logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2020
9m 4s

Flying through a volcano

Bbc World Service
About this episode

When a British Airways flight carrying 248 passengers took off one evening in 1982 heading from Kuala Lampur to Australia, everything seemed fine. But two hours later all of the jumbo jet’s engines shut down and no one knew why. The plane had flown into the ash cloud of the erupting volcano, Mount Galunggung, without realising it. Darin Graham speaks to retired Captain Eric Moody, who flew the plane that night.

Up next
Yesterday
Creating CAPTCHA
In 2000, as the internet expanded, websites faced a growing challenge to stop spam bots from flooding their systems.To separate humans from machines, researchers at the United States’ Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, created the Completely Automated Public ... Show More
10m 7s
Aug 25
The creation of the International Criminal Court
In 1998, at a conference organised by the United Nations, a blueprint was devised for what would be the world's first permanent International Criminal Court.Judge Phillipe Kirsch chaired the Rome conference that led to the formation of the court. He tells Gill Kearsley about the ... Show More
10m 23s
Aug 22
Geneva Conventions
In 1859, Swiss businessman Henry Dunant witnessed the Battle of Solferino, in Italy. He couldn’t believe the lack of aid for the wounded soldiers and came up with two ideas – a voluntary aid organisation and an international treaty to protect those injured in wartime. They went o ... Show More
10m 2s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2020
The Crash of the Concorde
The supersonic Concorde Jet erupts in flames while taking off and crashes into a nearby hotel. Air France Flight 4590 prepares for a routine flight to JFK International Airport. Everything seems normal as the plane taxis onto the runway, but disaster strikes during takeoff. Find ... Show More
34m 39s
Feb 2023
The Flight of the Concorde
March 2, 1969. French pilot André Turcat takes to the skies above Toulouse-Blagnac airport. He’s flying an odd-looking plane: long and slender with triangular wings and a bent-down nose like a bird of prey. It’s called the Concorde – a jet designed to move supersonic flight from ... Show More
35m 35s
Jan 2024
Episode 67: Stabilator Malfunction
Retired airline captain and designated pilot examiner John Blum tells the story of giving a multiengine checkride in a Piper Seneca, when a loud bang from the tail section of the aircraft derailed the flight. 
59m 20s
Jul 2021
Concorde: The Fastest Passenger Airplane in the World
Almost as soon as Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947, people began thinking of ways to transport passengers at supersonic speeds. However, the challenges in creating a passenger aircraft that could travel at supersonic speeds were much greater than making a fighter airc ... Show More
13m 38s
Apr 2021
The first helicopter on a foreign planet takes to Martian skies
It’s one for the history books! In an exceptional feat of engineering, NASA has flown the first rotorcraft on the surface of another planet, with its solar-powered and remotely operated helicopter Ingenuity taking to the Martian skies for 39 seconds. In this episode of the World ... Show More
30m 28s
Apr 2020
The First Flight Around the World
April 6, 1924. Four planes rest in the water, preparing for take-off. At 8:30 AM, they pick up speed and hit the air. Eight pilots have begun a dangerous mission: to be the first to fly around the world. This will change our future in a way that few could see in 1924. What did it ... Show More
23m 7s
Jan 2024
Evening Edition: Boeing 737 MAX Planes Grounded After Door Flies Off
The Federal Aviation Administration Friday ordered the grounding of nearly two hundred of Boeing's 737 MAX planes worldwide after the door plug of an Alaska Airlines plane blew off mid-flight. Alaska and United Airlines both made the decision to ground all of their 737 MAX fleet ... Show More
14m 37s