SECONDS after takeoff | Air Florida flight 90 

🟢If you like the videos I'm making, you can support me in making more by joining the Green Dot Aviation Patreon! www.patreon.com/GreenDotAviation You also get some cool perks by being a member 😉

Wow at that captain. He was deemed "unsatisfactory" when it comes to: 1. Departures 2. Cruise control 3. Approaches 4. Landings Those are literally all phases of a flight, aren't they? What was he good at, then? 🤣 _Edit: this is a great channel, by the way! Having discovered it just recently, I watched a mix of older and newer videos and I must say, it's incredible how much the quality improved_ 👍

One of the few initial survivors, first name Arthur (if I recall correctly), was tangled up in wires and cables, so he asked the first responder - and the bystander who jumped in to help - rescue the others first. He died waiting those moments, bless him. It’s my understanding that bridge was renamed in honor of him. RIP all who perished.

I have always felt so bad for the co-pilot in this situation. His awareness of the aircraft’s performance and the icing issues could have saved so many lives. This is why the importance of CRM cannot be overstated.

The rescue of the survivors of this crash shows great heroism: Roger Olian volunteered to enter the water with a long tether attached to him to rescue the survivors and when he reached them the helicopter arrived so he was pulled back, Lenny Skutnik jumped from the bridge into the water to save Priscilla Tilrado who would have drowned if not for his actions, helicopter pilot Don Usher flew his chopper so close to the water that at some points a skid entered the water.

The Air Traffic Controller has to share some of the blame for allowing a plane to land on a runway when another is taking off.

Seems like they were very nervous about their situation, and dealt with their apprehension by ignoring it as much as possible. Great for staying calm. Not so great when you really need to be paying attention.

So many mistakes by the crew here... One might think they'd have been especially cautious in conditions they were not accustomed to.

The only air crash channel I still consistently watch. It never feels like you're wasting time with tangential information.

So so sad, the final exchange between the pilots is chilling.

A coworker’s dad was on the bridge, stuck in traffic. She said it haunted him for the rest of his life. He and other people ran toward the cars that had been hit, and there was just nothing to be done for 4 of the people. The only good thing about it was they got Flight 90 as high as they did. Just a little lower, and the engines would have hit the bridge, ruptured the fuel tanks, and the bridge would have been a fireball and nobody on the plane or bridge would have survived. The bridge might have even went down. My coworker was a little kid when this happened -he just knew his dad would never let them go to Vail for skiing, or fly down to Disneyworld in the winter. Finally, he sat my future coworker down and explained why they would never fly in snowy weather unless it was an emergency. He had severe PTSD, and fought panic attacks when he had to cross the bridge in bad winter weather. I’m sure he wasn’t the only one.

It's disheartening to hear the first officer begin to doubt his intuition when thr captain waved off his concerns. Despite his inexperience in this type of weather, he could tell something was wrong but trusted the seniority of his captain.

A post script to this event: a few days after this crash, I was on 395 to go over the 14th st bridge. It's always slow, but it was crawling. Once I was about 3/4 over the bridge I saw why...the tail end of the aircraft, last few rows on seats included facing me, had been towed to the wharf. I've never forgotten this. Just awful and heartbreaking. RIP to all the victims.

The Captain came from Air Sunshine which was a mom and pop airline in Southern Florida. So did the surviving flight attendant. I was 12 years-old and watched the rescue live from my home in State College, Pa. We had the same snowstorm hitting. It was terrible and we got let out of school early. I'll never forget that crash! I didn't even know Florida had an airline! Now I'm 53 and a flight attendant who's had a great long career. Always think about Palm 90 on Winter days.

Wow so many details I've never heard before, such as a plane landing on the runway as they were still on the take off roll. Splendid job.

I don´t understand how they can be so anxious about ice and yet not put on the de-icing! It´s bonkers!

Appreciate how you spent 99% of the time discussing the mistakes made by the pilots and not on the rescue efforts themselves which have been covered ad nauseam on other programs.

The captain on this flight behaves exactly like my boss

As a long time major airline pilot I'm safe to say that this channel is excellent. You took this down to its component parts and left nothing unclear. Going even past that you took it to a personal level like mistakes that the captain was making on account of poor performance. Honestly, I almost expected to hear what they had for lunch.... Well done

My passion for aviation was turbo charged by Channel 4's Black Box Documentaries back in the late 90's. It was like nothing I had seen before...until now. The depth of psychological, technical and scientific analysis, combined with superb narration in this channel, is unequaled anywhere.

How far we've come...Standing on the shoulders of all those who perished, it's our duty to avoid the mistakes of the past.

I can't believe it's already been almost 41 years since the disaster. I can't imagine the terror that the people on the plane and on the bridge went through.

My father boarded this flight but realized he had left an envelope with the paper he wrote in a cab. I was sledding that day and came home to the phone ringing as fast as you could hang up and because of the high phone traffic many people couldn't get through Ike my father until that evening. Nobody told my sister or myself anything and wouldn't let us turn the TV on. The only other time I had the feeling I had was the day he explained what cancer was and that he had it. So many heros that day and I don't know why I'm crying from writing this when our family didn't suffer like many others. RIP

Most of us are familiar with this crash, but you have brought new light to bear, and engaged us in a way that no other aviation channel is able too.. many thanks.

It's so creepy and sad to hear the cockpit recordings after the fact. To know they are going to go down and they are completely unaware until the very end. I've watched the episode of Mayday on this crash. The rescue efforts after the plane hit the water was nothing short of miraculous. Anyone who hasn't seen it should do so. There is excellent re-creation footage and real accident footage as well. There were many hero's that day. The survivors went through hell to get out of that icy water. It's heartstopping.

great job as usual. Horrifying. I forgot about the part they had a jet landing right behind them in low visibility thats nuts!!

Rules are written in blood and this pilot was like 'lol stupid rule it's my plane and i want to reverse thrust it back so i will'

I flew out of DCA to LGA on the same day as this crash. I was on an Eastern Airlines 727 shuttle that was two takeoffs before this one. It was snowing heavily and I remember it well.

I've come to an age where I realized that when people risk their lifes by doing something very stupid, they are usually under the false impression of total control and not aware that they are doing exactly this...

Again, an accident I have heard several times before, but Green Dot provided me with TWO new pieces: the previous failures of the flight crew and the landing plane behind them. I don't know how you do it, Green Dot, and I think you are amazing!!

Your videos are always top notch. Unlike some channels its not simply a readout of the report, but rather an interesting analysis based on it. One thing I would suggest, dont say in the title whether the plane crashed, kills the suspense if you know the outcome before watching it.

Was surprised to learn something new about this notorious crash. Until now had no idea that a landing plane was bearing down on the Florida Air jet as it attempted to depart. Great detail, great job, Green Dot.

An earlier comment forced me to search this passenger up. *Arland D. Williams Jr.* wiki: After the crash on the bridge, the plane then continued forward and plunged into the freezing Potomac River. Soon only the tail section which had broken off remained afloat. Only 6 of the airliner's 79 occupants (74 passengers and 5 crew members) survived the initial crash and were able to escape the sinking plane in the middle of the ice-choked river. *One of six people to initially survive the crash, he helped the other five escape the sinking plane before he himself drowned.* - This damn there brought a tear to my eye. Legendary.

This is one of my favourite channels. Really hoping it "takes off"!

"Hearing without listening", very true indeed.

Such a sad story here, but again you tell it in the best way I've seen on RU-vid or TV. I thought the mix of actual audio was a really effective aspect aswell.

Does anyone know if this crash had a lot to do with the "captain always has the last word" rule? How awful for the first officer to have to just accept that the take off wouldn't be aborted when he knew it should. Also, I always wonder how survivors are affected forever by these horrible events. We never hear much about that.

I was 12 and at home on a snow day in Georgia when this happened. I was glued to the TV watching the news reports with my dad.

This channel has become a mainstay of my late night bedtime routine. Every night I watch one episode before going to sleep. I’m dreading the day when I’ve watched all the episodes♥️

His narration down to the opening theme really keeps me coming back for more. Keep up the good work!

In 1983, the helicopter pilot, Don Usher, and his aide, were awarded the Polaris Air Award. This is the world's highest, and rarest civil aviation award. They risked their lives making 3 or 4 return trips to the crash site, under terrible flying conditions, saving several lives.

I lived in the DC area when this happened. I was a kid and schools were closed due to the heavy snow. I spent most of the day playing outside in the deep snow. My dad commuted to DC, but his commute took him out of the eastern side of the city, so he didn't see the crash or the aftermath. The government closed its offices early due to the weather and all of the government employees were on the road trying to get home. It's amazing more people weren't killed on the 14th Street Bridge. He heard about the crash on the car radio and rushed to the TV when he got home to see what happened. We were treated to live footage of survivors of the crash floating in the icy Potomac and the often heroic efforts to rescue them before it was too late. The image of a Park Police helicopter hovering close to the water with the crew standing on the skids trying to pluck freezing people from the water because they were too weak to hang on themselves will never be effaced from my memory. Those were tragic days for Washingtonians who at the time weren't used to such tragedies.

The sheer amount of mistakes by the captain is unbelievable. It's like they did everything to cause that crash.

I thought I was familiar with the details of this accident but I learned so many new facts on your video. Quite an excellent analysis. You have a great voice that is quite pleasant to listen to. I so appreciate it that you don't play music too loud in the background while you are speaking.

Speaking without thinking, and hearing without listening. That's a great way to sum up the captain especially.

I live in Cleveland and fly out of Hopkins all the time. We get legendary winters here so they really take de-icing seriously.

My husband was the last car allowed across the southbound span of the 14th Street Bridge that day. Even though I’d been waiting in one of the bus tunnels at the Pentagon, I had no idea what was happening. It was snowing hard enough to muffle the sounds of the Arlington fire trucks that responded to the crash. By the time my husband reached the Pentagon, I’d been waiting in the tunnel for 5 hours.

I remember this day so well. I was a senior in high school just outside of D.C. Although the weather was terrible, I insisted on going to my part-time job a few miles from home. After a quick stop at Roy Rogers for some food, my car wouldn't start. Me and the friend who was with me decided to walk the rest of the way. After trudging through the heavy snow for over an hour, we finally arrived at work. As soon as we walked in, co-workers told us that a plane had just crashed into the 14th Street Bridge. In the absence of a television, we listened to reports of the disaster on the radio. As I recall, the heavy snowfall continued into the night. In the days that followed I remember hearing that a radio personality (Howard Stern, perhaps?) made an on-air call to the Air Florida reservations line and asked, "How much is a ticket from D.C. to the 14th Street Bridge?" Heartless.

So preventable under current rules. Even though tragic, so much gets learned from every aircraft crash that makes aviation safer. God rest the souls who perished and bless the government worker who risked his own life to save several of the survivors by plunging into the freezing waters of the Potomac river that day.

Parts of this were live on NY tv and the best part was when Lenny Skutnik jumps in and saves the lady about to drown and goes back to his car and drives home.

This now makes me thanful that, when I was leaving from fukuoka to seoul in January 2021, we waited an extra 30 minutes before leaving due to snow accumulation. When you don't understand it it's just annoying but long delays are usually made with your safety in mind.

By far the best aviation channel, please make 40+ minute videos!

1. In 1982, it was Washington National Airport. 2. It's pronounced "puh-tow-mick" river. I'm originally from DC and still live in the area. This was a really bad disaster. My grandmother literally just crossed the 14th street seconds before this plane crashed on the bridge.

What a masterful storyteller. This is the very cream of the air disaster genre.

Very detailed and fascinating explanation of how the ice formed and accumulated on the wings. I always learn something new on this channel, even when it relates to a well known accident such as this.

All the pilots I flew with in my 26 yr's of military aviation maintenance & flight status I'm glad each of them always put the safety of the crew & aircraft first, (leaving nothing to chance). While the pilots didn’t have a lot of flight time in cold weather how could they forget their training, ICING should be foremost on any flight crews mind flying in these conditions. Sorry for this crew & the passengers. Thank you for another sad but detailed and thorough video. Safe flight & safe new year!

It wasnt called Reagan airport at the time, it was called National Airport. I remember coming home (school was cancelled because of the snow)and watching the helicopter rescue attempts on live tv.

The inadequate de-icing procedure aside, Flight 90 was the only one to crash that day. And, the only thing that would solve the idiocy of the flight crew, WAS the Feds.

I'm not normally into aviation at all but your videos are so captivating that I watched them all with great interest.

*🕊Rest In Peace🕊* to all those that had to loose their lives to make our flying experiences so much safer. *You did not die in vain.*

My very first flight ever was on a DC3 in April of 1950. Flight from New York to Miami. To this day I'm still not sure how it got there.

Love this channel ❤️ My Mama and I watched this harrowing tale on TV live, I'll never forget it. Haunting

Well presented sir. Even with my limited knowledge of aviation, I think the omission of engine de-icer deployment was the most critical. Having operated many machines with important information displays, in times of waiting you always scan all your settings and readouts to offset the "redundant" or oncoming "boredom" feeling. Most of the time I have done this "solo" so with someone else with you conversation would probably distract from that. Even with the ice on the wings etc. if they had taken off at correct speed to give ample lift the pilots would have had a much greater chance of staying airborne with compensatory actions.

Every video on this channel is a masterpiece. I hope you have a successful 2023 with lots of new subscribers and Patreon supporters and keep bringing quality content to us!

I remember the first documentary I saw about this crash as a little kid. I started crying when the narrator said that one lady had been blinded by jet fuel. I thought she was permanently blinded. And years later I was so happy to hear that it was only temporary blinding.:)😊

Hello from Cork. Brilliant channel. I have binge watched all of your videos over the last 3 days. Keep up the great work.

I had heard this accident presented on other channels. You give a much more detailed account. This allows a deeper understanding of events. Thanks very much.

"Deficient in departures, cruise, approaches and landings" So deficient in literally everything.

Dude the formatting on this channel is outstanding! Keep up the amazing work!

I remember this when it happened. I was just a teenager then but it was tough watching the rescues. That's when I saw heroism in real time as it happened. I remember being blown away at those men jumping into ice cold water to rescue passengers.

Ah, the Potomac crash. Too many mistakes. Incredible pilot of that helicopter!

Another fantastically detailed episode! I’ve seen this on TV and they only mention using the plane in front and missing the ice switch. No mention of the reverse thrust that I remember

I visited DC during the winter and went to that bridge. Still gives me chills.

I lived in Southern Md where I was born and raised about 40 miles as the crow flies from there and remember exactly what I was doing at the time of the crash.

Discovered the channel a few days ago and now binging avidly. Great quality of content, narrative, and editing. Only thing now is I have the weird feeling of having escaped a grim fate by luck each time I was a passenger on a plane 😅

I am so glad I came across this channel! Your skills are superb, you obviously do extensive research into every episode, I love the detailed animations and feel that I am learning something every time. I also love the music! :) Although, wouldn't want to hear it in the cabin before take-off!

Tragic day in Washington DC that day I was 16 at the time & also the same day a Metro subway train derailed that day killing one person 🙏🏽🙏🏽

Good to have all this detail, not even knowing it to be the infamous flight.

That “we’re going down Larry” brings a tear to my eye seriously.

I’ve been on a binge spree with your channel. I don’t know how I got here but your production value kept me here: not a pilot but I appreciate your coverage

You guys are doing great job... Highly appreciated

This is what happens when familiarity breeds complacency. The pilots should have been extra vigilant because they were operating in unfamiliar weather conditions, but they didn't. Not sure of the regulations at the time, but the crew were not conforming to current 'sterile cockpit' conditions.

My favourite channel love your videos✈️

Excellent channel my man!! Really is !! Love the sound track as well.. good work

Thank you for another exceptional production. Very grateful. also, happy new year :)

I love these videos. The production value is great. Great animation and music soundtrack. Narrator's voice is so relaxing. So good.

Hardly seems possible that this was 40 years ago. I remember some of the news coverage like it was yesterday.

Found a new aviation crash investigation channel, hell yeah! Subscribed.

As in your other videos you include details I have not heard elsewhere. Good job!

I highly recommend your channel to any aviator u guys are perfect!

I always used to watch air crash investigations (I think that’s it) as a kid with my dad. I love the show but I’m already afraid of flying and every time I got on a plane I would instantly remember the really realistic way they would show the crashes, so I avoid it at all costs. This is just as interesting but doesn’t give me anxiety lol thank you! Just found your channel a week ago !

I love love love your videos! Such good narration! Excellent and dramtic!

First Officer: Brain function ? Captain: Off First Officer: Common sense ? Captain: Off.

Love the content, very good information on some well known or not well known crashes. Just not a fan of the ads, but I know that is more than likely beyond your control. Looking forward to new content.

Great channel thanks 👌

A high quality production . Well done.

Great detail, thank you 🙏

Brilliant channel thankyou 4 all the hard work u and ur team do keep up the great work 😃

This GreenDot guy is a master in storytelling! Love you baby.

Wow! Makes me think of my flight from South Dakota. Cold, winter storm. We had to disboard once for frozen landing gear. It caused us to miss our connecting in Atlanta, and we had a 3 hour layover in that. Scary what could have happened. Terrible tragedy.