,965 nobody wanted to be in that situation. 686 00:46:15,068 --> 00:46:17,413 It was just something that happened. 687 00:46:17,517 --> 00:46:21,413 For Barry Small, the years since the crash 688 00:46:21,517 --> 00:46:25,517 of flight 801 have been emotional and frustrating. 689 00:46:25,620 --> 00:46:29,137 The Civil Aviation Authority in his homeland of New Zealand 690 00:46:29,241 --> 00:46:30,965 has acknowledged the potential danger 691 00:46:31,068 --> 00:46:33,862 posed by duty free liquor on board. 692 00:46:33,965 --> 00:46:36,413 But so far, no policies have been changed. 693 00:46:38,379 --> 00:46:40,931 His desire to modify airplane seat design 694 00:46:41,034 --> 00:46:42,310 has also been ignored. 695 00:46:42,413 --> 00:46:47,310 I have taken several steps to put this idea 696 00:46:47,413 --> 00:46:52,103 forward and in a lot of cases it's initially 697 00:46:52,206 --> 00:46:56,034 met with enthusiasm but it eventually 698 00:46:56,137 --> 00:47:01,172 ends up in the too hard basket and when I try to approach 699 00:47:01,275 --> 00:47:04,551 seat design people there's no one wants to hear about it. 700 00:47:04,655 --> 00:47:11,517 Sean Burke was never officially 701 00:47:11,620 --> 00:47:13,655 identified as a victim of flight 801. 702 00:47:15,379 --> 00:47:19,655 Wendy Bunten was positively identified but DNA samples 703 00:47:19,758 --> 00:47:22,862 only proved that a white male was on the plane near her. 704 00:47:22,965 --> 00:47:27,931 Bill and I never gave up hope 705 00:47:28,034 --> 00:47:30,310 that Sean had survived the crash. 706 00:47:31,896 --> 00:47:36,379 Even after we came home for I would say a year or two, 707 00:47:36,482 --> 00:47:38,172 every time the phone rang, 708 00:47:38,275 --> 00:47:41,137 every time somebody knocked on the door 709 00:47:41,241 --> 00:47:45,241 we expected a phone message saying hi dad, 710 00:47:45,344 --> 00:47:46,931 this is your son Sean. 711 00:47:47,034 --> 00:47:51,758 Eventually, several years after the crash, 712 00:47:51,862 --> 00:47:54,689 Barry Small was able to give Kathy Burke and her husband 713 00:47:54,793 --> 00:47:58,517 some sense of finality and an enduring image of their son. 714 00:47:58,620 --> 00:48:00,862 When we met him 715 00:48:00,965 --> 00:48:05,517 and he wanted to tell us that in the twelve hour layover 716 00:48:05,620 --> 00:48:09,965 in Seoul he was wandering around and finally heard two people 717 00:48:10,068 --> 00:48:13,896 speaking English and he said they were so much 718 00:48:14,000 --> 00:48:18,068 in love that he did not want to interrupt their conversation. 719 00:48:18,172 --> 00:48:21,896 For Sean's father, 720 00:48:22,000 --> 00:48:25,000 the deep sorrow of the crash will never completely leave. 721 00:48:25,103 --> 00:48:31,000 For me, the grief of Sean's loss never ends. 722 00:48:31,103 --> 00:48:35,034 Hasn't gotten better. Hasn't gotten worse. Just another day. 723 00:48:35,137 --> 00:48:41,137 Ah for everybody else it's gone. 724 00:48:41,241 --> 00:48:48,758 I expect people to move on but I'll be this way till 725 00:48:48,862 --> 00:48:50,413 the day I'm with him again. 726 00:48:50,517 --> 00:49:03,275 For Barry Small there is anger too, 727 00:49:03,379 --> 00:49:05,862 but also incredible gratitude for surviving. 728 00:49:05,965 --> 00:49:13,310 So many people have told me that I survived for a reason. 729 00:49:13,413 --> 00:49:16,689 I've been searching for that reason for nine years now 730 00:49:16,793 --> 00:49:20,448 and I truly believe 731 00:49:20,551 --> 00:49:24,000 if someone would listen to my story about the oxygen and 732 00:49:24,103 --> 00:49:30,206 alcohol and the improvement of the seats that I could justify 733 00:49:30,310 --> 00:49:32,793 in my own mind that I don't need to feel guilty about surviving.