Here's what it takes to become a certified C2-A pilot

It's April 15, 2002 and Air China Flight 129 has just crashed into Mount Dotdae, in South Korea, killing 129 of the 166 people on board. Amazingly, most of the survivors were located in a single section of the plane.

How this tour guide's mistake saved his group's lives (3:54)

Korean investigators looking into the crash of China Air Flight 129, on April 15, 2002, have just spoken to air traffic control. They learn about some troubling lapses in communication, just prior to the crash.

Why were these pilots slow to respond to Air Traffic Control? (3:09)

NTSB investigators have a theory about the Comair Flight 3272 crash that happened on January 9, 1997, but they lack the aerodynamic expertise to analyze the data. Naturally, they turn to NASA.

Did wake vortex cause Flight 3272 to lose control? (2:13)

Were the propellers of Comair Flight 3272 working before the plane hit the ground on January 9, 1997, or did they fail beforehand, leading to the crash? NTSB investigators scour the crash site for clues.

NTSB investigator suspects this plane's propellers failed (2:17)

The crash of British Midland Flight 92 on January 8, 1989 yielded 47 fatalities out of 126 passengers. Shockingly, many of those deaths could have been prevented with knowledge of the correct brace position.

Up your odds of surviving a plane crash with this simple tip (1:05)

Buckling up your seatbelt on a plane could end up saving your life—and not just during landing and take off. The deadly crash of Asiana 214 on July 6, 2013 is a stark reminder why.

Why you should always keep your seatbelt fastened when flying (1:06)

Investigators suspect the cause of the July 17, 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800 was an exploding fuel tank. But to find out why the fuel became hot enough to ignite, they'll need to re-create the exact flight conditions.

How air conditioning caused TWA Flight 800 to explode (3:59)

Captain Marvin Falitz was widely documented to have displayed some troubling anger issues throughout his service. But did they play a part in the crash of North Link Air Flight 5719 on December 1, 1993?

Did this pilot crash Flight 5719 out of anger? (3:20)

It's July 17, 1996 and a Boeing 747 is in the early stages of its journey off the coast of New York. Suddenly, a powerful explosion in the mid-section of the plane sends TWA 800 plummeting into the Atlantic.

TWA Flight 800 explodes over the Atlantic near New York (3:07)