1
00:00:03,034 --> 00:00:06,000
Thirty-five-thousand feet
above the Sea of Japan...
2
00:00:12,862 --> 00:00:15,655
Korean Air 007,
unreadable, unreadable.
3
00:00:16,482 --> 00:00:19,758
We are experiencing
rapid decompression.
Descend to 10,000.
4
00:00:21,448 --> 00:00:23,793
...the pilots have lost control
of their plane.
5
00:00:23,862 --> 00:00:26,137
Speed brake is coming out.
6
00:00:26,206 --> 00:00:31,241
A 747 with 269 people on board
plunges towards the sea.
7
00:00:32,793 --> 00:00:35,310
Within hours,
the story began circulating
in Washington
8
00:00:35,379 --> 00:00:38,206
that the Soviets
had been involved.
9
00:00:39,000 --> 00:00:42,413
This shocking
incident escalates tension
between two bitter rivals.
10
00:00:43,965 --> 00:00:47,068
The investigation is mired
in secrecy and deception.
11
00:00:49,206 --> 00:00:53,068
It's up to investigators
to find the answer...
12
00:00:53,137 --> 00:00:56,310
before the crash
of a passenger jet
leads to an all-out war.
13
00:01:03,206 --> 00:01:05,275
Mayday, mayday.
14
00:01:47,931 --> 00:01:49,379
Emergency descent.
15
00:01:49,448 --> 00:01:51,793
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the headband.
16
00:01:51,862 --> 00:01:53,206
Emergency descent.
17
00:01:54,241 --> 00:01:57,862
Emergency descent.
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the headband.
18
00:02:13,586 --> 00:02:17,206
Emergency descent.
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the headband.
19
00:02:18,310 --> 00:02:19,793
Emergency descent.
20
00:02:19,862 --> 00:02:23,172
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the headband.
21
00:02:27,586 --> 00:02:31,586
It's just after 2:00
in the morning
aboard KAL Flight 007.
22
00:02:33,517 --> 00:02:36,103
Korean Air 007
positioned over NIPPI.
23
00:02:36,172 --> 00:02:40,137
Estimating NOKKA 1826132.0.
24
00:02:43,551 --> 00:02:46,000
After a brief layover
in Anchorage,
25
00:02:46,068 --> 00:02:49,275
a Korean Airlines 747
is on its way to Seoul.
26
00:02:49,689 --> 00:02:53,862
The marathon flight originated
in New York 13 hours ago.
27
00:02:56,137 --> 00:03:01,000
Captain Chun Byung-in
has nearly 11 years' experience
flying for Korean Airlines.
28
00:03:03,172 --> 00:03:06,000
Before that, he served 10 years
in the Korean Air Force.
29
00:03:08,620 --> 00:03:13,000
This leg of the flight
is a 6,100-kilometre journey
over the North Pacific.
30
00:03:14,862 --> 00:03:18,310
Once the plane is in the air,
there is very little
for the pilots to do.
31
00:03:20,655 --> 00:03:24,448
Ladies and gentlemen,
we'll soon be serving breakfast
before we land in Kimpo,
32
00:03:24,517 --> 00:03:27,103
which will be
in about three hours.
33
00:03:32,517 --> 00:03:35,275
Many of the passengers
plan to take connecting flights
34
00:03:35,344 --> 00:03:37,620
to other destinations
after landing in Seoul.
35
00:03:41,758 --> 00:03:45,344
Mary Jane Hendrie
is heading to Japan
to start a new life.
36
00:03:48,000 --> 00:03:49,931
My sister Mary Jane
found a job,
37
00:03:50,000 --> 00:03:52,517
and she'd gotten hired
by this car company.
38
00:03:53,034 --> 00:03:57,448
She was exactly the kind
of person that they needed
for their company in Tokyo.
39
00:03:58,068 --> 00:04:01,689
So she was leaving to embark
on this new stage of her career.
40
00:04:07,448 --> 00:04:10,827
Just 15 minutes behind them
is the plane's sister flight,
41
00:04:10,896 --> 00:04:12,724
KAL 015.
42
00:04:14,241 --> 00:04:16,241
Korean Air 007.
43
00:04:18,689 --> 00:04:21,758
- Go ahead, Korean Air 015.
- What are you doing?
44
00:04:21,827 --> 00:04:24,793
The flight crews chat
to help pass the time.
45
00:04:29,482 --> 00:04:32,241
We're experiencing
an unexpectedly strong tailwind.
46
00:04:32,310 --> 00:04:34,172
How much of a tailwind?
47
00:04:34,241 --> 00:04:36,310
Thirty-five knots from 040.
48
00:04:42,137 --> 00:04:43,827
In an effort to conserve fuel,
49
00:04:43,896 --> 00:04:47,137
the crew decides to take
the plane to a higher altitude.
50
00:04:49,724 --> 00:04:52,137
Tokyo Centre, Korean Air 007.
51
00:04:54,206 --> 00:04:56,000
Korean Air 007, Tokyo.
52
00:04:57,034 --> 00:05:00,586
Korean Air 007.
Request climb 350.
53
00:05:01,620 --> 00:05:03,137
Roger. Stand by.
54
00:05:14,344 --> 00:05:18,551
Korean Air 007, climb,
and maintain flight level 350.
55
00:05:20,862 --> 00:05:26,000
Roger. Korean Air 007. Climb,
and maintain flight level 350.
56
00:05:38,137 --> 00:05:40,965
Then, without warning,
the plane is out of control.
57
00:05:42,275 --> 00:05:43,551
What happened?
58
00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:47,000
Retard throttles.
59
00:05:56,517 --> 00:05:57,965
Landing gear.
60
00:05:58,034 --> 00:05:59,413
Landing gear.
61
00:06:00,896 --> 00:06:04,931
The crew extends
the landing gear in an effort
to stop the plane from climbing.
62
00:06:06,206 --> 00:06:07,896
Altitude is going up.
63
00:06:08,586 --> 00:06:10,103
Altitude is going up!
64
00:06:10,827 --> 00:06:12,517
Altitude is going up!
65
00:06:13,551 --> 00:06:15,413
Speed brake is coming out.
66
00:06:16,034 --> 00:06:17,551
I can't descend.
67
00:06:18,862 --> 00:06:21,310
This isn't working.
This isn't working!
68
00:06:23,379 --> 00:06:25,000
Engines are normal, sir.
69
00:06:25,068 --> 00:06:28,206
- Captain?
- Is it rapid decompression?
70
00:06:37,034 --> 00:06:39,482
Tokyo Centre, Korean Air 007.
71
00:06:40,448 --> 00:06:42,448
Korean Air 007, Tokyo.
72
00:06:42,517 --> 00:06:45,206
We are experiencing
rapid decompression.
73
00:06:45,275 --> 00:06:46,965
Descend to 10,000.
74
00:06:49,206 --> 00:06:51,862
Korean Air 007,
unreadable, unreadable.
75
00:06:51,931 --> 00:06:53,862
Radio check on...
76
00:06:53,931 --> 00:06:55,862
10048.
77
00:06:56,517 --> 00:06:59,862
Stand by, stand by, stand by!
78
00:07:00,965 --> 00:07:03,103
...headband.
Emergency descent.
79
00:07:03,172 --> 00:07:05,655
Korean Air 007, Tokyo.
80
00:07:27,241 --> 00:07:29,896
Korean Airlines Flight 007
81
00:07:29,965 --> 00:07:32,896
and all 269 people on board
82
00:07:32,965 --> 00:07:34,482
have vanished.
83
00:07:35,689 --> 00:07:39,931
Korean Air 015,
would you attempt to contact
Korean Air 007, please,
84
00:07:40,000 --> 00:07:41,586
and relay position?
85
00:07:44,448 --> 00:07:47,103
All efforts to contact
the flight have failed.
86
00:07:48,758 --> 00:07:52,206
Tokyo makes calls
to other radar stations
in Japan and Korea.
87
00:07:53,689 --> 00:07:55,379
I cannot contact
Korean Air 007...
88
00:07:55,448 --> 00:07:58,758
A call is even made
to a radar facility
in the Soviet Union.
89
00:08:04,379 --> 00:08:07,379
Relatives nervously await news
of the missing flight.
90
00:08:10,413 --> 00:08:12,448
The company that Mary Jane
was going to work for,
91
00:08:12,517 --> 00:08:16,137
they apparently had phoned
and said Mary Jane's plane
hadn't arrived
92
00:08:16,206 --> 00:08:18,724
and that something had perhaps
gone wrong with the plane.
93
00:08:18,793 --> 00:08:21,103
But at that point,
we didn't really know anything.
94
00:08:23,448 --> 00:08:28,275
There was concern that it had
either been forced to land
or crashed, or within hours,
95
00:08:28,344 --> 00:08:33,000
the story began circulating
in Washington that the Soviets
had been involved.
96
00:08:35,517 --> 00:08:38,379
As the world waits
for news about the incident...
97
00:08:39,172 --> 00:08:42,793
...U.S. military officials
make a horrible discovery.
98
00:08:44,896 --> 00:08:46,827
At a top-secret
surveillance facility,
99
00:08:46,896 --> 00:08:49,379
they've been monitoring
Soviet transmissions.
100
00:08:50,000 --> 00:08:52,448
It appears the unthinkable
has happened.
101
00:08:55,068 --> 00:08:57,862
At the time
of the flight's disappearance,
102
00:08:57,931 --> 00:09:02,000
U.S. soldiers heard
what they thought was a routine
Soviet training mission.
103
00:09:14,241 --> 00:09:16,206
It doesn't seem possible
that the Soviets
104
00:09:16,275 --> 00:09:18,862
would actually shoot down
a passenger plane.
105
00:09:21,310 --> 00:09:23,482
But American officials
have little doubt.
106
00:09:24,310 --> 00:09:26,586
The next morning,
107
00:09:26,655 --> 00:09:30,137
U.S. Secretary of State
George Shultz delivers
an unusually blunt statement.
108
00:09:32,517 --> 00:09:35,551
The United States reacts
with revulsion to this attack.
109
00:09:36,862 --> 00:09:39,034
Loss of life
appears to be heavy.
110
00:09:40,068 --> 00:09:44,896
We can see no excuse whatsoever
for this appalling act.
111
00:09:44,965 --> 00:09:48,172
It couldn't be.
It just... it couldn't be.
112
00:09:48,241 --> 00:09:51,344
How could they all just perish?
What do you mean?
113
00:09:51,413 --> 00:09:53,103
There must've been a reason.
114
00:09:56,517 --> 00:09:59,758
1983 is the height
of the Cold War.
115
00:09:59,827 --> 00:10:03,896
Russia and much
of Eastern Europe are united
by communist ideology.
116
00:10:04,310 --> 00:10:06,172
Ruled with an iron fist,
117
00:10:06,241 --> 00:10:10,689
the Soviet Union is locked
in a bitter political struggle
with the West.
118
00:10:12,103 --> 00:10:15,827
Relations were bad,
but no one really knew how bad,
119
00:10:15,896 --> 00:10:17,448
how dangerously bad they were.
120
00:10:19,620 --> 00:10:21,137
Initially,
121
00:10:21,206 --> 00:10:24,137
Soviet officials
deny responsibility
for the KAL disaster.
122
00:10:25,103 --> 00:10:27,482
The story
that came out of Moscow
was that the plane appeared,
123
00:10:27,551 --> 00:10:30,827
we intercepted it,
tried to make it stop;
it didn't, it flew away.
124
00:10:31,413 --> 00:10:32,965
That was the first story.
125
00:10:33,034 --> 00:10:35,896
But soon,
they reverse course
and come clean.
126
00:10:37,344 --> 00:10:41,103
A Soviet fighter jet did,
in fact, shoot the plane down.
127
00:10:41,172 --> 00:10:43,620
But they insist
the attack was justified.
128
00:10:44,655 --> 00:10:48,413
The Soviet view was
that it was on a spy mission,
perhaps carrying instruments:
129
00:10:48,482 --> 00:10:51,206
cameras, recorders and so forth.
130
00:10:53,034 --> 00:10:57,655
The Soviet Union
claims Flight 007 entered
highly restricted airspace
131
00:10:57,724 --> 00:10:59,724
under orders
from the U.S. government.
132
00:11:03,551 --> 00:11:08,482
But the U.S. insists KAL 007
was a routine passenger flight.
133
00:11:09,827 --> 00:11:12,344
The dispute only heightens
political tension.
134
00:11:13,620 --> 00:11:15,931
In terms
of an actual shooting war,
135
00:11:16,000 --> 00:11:20,931
the... the closest points
that we may have come...
136
00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:25,310
were in that year,
both before and after,
when both sides -
137
00:11:25,379 --> 00:11:27,344
particularly the Soviet side,
though -
138
00:11:27,413 --> 00:11:29,137
was expecting an attack.
139
00:11:30,896 --> 00:11:35,034
The KAL disaster
would put NATO nuclear
disarmament talks in jeopardy.
140
00:11:36,827 --> 00:11:39,137
The Soviets
would ultimately walk away.
141
00:11:41,448 --> 00:11:44,482
The nuclear threat is growing.
Under such circumstances,
142
00:11:44,551 --> 00:11:47,206
the need for an impartial
enquiry is urgent.
143
00:11:47,620 --> 00:11:50,827
The UN calls
on the International Civil
Aviation Organization.
144
00:11:52,172 --> 00:11:55,620
ICAO offers a...
a neutral investigation,
145
00:11:55,689 --> 00:12:00,689
an investigation team
that can deal with all parties
involved in a neutral way.
146
00:12:03,758 --> 00:12:06,689
Caj Frostell joins
the international team
of investigators
147
00:12:06,758 --> 00:12:11,137
that will try to uncover
the truth behind the destruction
of Flight 007.
148
00:12:13,896 --> 00:12:15,862
With two superpowers
squaring off,
149
00:12:15,931 --> 00:12:18,482
they're under pressure
to find answers -
150
00:12:18,551 --> 00:12:20,137
and find them fast.
151
00:12:24,586 --> 00:12:29,482
KAL 007's flight plan
should've kept it well away
from Soviet airspace.
152
00:12:32,172 --> 00:12:35,206
Either it was shot down
over international waters,
153
00:12:35,275 --> 00:12:37,344
or the flight had strayed
off course.
154
00:12:38,862 --> 00:12:42,241
Figuring out which
is the first priority
for investigators.
155
00:12:43,068 --> 00:12:44,827
But they face a huge obstacle.
156
00:12:45,862 --> 00:12:48,689
The plane's black boxes
are still missing.
157
00:12:50,103 --> 00:12:53,827
The lack of flight recorders,
data recorder,
cockpit voice recorder,
158
00:12:53,896 --> 00:12:56,655
that's significant
in an investigation.
159
00:12:57,758 --> 00:13:01,034
The Americans
join forces with South Korea
and Japan
160
00:13:01,103 --> 00:13:03,551
in the search
for the crucial devices.
161
00:13:04,241 --> 00:13:07,275
But the three allied nations
are not the only ones searching.
162
00:13:09,689 --> 00:13:11,517
On September 1,
163
00:13:11,586 --> 00:13:14,965
we got an order
to go to the place
where the Boeing fell
164
00:13:15,034 --> 00:13:18,068
and take part in the search
for the Boeing 747.
165
00:13:20,068 --> 00:13:22,620
It's a race
to find the black boxes.
166
00:13:22,689 --> 00:13:25,034
The Americans know
they may never get the truth
167
00:13:25,103 --> 00:13:27,275
if the Soviets find
the boxes first.
168
00:13:29,655 --> 00:13:32,275
Each side accuses the other
of dirty tricks.
169
00:13:33,448 --> 00:13:38,000
The U.S. did formally complain
that the Soviets would either
sail across U.S. ships,
170
00:13:38,068 --> 00:13:40,379
that they would drop
false pingers
171
00:13:40,448 --> 00:13:44,137
to deflect listening devices
away from the true pinger.
172
00:13:45,689 --> 00:13:49,896
The Soviets claim
Flight 007 was flying
in Soviet airspace,
173
00:13:49,965 --> 00:13:52,275
over Sakhalin Island,
when they shot it down.
174
00:13:55,931 --> 00:13:57,586
If that's true,
175
00:13:57,655 --> 00:14:00,862
the aircraft was well outside
its designated
aerial corridor...
176
00:14:01,862 --> 00:14:03,689
...a route known as R-20.
177
00:14:05,965 --> 00:14:08,931
Across the North Pacific,
there are various routes
that are labelled.
178
00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,620
The R-20 was the one closest
to Soviet airspace.
179
00:14:11,689 --> 00:14:14,965
Red Route One
was a nickname for it.
It was the one closest.
180
00:14:15,862 --> 00:14:19,275
So it was known to be,
or should've been known to be,
181
00:14:19,344 --> 00:14:22,275
a route that you took
extra precautions on.
182
00:14:23,241 --> 00:14:25,482
Investigators get
their first hint
183
00:14:25,551 --> 00:14:29,034
that if the crew was flying
in restricted airspace,
they didn't know it.
184
00:14:31,551 --> 00:14:33,551
The coordinates
they were reporting...
185
00:14:34,206 --> 00:14:35,758
...put them on course.
186
00:14:36,482 --> 00:14:39,482
The Tokyo air-traffic controller
who last communicated
187
00:14:39,551 --> 00:14:43,482
with Flight 007
tells investigators
that all seemed normal.
188
00:14:47,000 --> 00:14:49,724
Korean Air 007
positioned over NIPPI.
189
00:14:49,793 --> 00:14:54,344
Estimating NOKKA 1826132.0.
190
00:14:54,413 --> 00:14:57,482
The crew reported
they were flying the R-20 route.
191
00:14:58,517 --> 00:15:01,551
But as with every other flight
over the Pacific,
192
00:15:01,620 --> 00:15:04,689
007 was beyond
Tokyo's radar range.
193
00:15:05,896 --> 00:15:09,413
The controller could only rely
on the pilots
to verify their position.
194
00:15:10,482 --> 00:15:13,000
Perhaps they were mistaken
about where they were.
195
00:15:14,034 --> 00:15:16,724
That possibility
becomes more likely
196
00:15:16,793 --> 00:15:20,517
when investigators talk
to the crew of the Korean
Airlines flight
197
00:15:20,586 --> 00:15:23,000
that was just minutes
behind Flight 007.
198
00:15:26,620 --> 00:15:29,068
Tell me about the exchange
with Flight 007.
199
00:15:29,655 --> 00:15:32,206
The captain
of the second flight
recounts an odd conversation
200
00:15:32,275 --> 00:15:34,275
with the 007 crew.
201
00:15:37,034 --> 00:15:39,724
We're experiencing
an unexpectedly strong tailwind.
202
00:15:39,793 --> 00:15:41,344
How much of a tailwind?
203
00:15:43,137 --> 00:15:45,137
Thirty-five knots from 040.
204
00:15:48,310 --> 00:15:50,413
We still have
a 15-knot headwind.
205
00:15:51,034 --> 00:15:53,793
Could he be getting a headwind
if he was here?
206
00:15:53,862 --> 00:15:56,000
It would be almost impossible
for one flight
207
00:15:56,068 --> 00:15:58,517
to have a tailwind
and the other a headwind.
208
00:15:59,896 --> 00:16:01,827
Something doesn't add up.
209
00:16:02,310 --> 00:16:03,862
But with the black box
still missing,
210
00:16:03,931 --> 00:16:06,137
investigators have no way
of knowing
211
00:16:06,206 --> 00:16:11,000
where KAL 007 actually was
at the time of that exchange.
212
00:16:13,344 --> 00:16:18,068
That made it very difficult
in the way that we...
213
00:16:18,137 --> 00:16:22,379
we had no... direct information
214
00:16:22,448 --> 00:16:25,827
that I would normally have
as an accident investigator.
215
00:16:27,103 --> 00:16:30,655
Frostell gets more information
from an unlikely source:
216
00:16:30,724 --> 00:16:32,241
the U.S. military.
217
00:16:35,379 --> 00:16:39,862
In a rare move, U.S. officials
share highly classified
surveillance data
218
00:16:39,931 --> 00:16:41,689
from the night of the shootdown.
219
00:16:48,896 --> 00:16:53,103
A top-secret technology
called "passive radar"
can track the movements
220
00:16:53,172 --> 00:16:56,586
of every military and civilian
plane around the globe.
221
00:16:58,827 --> 00:17:02,448
What it reveals about KAL 007
is stunning.
222
00:17:02,517 --> 00:17:04,517
The plane was way off course.
223
00:17:05,517 --> 00:17:08,344
For almost its entire journey
across the Pacific,
224
00:17:08,413 --> 00:17:10,137
the flight had been
drifting north.
225
00:17:11,689 --> 00:17:13,551
By the time it was shot down,
226
00:17:13,620 --> 00:17:17,000
Flight 007 was 560 kilometres
227
00:17:17,068 --> 00:17:21,241
or 350 miles north
of where it should've been,
228
00:17:21,310 --> 00:17:24,241
and had already flown in
and out of Soviet territory.
229
00:17:24,896 --> 00:17:26,896
The Soviets were telling
the truth.
230
00:17:28,620 --> 00:17:33,379
And then it becomes a question
of determining why
was it off course that much.
231
00:17:34,758 --> 00:17:36,344
To find the answer,
232
00:17:36,413 --> 00:17:38,172
investigators turn
their attention
233
00:17:38,241 --> 00:17:40,896
to the navigation system
on board the 747.
234
00:17:42,103 --> 00:17:44,034
It's called INS:
235
00:17:44,103 --> 00:17:46,103
the Inertial Navigation System.
236
00:17:47,689 --> 00:17:50,793
The INS that was used
on this airliner,
like most in that time period,
237
00:17:50,862 --> 00:17:54,620
had an accuracy
of about half a mile of drift
per hour.
238
00:17:54,689 --> 00:17:57,275
Very accurate. It would get you
where you wanted to be.
239
00:17:58,137 --> 00:18:00,275
The system relies
on coordinates,
240
00:18:00,344 --> 00:18:03,000
or waypoints, entered
into the flight controller.
241
00:18:05,344 --> 00:18:10,517
The way it works
is that there is nine waypoints
that you put in.
242
00:18:10,586 --> 00:18:12,413
That's the way you program it.
243
00:18:12,482 --> 00:18:13,896
59 degrees.
244
00:18:13,965 --> 00:18:15,413
18.0 north.
245
00:18:17,310 --> 00:18:20,206
Waypoints are essentially
GPS coordinates
246
00:18:20,275 --> 00:18:22,620
that also have one-word names,
247
00:18:22,689 --> 00:18:25,068
like BETHEL, NEEVA or NIPPI.
248
00:18:26,344 --> 00:18:29,241
Flight 007's INS
should've been programmed
249
00:18:29,310 --> 00:18:32,862
to find and follow
those electronic guideposts
to Seoul.
250
00:18:32,931 --> 00:18:35,758
...59 degrees, 18.0 north.
251
00:18:37,137 --> 00:18:39,689
At 8:49... heading 270.
252
00:18:40,206 --> 00:18:43,206
Perhaps there was
some last-minute change
in the flight plan.
253
00:18:43,896 --> 00:18:46,103
Caj Frostell listens
to the pre-flight conversation
254
00:18:46,172 --> 00:18:48,689
between the crew
and the tower in Alaska.
255
00:18:51,137 --> 00:18:55,275
Korean Air 007, climb,
and maintain flight level 310.
256
00:18:55,344 --> 00:18:58,034
...73 turn right at 0...
257
00:18:58,103 --> 00:19:02,241
It was total routine
from the beginning to the end.
258
00:19:02,310 --> 00:19:07,034
There was nothing exceptional
with the takeoff
or the taxiing to position,
259
00:19:07,103 --> 00:19:09,620
the preparation for the flight.
260
00:19:13,068 --> 00:19:14,620
After leaving Anchorage,
261
00:19:14,689 --> 00:19:17,827
the 747 flew out
over the Pacific
just as planned.
262
00:19:19,241 --> 00:19:21,517
But it never made it
to the first waypoint.
263
00:19:22,896 --> 00:19:26,206
Instead, it drifted off course
for more than five hours.
264
00:19:27,689 --> 00:19:31,172
Hope of uncovering
the reasons why begins to fade.
265
00:19:31,689 --> 00:19:35,379
A 10-week effort
to recover the flight recorders
has turned up nothing.
266
00:19:36,862 --> 00:19:38,724
The search is called off.
267
00:19:40,482 --> 00:19:44,793
The actual aircraft,
where it was
and how many pieces it was in,
268
00:19:44,862 --> 00:19:46,689
remained unknown.
269
00:19:51,931 --> 00:19:53,931
With the investigation stalled,
270
00:19:54,000 --> 00:19:56,310
Frostell turns
to the plane's manufacturers.
271
00:19:58,137 --> 00:20:00,655
The U.S. and Boeing offered
to simulate the route
272
00:20:00,724 --> 00:20:03,896
that we knew
Korean 007 had flown.
273
00:20:05,689 --> 00:20:07,620
We went over to Boeing
in Seattle,
274
00:20:07,689 --> 00:20:09,965
and Boeing carried out
the simulation.
275
00:20:10,793 --> 00:20:12,551
Waypoint
276
00:20:12,620 --> 00:20:15,517
59 degrees, 18.0...
277
00:20:15,586 --> 00:20:19,000
Retracing Flight 007's steps
in a simulator
278
00:20:19,068 --> 00:20:21,068
leaves them
with a few possibilities.
279
00:20:23,241 --> 00:20:27,310
One is that a mistake was made
while entering the coordinates
into the INS.
280
00:20:29,137 --> 00:20:30,827
60 degrees...
281
00:20:31,517 --> 00:20:33,827
...47.1 north.
282
00:20:33,896 --> 00:20:37,068
Normally,
the co-pilot would insert...
283
00:20:37,137 --> 00:20:38,689
the waypoints,
284
00:20:38,758 --> 00:20:43,931
and the captain would check
that the correct digits
have been put in.
285
00:20:44,000 --> 00:20:45,931
60 degrees,
286
00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:48,758
47.1 north, check.
287
00:20:50,862 --> 00:20:53,103
Misprogramming the INS at the gate
288
00:20:53,172 --> 00:20:55,586
could've taken the plane
over the Soviet Union.
289
00:20:56,689 --> 00:20:59,206
Okay, let's try the flight
in heading mode now.
290
00:21:02,827 --> 00:21:05,413
A second,
less likely possibility
291
00:21:05,482 --> 00:21:08,413
is that after programming
the waypoint navigation system,
292
00:21:08,482 --> 00:21:10,931
the crew may have failed
to turn it on.
293
00:21:13,241 --> 00:21:15,896
After takeoff from Anchorage,
294
00:21:15,965 --> 00:21:18,517
the aircraft would have used...
295
00:21:18,586 --> 00:21:21,758
a constant magnetic heading
to get to the route.
296
00:21:22,965 --> 00:21:25,344
It's a standard procedure
to begin a flight
297
00:21:25,413 --> 00:21:27,827
using a magnetic compass heading
for direction.
298
00:21:29,344 --> 00:21:30,793
Soon after takeoff,
299
00:21:30,862 --> 00:21:32,931
pilots must activate
the navigation system
300
00:21:33,000 --> 00:21:35,275
so it can lock on
to the first waypoint.
301
00:21:37,827 --> 00:21:40,310
And if it was forgotten...
302
00:21:40,379 --> 00:21:43,034
in that constant
magnetic heading,
303
00:21:43,103 --> 00:21:45,724
it would continue
over Soviet airspace.
304
00:21:47,793 --> 00:21:52,551
The magnetic heading
would've kept the plane flying
in the right direction,
305
00:21:52,620 --> 00:21:55,448
but along a very different route
than the one planned.
306
00:21:56,896 --> 00:22:01,172
Captain Chun
was a distinguished pilot
with years of experience.
307
00:22:02,344 --> 00:22:05,379
Forgetting to switch
the autopilot to INS mode
308
00:22:05,448 --> 00:22:07,275
would've been
an astonishing error.
309
00:22:09,689 --> 00:22:14,448
At this point,
Frostell can only speculate
why Flight 007 was off course.
310
00:22:15,827 --> 00:22:17,620
But what's even harder
to understand
311
00:22:17,689 --> 00:22:22,310
is why the Soviet Union
would risk starting a war
by shooting a plane down.
312
00:22:23,896 --> 00:22:27,379
The Soviets resorted
to deadly force
to punish this intruder.
313
00:22:27,793 --> 00:22:30,793
It's like shooting the paperboy
in your front yard at night
314
00:22:30,862 --> 00:22:33,137
because you think he might
be breaking into your house.
315
00:22:38,310 --> 00:22:40,965
What could prompt
such a response
from the Soviets?
316
00:22:42,551 --> 00:22:45,379
Investigators get their answer
from the U.S. military.
317
00:22:48,034 --> 00:22:52,655
Though Flight 007
may not have been
on a spy mission that night,
318
00:22:52,724 --> 00:22:54,758
another plane was:
319
00:22:54,827 --> 00:22:57,448
A U.S. Air Force RC-135.
320
00:22:59,689 --> 00:23:01,965
They were tracking an RC-135,
321
00:23:02,034 --> 00:23:05,448
which was doing very, very slow
figure eights
322
00:23:05,517 --> 00:23:08,103
off the coast,
with its own listening devices,
323
00:23:08,172 --> 00:23:10,172
waiting
for a Soviet missile test.
324
00:23:12,310 --> 00:23:16,275
The spy plane
was near the Soviet border
in the path of the KAL jetliner.
325
00:23:16,931 --> 00:23:18,482
When their paths crossed,
326
00:23:18,551 --> 00:23:21,758
the two planes
may have been indistinguishable
on Soviet radar.
327
00:23:23,724 --> 00:23:26,793
When 007 came in
over Soviet airspace...
328
00:23:27,517 --> 00:23:30,517
...the Soviet Union assumed
it's an RC-135.
329
00:23:31,896 --> 00:23:34,137
Along came this intruder,
330
00:23:34,206 --> 00:23:37,172
and they just fell
into the patterns
they had prepared in advance
331
00:23:37,241 --> 00:23:39,241
for such an intruder.
332
00:23:41,241 --> 00:23:43,482
Upon violation
of state border...
333
00:23:44,344 --> 00:23:46,724
...approach target and destroy.
334
00:23:47,758 --> 00:23:49,758
But disturbing questions remain.
335
00:23:50,931 --> 00:23:54,379
Did the fighter pilot
get close enough to see
the target with his own eyes?
336
00:23:55,103 --> 00:23:57,310
Did he know
it was a passenger jet?
337
00:24:02,448 --> 00:24:06,827
Requests to speak
to fighter pilot
Gennadi Osipovitch are refused.
338
00:24:08,931 --> 00:24:10,931
And for the time being
at least,
339
00:24:11,000 --> 00:24:12,965
those questions
are left unanswered.
340
00:24:15,724 --> 00:24:18,000
In December 1983,
341
00:24:18,068 --> 00:24:21,172
less than four months
after the disaster,
342
00:24:21,241 --> 00:24:24,068
ICAO releases the findings
of the investigation.
343
00:24:25,758 --> 00:24:27,379
Though lacking hard evidence,
344
00:24:27,448 --> 00:24:32,206
the report concludes Flight 007
strayed into Soviet airspace
by accident...
345
00:24:33,689 --> 00:24:36,068
...due to pilot error
in operating
the navigation system.
346
00:24:38,034 --> 00:24:41,172
I would almost call it
the best guess
based on all the work
347
00:24:41,241 --> 00:24:44,793
and the factual information
we had in 1983.
348
00:24:46,931 --> 00:24:51,620
For them to summarize
the plane was there by accident,
as far as I'm concerned,
349
00:24:51,689 --> 00:24:54,103
that's not the answers
we wanted to hear.
350
00:24:54,172 --> 00:24:57,482
And we believed
that there was further
investigation to do.
351
00:24:59,344 --> 00:25:04,241
The key
to this mystery remains locked
inside the plane's black boxes,
352
00:25:04,310 --> 00:25:07,310
which are assumed lost forever
beneath the sea.
353
00:25:19,965 --> 00:25:22,896
In the months following
the KAL disaster,
354
00:25:22,965 --> 00:25:27,000
unidentifiable human remains
wash ashore in northern Japan.
355
00:25:27,068 --> 00:25:30,034
Small pieces of wreckage
are also found.
356
00:25:30,931 --> 00:25:34,413
Investigators have no doubt
that the plane
was completely destroyed.
357
00:25:38,689 --> 00:25:41,448
We don't know
where their bodies lie.
358
00:25:42,275 --> 00:25:44,551
There was clothing
that washed up on the shore;
359
00:25:44,620 --> 00:25:47,206
her ID washed up
on the shore of Japan.
360
00:25:48,862 --> 00:25:52,689
Of course,
getting that ID back was...
at least we had something.
361
00:25:55,413 --> 00:25:57,413
Like the victims' families,
362
00:25:57,482 --> 00:26:02,206
investigators have no clear idea
where Flight 007 went down.
363
00:26:03,275 --> 00:26:05,068
But there are some people
who do.
364
00:26:18,206 --> 00:26:22,620
Top Soviet officials are hiding
the fact that one month
after the incident,
365
00:26:22,689 --> 00:26:24,827
not only did they find
the wreckage,
366
00:26:24,896 --> 00:26:27,758
they also found
the all-important black boxes.
367
00:26:34,689 --> 00:26:37,000
It was a big pile of debris.
368
00:26:37,068 --> 00:26:39,586
They took down this pile
with their bare hands
369
00:26:39,655 --> 00:26:41,827
until they found
the black boxes.
370
00:26:41,896 --> 00:26:43,413
There were two of them.
371
00:27:07,034 --> 00:27:09,517
But the Soviets
keep the boxes to themselves.
372
00:27:12,034 --> 00:27:14,310
The information
is kept locked away.
373
00:27:22,724 --> 00:27:24,965
Until nearly 10 years later...
374
00:27:27,896 --> 00:27:31,862
...after the turn of the decade
brings a jubilant end
to the Cold War.
375
00:27:33,620 --> 00:27:37,103
Glasnost ushers in a new spirit
of openness in Russia.
376
00:27:48,586 --> 00:27:50,758
Eager to break with the past,
377
00:27:50,827 --> 00:27:53,827
the new administration in Moscow
decides to go public.
378
00:27:56,827 --> 00:28:00,103
The actual unveiling
of the data recorders
and black boxes
379
00:28:00,172 --> 00:28:01,896
was a total surprise.
380
00:28:02,931 --> 00:28:06,758
And suddenly,
this new material...
promised some real answers.
381
00:28:08,758 --> 00:28:10,827
So I knew
they're gonna tell me something.
382
00:28:10,896 --> 00:28:14,172
I wanted to have the facts
from the tapes and then see
383
00:28:14,241 --> 00:28:18,344
how do those facts compare
to what we wrote in 1983.
384
00:28:21,862 --> 00:28:23,448
In 1992,
385
00:28:23,517 --> 00:28:25,793
during official ceremonies
in Seoul,
386
00:28:25,862 --> 00:28:29,862
Russian leader Boris Yeltsin
hands over the long-awaited
flight recorders.
387
00:28:31,620 --> 00:28:34,793
I was approached
by a KGB general.
388
00:28:35,413 --> 00:28:37,275
And he told me that, uh:
389
00:28:37,344 --> 00:28:40,758
"You probably don't know me,
but I have had the recorders
390
00:28:40,827 --> 00:28:42,310
for 10 years.
391
00:28:42,379 --> 00:28:44,793
I had them in the safe
in my office.
392
00:28:45,724 --> 00:28:49,586
I knew it was a big
international secret.
It bothered me tremendously...
393
00:28:50,310 --> 00:28:53,620
...every day,
when I came to the office
and I looked at my safe,
394
00:28:53,689 --> 00:28:55,344
and I knew the recorders
were there."
395
00:28:56,379 --> 00:28:58,689
He told me:
"You may not understand
396
00:28:58,758 --> 00:29:01,103
that this is the happiest day
in my life."
397
00:29:12,448 --> 00:29:16,413
Caj Frostell
is asked to lead the new team
of investigators based in Paris.
398
00:29:19,103 --> 00:29:22,965
And as a clear indication
that the times have changed,
399
00:29:23,034 --> 00:29:26,931
Vladimir Kofman,
a Russian avionics expert,
joins the team.
400
00:29:34,862 --> 00:29:38,448
At the time,
I was working at
the Civil Institute of Aviation
401
00:29:38,517 --> 00:29:40,620
and was an air-crash
investigator.
402
00:29:41,310 --> 00:29:44,689
This was an international
investigation
of a very high level.
403
00:29:52,896 --> 00:29:56,344
Their first task
is to make sure
the black boxes are authentic.
404
00:29:59,172 --> 00:30:01,965
There was a high suspicion
in a lot of quarters
405
00:30:02,034 --> 00:30:06,827
that the Russians or the Soviets
had tampered with the tapes
or had made bogus tapes.
406
00:30:06,896 --> 00:30:11,379
And so we had to 110% validate
407
00:30:11,448 --> 00:30:13,241
the authenticity of the tape.
408
00:30:14,862 --> 00:30:16,758
They had seals on them.
They had...
409
00:30:16,827 --> 00:30:20,517
I remember... wax seals on them.
410
00:30:20,586 --> 00:30:23,068
The photographs were taken,
411
00:30:23,137 --> 00:30:24,689
the seals were cut.
412
00:30:25,862 --> 00:30:30,137
Investigators confirm that the CVR
handed over by the Russians
413
00:30:30,206 --> 00:30:34,172
is the same box
that was installed
on Flight 007.
414
00:30:35,655 --> 00:30:37,758
They opened them
and looked at them,
415
00:30:37,827 --> 00:30:41,275
and validated
the serial numbers,
validated the model numbers.
416
00:30:43,517 --> 00:30:47,137
Now that they know
they have the right boxes,
417
00:30:47,206 --> 00:30:50,172
investigators need to make sure
they have not been
tampered with.
418
00:30:52,517 --> 00:30:54,379
Suspicion soon arises.
419
00:30:56,068 --> 00:30:57,827
During the cleaning process,
420
00:30:57,896 --> 00:31:00,241
they noted that there had been
some breaks in the tape,
421
00:31:00,310 --> 00:31:02,758
and had been spliced
by the Russians.
422
00:31:03,793 --> 00:31:07,551
It is not uncommon
for a tape to break
during the impact of a crash.
423
00:31:08,689 --> 00:31:11,689
But distrust of the former
Soviet Union runs deep.
424
00:31:13,689 --> 00:31:17,586
First they examined
these areas of the splices
where it had broken,
425
00:31:17,655 --> 00:31:20,655
and they did that
on this high-magnification
photograph.
426
00:31:21,172 --> 00:31:24,379
One of the techniques
that the French had
that I hadn't seen before -
427
00:31:24,448 --> 00:31:28,379
it wasn't used
in the United States -
was a photo-analysis machine.
428
00:31:29,241 --> 00:31:32,068
They could do this
with this optical
high magnification.
429
00:31:32,137 --> 00:31:34,310
They could actually see
the magnetic waves.
430
00:31:35,758 --> 00:31:38,137
The test confirms
that no data was added
or removed
431
00:31:38,206 --> 00:31:41,000
from the cockpit voice recorder
when it was spliced together.
432
00:31:45,551 --> 00:31:48,896
Finally,
investigators can listen
to the tape,
433
00:31:48,965 --> 00:31:51,206
confident that every word
is authentic.
434
00:31:53,206 --> 00:31:56,241
What?
It's already time for breakfast.
435
00:31:56,310 --> 00:31:57,724
You want to eat now?
436
00:31:57,793 --> 00:31:59,344
Let's eat later.
437
00:32:02,482 --> 00:32:05,482
But all they hear
is idle banter from the crew.
438
00:32:07,551 --> 00:32:09,793
I heard
there's a currency exchange
at the airport.
439
00:32:09,862 --> 00:32:11,413
What kind of money?
440
00:32:12,068 --> 00:32:13,655
Dollars to Korean money.
441
00:32:14,862 --> 00:32:19,724
- It's in the domestic building.
- 52010 to intercept...
American 1037.
442
00:32:20,655 --> 00:32:24,448
There is not a word
on the tape to suggest
the crew was on a spy mission.
443
00:32:26,103 --> 00:32:28,034
Just a totally routine
conversation.
444
00:32:28,103 --> 00:32:31,655
Either these guys
are the most cold-blooded actors
and falsifiers ever,
445
00:32:31,724 --> 00:32:34,586
or they really were
totally clueless
about where they were.
446
00:32:34,655 --> 00:32:36,517
Sadly,
I think the latter's the case.
447
00:32:41,448 --> 00:32:45,586
It seems unlikely that KAL 007
was on a spy mission.
448
00:32:46,689 --> 00:32:49,344
But it was caught flying
over Soviet territory.
449
00:32:52,689 --> 00:32:54,206
Investigators have long
suspected
450
00:32:54,275 --> 00:32:58,275
that the crew
either misprogrammed
their navigation system
451
00:32:58,344 --> 00:33:00,137
or left it in the wrong mode...
452
00:33:02,655 --> 00:33:04,482
...set on constant magnetic
heading.
453
00:33:06,689 --> 00:33:10,206
The flight-data recorder
finally provides
the definitive answer.
454
00:33:11,827 --> 00:33:16,034
The data revealed
that the aircraft
was on constant magnetic heading
455
00:33:16,103 --> 00:33:20,275
from soon after takeoff
from Anchorage to the end.
456
00:33:21,241 --> 00:33:25,000
There was no deviation
whatsoever
in the magnetic heading.
457
00:33:29,689 --> 00:33:35,172
The crew of KAL 007
never activated
the waypoint navigation system.
458
00:33:38,137 --> 00:33:39,793
Gear up.
459
00:33:40,482 --> 00:33:41,965
Landing gear up.
460
00:33:42,620 --> 00:33:44,827
Now passing 500.
461
00:33:46,206 --> 00:33:48,862
It seems they simply forgot
a basic step
462
00:33:48,931 --> 00:33:50,931
in their standard
flight procedure.
463
00:33:55,586 --> 00:33:57,758
The INS was functioning
properly,
464
00:33:57,827 --> 00:33:59,448
had been loaded properly,
465
00:33:59,517 --> 00:34:03,827
and was counting along
the route where it thought
it was supposed to be.
466
00:34:03,896 --> 00:34:07,448
But the autopilot
was not following
the INS commands.
467
00:34:07,517 --> 00:34:09,586
Instead, it was following
a compass mode.
468
00:34:12,137 --> 00:34:14,862
So it's only telling them
where they're supposed to be.
469
00:34:15,862 --> 00:34:19,655
Investigators learn
that even though the plane
was following a compass heading,
470
00:34:19,724 --> 00:34:21,344
and not the waypoints...
471
00:34:22,896 --> 00:34:26,689
...the computer
would've continued to display
their intended waypoints,
472
00:34:26,758 --> 00:34:28,896
even though the plane
was nowhere near them.
473
00:34:31,379 --> 00:34:33,965
Korean Air 007
positioned over NIPPI.
474
00:34:34,034 --> 00:34:35,620
Estimating NOKKA...
475
00:34:35,689 --> 00:34:38,206
1826132.0.
476
00:34:40,517 --> 00:34:43,758
This may explain
why the crew never noticed
their mistake.
477
00:34:46,793 --> 00:34:49,965
The crew also didn't notice
a key indication
478
00:34:50,034 --> 00:34:52,172
that they were badly off course.
479
00:34:52,241 --> 00:34:55,448
We're experiencing
an unexpectedly strong tailwind.
480
00:34:55,517 --> 00:34:57,517
How much of a tailwind?
481
00:34:57,586 --> 00:34:59,448
Thirty-five knots from 040.
482
00:35:01,137 --> 00:35:02,896
The fact
that they were experiencing
483
00:35:02,965 --> 00:35:06,586
completely different
weather patterns to a plane
supposedly minutes behind them
484
00:35:06,655 --> 00:35:08,517
should've alerted them
to the problem.
485
00:35:09,965 --> 00:35:12,034
Now, there's a point...
486
00:35:12,103 --> 00:35:17,586
where you see him teetering
on the brink of realizing
something is horribly wrong.
487
00:35:17,655 --> 00:35:20,344
He's talking to the pilot
behind him,
488
00:35:20,413 --> 00:35:22,931
and the winds
are almost 180 degrees apart.
489
00:35:23,000 --> 00:35:24,482
And there's a pause.
490
00:35:24,551 --> 00:35:26,000
And Chun is...
491
00:35:26,793 --> 00:35:29,586
Somewhere in his mind...
He's a pilot
and he has the instinct:
492
00:35:29,655 --> 00:35:31,206
You know, this is odd.
493
00:35:31,275 --> 00:35:33,689
Is it a clue to something
I should look into?
494
00:35:34,586 --> 00:35:36,310
And he... doesn't.
495
00:35:36,379 --> 00:35:40,137
And at that point,
he might as well have pulled
the gun out, put it to his head.
496
00:35:41,931 --> 00:35:43,689
It was human error.
497
00:35:43,758 --> 00:35:46,137
A complacent crew
in the middle of the night
498
00:35:46,206 --> 00:35:48,586
had their flight computer
on the wrong setting.
499
00:35:49,172 --> 00:35:51,896
And then didn't notice
they were straying off course.
500
00:35:54,482 --> 00:35:58,000
Everybody makes mistakes
sooner or later.
501
00:35:58,689 --> 00:36:02,413
Good pilots make mistakes,
not-so-good pilots
make mistakes.
502
00:36:02,482 --> 00:36:04,310
We're all making mistakes.
503
00:36:06,241 --> 00:36:10,413
When investigators
combine the conversation data
from Flight 007
504
00:36:10,482 --> 00:36:12,793
with intercepted
Soviet transmissions...
505
00:36:13,931 --> 00:36:18,379
...they get a detailed picture
of what went wrong
on September the 1st, 1983.
506
00:36:21,344 --> 00:36:24,000
The pilots believed
they were on course,
507
00:36:24,068 --> 00:36:26,482
but three hours into the flight,
508
00:36:26,551 --> 00:36:29,793
their magnetic heading
took them into Soviet airspace
over Kamchatka.
509
00:36:35,620 --> 00:36:39,000
The Soviet military
had been tracking
a U.S. reconnaissance plane.
510
00:36:42,931 --> 00:36:46,896
There was a real
American spy plane.
It was there.
511
00:36:46,965 --> 00:36:48,965
There were two planes
that looked alike.
512
00:36:49,034 --> 00:36:51,310
When KAL penetrated the border,
513
00:36:51,379 --> 00:36:54,000
the perception
was that this was the plane.
514
00:36:54,793 --> 00:36:58,068
As the passengers sleep
through their long journey,
515
00:36:58,137 --> 00:37:01,241
the Soviets scramble fighters
to intercept the plane.
516
00:37:03,413 --> 00:37:06,275
The identity of the plane
was just not known.
517
00:37:06,344 --> 00:37:11,310
The clues that it was
a lost civilian airliner,
well, might've been there.
518
00:37:11,379 --> 00:37:14,482
The clues that it was a 135
didn't add up,
519
00:37:14,551 --> 00:37:18,517
but the Soviets involved
didn't have time
to think it through.
520
00:37:19,620 --> 00:37:22,689
Target travelling at high speed
and approaching border.
521
00:37:25,172 --> 00:37:27,862
But the fighters
are not fast enough.
522
00:37:27,931 --> 00:37:32,068
The plane leaves Soviet airspace
and continues along its heading
to Seoul.
523
00:37:33,931 --> 00:37:36,827
They figured
that they'd just been spooked,
524
00:37:36,896 --> 00:37:39,034
but that was all over.
525
00:37:39,103 --> 00:37:41,896
Unfortunately
for everyone involved,
it wasn't.
526
00:37:42,965 --> 00:37:46,689
The airliner
is just seconds from flying
over the island of Sakhalin.
527
00:37:47,862 --> 00:37:50,000
So Sakhalin was prepared.
528
00:37:57,586 --> 00:38:02,379
KAL Flight 007
enters Soviet airspace
for the second time.
529
00:38:07,034 --> 00:38:11,000
Ladies and gentlemen,
we'll soon be serving breakfast
before we land in Kimpo,
530
00:38:11,068 --> 00:38:13,551
which will be
in about three hours.
531
00:38:16,482 --> 00:38:19,517
Target travelling at high speed
and approaching border.
532
00:38:21,172 --> 00:38:22,793
Target is on your heading.
533
00:38:24,758 --> 00:38:27,275
I can see it both visually
and on the screen.
534
00:38:30,379 --> 00:38:32,620
Major Gennadi Osipovitch,
the lead fighter,
535
00:38:32,689 --> 00:38:35,413
makes visual contact
with Flight 007.
536
00:38:38,275 --> 00:38:40,103
Give warning burst
with cannon.
537
00:38:41,862 --> 00:38:44,000
But the warning shots
go unnoticed.
538
00:38:49,275 --> 00:38:50,827
Take up position for attack.
539
00:38:59,655 --> 00:39:01,655
Approach target and destroy.
540
00:39:03,379 --> 00:39:05,517
Roger. Locked on already.
541
00:39:06,724 --> 00:39:08,206
Executed launch.
542
00:39:34,344 --> 00:39:35,896
Target is destroyed.
543
00:39:37,931 --> 00:39:42,413
The fighter pilot believed
the 747 was an enemy spy plane.
544
00:39:44,758 --> 00:39:49,724
It takes nearly a decade
after he shot down KAL 007
545
00:39:49,793 --> 00:39:52,551
for that pilot to tell
his side of the story.
546
00:40:05,827 --> 00:40:11,103
Investigators have long wondered
what Major Gennadi Osipovitch
saw and did
547
00:40:11,172 --> 00:40:14,655
after he was ordered
to intercept
an intruding aircraft in 1983.
548
00:40:16,724 --> 00:40:18,448
After nearly 10 years,
549
00:40:18,517 --> 00:40:20,862
and the collapse
of the Communist regime,
550
00:40:20,931 --> 00:40:23,413
he finally tells
his side of the story.
551
00:40:25,724 --> 00:40:28,000
I saw the plane.
552
00:40:28,448 --> 00:40:30,275
It did look
like a civilian plane,
553
00:40:30,344 --> 00:40:33,517
because there was a flashing
light on its tail
and one on the top.
554
00:40:34,172 --> 00:40:36,448
But you could disguise
any plane like this.
555
00:40:36,517 --> 00:40:39,517
You can put a flashing light on
and you've got a civilian plane.
556
00:40:39,586 --> 00:40:41,965
So I did not have any thoughts
about this.
557
00:40:42,034 --> 00:40:43,551
Give warning burst
with cannon.
558
00:40:49,379 --> 00:40:52,620
When warning shots are fired,
they usually include tracers,
559
00:40:52,689 --> 00:40:54,931
which are like flares
and are easily seen.
560
00:40:55,862 --> 00:40:59,034
However,
Osipovitch has no tracers
loaded in his cannon.
561
00:41:00,206 --> 00:41:01,827
They're supposed
to load tracers.
562
00:41:01,896 --> 00:41:05,655
Just no one had shipped them any
for the last six months,
so they weren't there.
563
00:41:06,827 --> 00:41:08,758
But even without the tracers,
564
00:41:08,827 --> 00:41:12,000
Osipovitch thinks the 747 crew
should have seen him.
565
00:41:14,068 --> 00:41:16,000
As I caught up with them,
566
00:41:16,068 --> 00:41:19,206
I was flying like this
and he was flying like that.
567
00:41:19,275 --> 00:41:21,137
How could he not turn around
and see me?
568
00:41:21,206 --> 00:41:24,448
I was flying with lights,
everything was according
to protocol.
569
00:41:24,517 --> 00:41:26,275
He should've seen me.
570
00:41:26,344 --> 00:41:28,965
And then a horrible coincidence
seals the fate
571
00:41:29,034 --> 00:41:32,241
of 269 people aboard the flight.
572
00:41:32,310 --> 00:41:35,793
Korean Air 007.
Request climb 350.
573
00:41:36,655 --> 00:41:40,793
Korean Air 007, climb,
and maintain flight level 350.
574
00:41:41,931 --> 00:41:45,724
Like a car going uphill,
a climbing plane slows down.
575
00:41:47,000 --> 00:41:49,931
But to the fighter pilot
following the 747...
576
00:41:50,758 --> 00:41:53,137
...this is interpreted
as an evasive manoeuvre.
577
00:41:55,172 --> 00:41:56,931
He decreased his speed
578
00:41:57,000 --> 00:42:00,517
so that I could either pass him
or fall, one of the two.
579
00:42:00,586 --> 00:42:03,379
So that's how I knew
that he's an enemy intruder.
580
00:42:06,448 --> 00:42:10,896
That convinced him
that it was not a civilian plane
and that he was in danger.
581
00:42:13,655 --> 00:42:16,068
My only thought
was to catch and stop.
582
00:42:16,137 --> 00:42:18,137
This is what we were trained
to do.
583
00:42:20,689 --> 00:42:24,172
I fell a little behind him
and banked down,
made a snake manoeuvre,
584
00:42:24,241 --> 00:42:27,103
put some distance between us,
because otherwise,
585
00:42:27,172 --> 00:42:29,448
the rockets
would not have locked on.
586
00:42:30,862 --> 00:42:32,344
He's running out of time,
587
00:42:32,413 --> 00:42:35,000
because the airliner
was approaching
international waters.
588
00:42:36,448 --> 00:42:38,000
Take up position for attack.
589
00:42:38,793 --> 00:42:40,620
Roger. Locked on already.
590
00:42:41,517 --> 00:42:43,068
Executed launch.
591
00:42:43,620 --> 00:42:46,241
Osipovitch fires
two air-to-air missiles.
592
00:42:48,344 --> 00:42:50,896
They travel 2,000 kph
towards the jetliner.
593
00:42:54,551 --> 00:42:56,896
One of them explodes
near the tail,
594
00:42:56,965 --> 00:42:59,551
damaging vital controls
and hydraulic lines.
595
00:43:02,241 --> 00:43:04,586
The warhead also tears a hole
in the fuselage,
596
00:43:04,655 --> 00:43:07,000
causing a rapid decompression
in the cabin.
597
00:43:09,413 --> 00:43:12,275
I saw the first explosion
right under the tail,
598
00:43:12,344 --> 00:43:13,793
and that's it.
599
00:43:13,862 --> 00:43:16,413
The lights of the trespasser
went out and I went home.
600
00:43:16,965 --> 00:43:18,517
Emergency descent.
601
00:43:18,586 --> 00:43:21,034
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the headband.
602
00:43:22,172 --> 00:43:25,551
Emergency descent.
Put the mask over your nose
and adjust the head...
603
00:43:25,620 --> 00:43:28,344
In the time
that they lost pressurization,
604
00:43:28,413 --> 00:43:30,413
to a certain point indicated
605
00:43:30,482 --> 00:43:35,965
that the hole would have been
approximately 1.75 square feet.
606
00:43:36,551 --> 00:43:39,793
The crew managed
to fly the crippled plane
for several minutes.
607
00:43:41,275 --> 00:43:43,482
Immediately
after the missile impact,
608
00:43:43,551 --> 00:43:45,827
the aircraft climbed to...
609
00:43:45,896 --> 00:43:48,000
flight level 380,
610
00:43:48,068 --> 00:43:51,241
and then it descended
about 5,000 feet per minute.
611
00:43:54,172 --> 00:43:57,482
The stricken jetliner plummeted
towards the Sea of Japan...
612
00:43:58,482 --> 00:44:00,965
...with most of its passengers
likely still conscious.
613
00:44:06,655 --> 00:44:09,000
And that's when
the recording stops.
614
00:44:17,413 --> 00:44:22,241
Our determination
was that the airframe
probably broke up at that point.
615
00:44:31,724 --> 00:44:36,103
To this day,
Gennadi Osipovitch is convinced
he shot down a spy plane.
616
00:44:38,689 --> 00:44:40,931
I knew they wouldn't order me
to intercept
617
00:44:41,000 --> 00:44:43,413
if it was a civilian plane
or a cargo plane.
618
00:44:44,655 --> 00:44:47,000
Only if it was a trespasser.
619
00:44:49,034 --> 00:44:52,482
We weren't blaming him,
but some families did.
They certainly did.
620
00:44:52,551 --> 00:44:56,482
They said it was his fault
and he pressed the button
and he shot them down.
621
00:44:56,551 --> 00:44:58,724
And they were looking
to blame somebody.
622
00:45:00,896 --> 00:45:05,344
It was clear that he was...
living with what he had done.
623
00:45:05,413 --> 00:45:09,103
And what he had done,
in order for him to live
and to sleep,
624
00:45:09,172 --> 00:45:11,448
was to believe
that it was a spy plane,
625
00:45:11,517 --> 00:45:13,448
there were no passengers
on board,
626
00:45:13,517 --> 00:45:15,965
that he had not killed
269 people.
627
00:45:16,034 --> 00:45:18,620
Uh, and that's the way
he wants to believe it.
628
00:45:18,689 --> 00:45:21,310
And I'm not gonna blame him
for wanting to believe that.
629
00:45:24,413 --> 00:45:26,413
In 1993,
630
00:45:26,482 --> 00:45:31,413
Caj Frostell has the evidence
that he sorely lacked
when he issued his first report.
631
00:45:33,620 --> 00:45:37,551
He can prove
how the Korean pilots blundered
and ended up off course.
632
00:45:38,586 --> 00:45:41,413
And how the Soviet pilot
interpreted the situation.
633
00:45:43,241 --> 00:45:46,862
The destruction of Flight 007
is ruled an accident.
634
00:45:48,620 --> 00:45:51,517
Frostell recommends
that all passenger planes
be equipped
635
00:45:51,586 --> 00:45:55,413
with a clear indicator
that the autopilot
is in heading mode.
636
00:45:58,000 --> 00:46:00,482
The tragedy of 007 is that...
637
00:46:00,551 --> 00:46:02,413
it didn't have to happen,
638
00:46:02,482 --> 00:46:04,379
it was not inevitable.
639
00:46:04,448 --> 00:46:06,862
It was a series of accidents,
640
00:46:06,931 --> 00:46:08,689
a series of misunderstandings,
641
00:46:08,758 --> 00:46:11,586
a series of... bad decisions
642
00:46:11,655 --> 00:46:13,724
that had been primed
ahead of time.
643
00:46:16,413 --> 00:46:20,000
When my sister Mary Jane
said goodbye to me
at the airport,
644
00:46:20,068 --> 00:46:23,275
she hugged me so, so tightly.
645
00:46:23,793 --> 00:46:27,379
And I said, "Mary Jane,
I feel like I'm never gonna
to see you again."
646
00:46:30,931 --> 00:46:34,689
Korean 007 has had
a great effect on my life.
647
00:46:35,172 --> 00:46:39,137
It has been close to my heart.
That had been very sad for me.
648
00:46:39,206 --> 00:46:44,068
My sympathy and condolences...
all these years
have gone out to the families.
649
00:47:00,172 --> 00:47:02,241
difuze