- 6/1/2025
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00:00At one of the busiest airfields on Earth...
00:06Okay, he's clear, let's get going.
00:09A 747 cargo plane is transporting a load of military equipment.
00:14Within seconds, things go horribly wrong.
00:18Get the nose down! I'm trying!
00:21Completely foundered and stalled. I remember thinking, he's lost all his engines.
00:27The accident is caught on camera.
00:29Holy cow, there it is.
00:31Leading investigators to what seems like an obvious conclusion.
00:35Looks like a problem with the cargo load.
00:37We really thought that we had the cause of the accident.
00:40But later we found out there was more to the story.
00:44It takes one piece of overlooked evidence to tell investigators they were wrong.
00:48Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
00:50Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
00:51It's a hive of activity.
00:52Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
00:53It's a hive of activity.
00:54Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
00:56Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
00:57Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
01:01Bagram Airfield in Northeastern Afghanistan.
01:11Bagram Airfield in northeastern Afghanistan.
01:17It's a hive of activity.
01:22Bagram, ground, ISAF.
01:249-5, Alpha Quebec, ready to taxi.
01:26The crew of National Airlines Flight 102 is on the last leg of a gruelling shift.
01:32The air is billowing out of here.
01:34Yeah, sure is.
01:36They're flying cargo in a converted Boeing 747.
01:39And are parked on the tarmac, waiting to depart.
01:46Police tell the flight attendant I'm ready for my lobster dinner.
01:50I think she's in first class, handing out caviar at the moment.
01:53Joking and humor among air crews is probably more prevalent in times of stress
01:58when you get into these offline, unusual situations.
02:03The crew members are all American.
02:05Captain Brad Hassler is heading home to his pregnant wife.
02:10Beside him is First Officer Jamie Brokaw.
02:14Augment Captain Jeremy Lipka is in the jump seat.
02:17Sheet's back there.
02:19I haven't seen him.
02:20I hope he's in the back.
02:22Yeah, he's back there.
02:24In a cabin behind the cockpit is loadmaster Michael Sheets,
02:29along with two technicians and an Augment First Officer.
02:33With the additional pilots, the plane can be flown long distances, non-stop.
02:38The crew members are all civilians on contract for the U.S. Department of Defense.
02:43The U.S. military and its allies built more than 50 bases across Afghanistan during the war there.
02:52Bagram was by far the biggest.
02:54It's got gyms and seven dining facilities of enormous sizes.
02:59It's got stores.
03:01It had a Burger King.
03:03At its peak, more than 40,000 people lived here.
03:06Now, after 12 years of fighting, the military is scaling back their operation.
03:13Troops, weapons and heavy machinery are all on the move.
03:18Every day, air traffic control handles several hundred flights coming in and out of the airport.
03:26Today, National Airlines Flight 102 is just one piece of a hugely complex puzzle.
03:32The flight plan has taken it from Chateau-Rue, France, to Camp Bastien, Afghanistan,
03:41where the crew loaded up 207,000 pounds of cargo.
03:45They were supposed to take it straight to Dubai,
03:48but were rerouted via Bagram.
03:52The crew has been waiting more than an hour to depart.
03:555 Alpha Quebec, I have your clearance advised when ready to copy.
04:02Yeah, let's do it.
04:04Finally, they get clearance to go.
04:06Ready to copy 9-5 Alpha Quebec?
04:089-5 Alpha Quebec, taxi to runway 3.
04:103-3.
04:20Controllers need to keep a sharp eye on the crowded taxiway
04:23that the 747 Freighter shares with other military aircraft.
04:299-5 Alpha Quebec, give way to the C-17.
04:36Let them go first.
04:37Roger, we'll let them go first.
04:41A C-17 military cargo plane moves to the runway ahead of them.
04:48Although the military effort is winding down in Afghanistan,
04:52this is not the kind of place a civilian wants to linger.
04:57Bagram is still a favorite target of the Taliban.
05:00It's a dangerous place.
05:01I mean, it's not JFK Airport.
05:05It's JFK Airport surrounded by terrorists.
05:08For the crew of Flight 102,
05:11every delay means more risk.
05:15Okay, he's clear. Let's get going.
05:17Following the C-17 for 9-5 Alpha Quebec.
05:20Before takeoff checklist, flats.
05:3210-10 checked.
05:34You're certainly thinking, what do I do?
05:37If somebody started firing at us on the ground,
05:40well, that's a great deal of mental pressure.
05:42The C-17 ahead has cleared the runway.
05:45How are we looking on that wing?
05:47Everything look clear?
05:49Everything's great.
05:50We all happy with that?
05:52Yeah, I'm good.
05:54They must now wait for takeoff clearance.
05:57They've been on duty for more than 20 straight hours.
05:59Once in Dubai, they'll get a rest break.
06:04We earned it as far as I'm concerned, man.
06:08Without minimum rest, I'd be dead tomorrow.
06:10I think I have to agree with that sentiment.
06:14It's a real stress situation.
06:16They were rightfully ready for their day to be over.
06:19Finally, at 3.25 p.m., they're cleared for takeoff.
06:239-5 Alpha Quebec, runway 3, full length.
06:28Runway 3 is verified.
06:30Prepare for departure.
06:30The first officer is at the controls for this final leg.
06:35They're scheduled to arrive in Dubai in two and a half hours.
06:40When you've been in a long delay situation,
06:43when you finally get the clearance to go,
06:47it's a great relief.
06:50At that same moment,
06:52military journalist Stephen Hartov is on the base's perimeter road,
06:57returning from a day's work taking photographs for a magazine.
07:00We decided we were going to go get something to eat,
07:05and I saw off to the left of the truck
07:08a white and purple 747.
07:12And I remember thinking,
07:12this is a beautiful airplane because it looked brand new.
07:16V1, rotate.
07:21Positive climb.
07:25Gear up.
07:26Gear up.
07:27He pulled away from us and started to rotate.
07:32And in this case,
07:33there was something immediately not right.
07:37The climb is unusually steep.
07:40What's going on with that aircraft?
07:42It was almost stuttering in the air.
07:44And I immediately said to Chris,
07:46what's going on with that aircraft?
07:47Is he taking fire?
07:49Gear up.
07:50Gear up.
07:50Gear up.
07:51Gear up.
07:52Gear up.
07:53Gear up.
07:54Gear up.
07:54Gear up.
07:55Gear up.
07:55Gear up.
07:56Get the nose down.
07:59Try it.
08:00The plane is suddenly uncontrollable.
08:03The nose won't drop.
08:06My airplane.
08:08In a matter of seconds,
08:09the crew is in emergency mode.
08:12If they can't get the nose down fast,
08:14the plane will storm.
08:20They're not very high above the ground,
08:22therefore don't have very much time
08:24to try very many things for a moment the plane hangs in the air suspended and then the aircraft
08:36seemed to sort of careen in our direction now you're looking at a big 747 coming at you
08:45stop the car and then it completely foundered and stole and I remember thinking he's lost all
08:58his engines and in a very slow motion it just went straight down and pancaked into the ground
09:09the explosion was enormous it was a mushroom cloud like a small atom bomb it was huge the
09:18entire base you know thundered under our feet
09:21the controller also watches helplessly as the aircraft comes down it is the worst
09:31civilian aviation accident ever at Bagram airfield and I just pulled a camera out with the lens and
09:38just shot some pictures instinct you know trigger instinct
09:43watching those people die was tough it's tough
09:50I still think about it sometimes I wake up thinking about it
10:03has a US cargo plane being shot down the safety of thousands of people now hinges on the answer
10:12today officials identified seven Americans killed Monday in the crash of a cargo plane in Afghanistan
10:19National Airlines flight 102 crashed at America's biggest Air Force Base in Afghanistan
10:25remarkably no one on the ground was hit but the entire flight crew is dead you think about these 47 people
10:36who were there on a contract job you know never went home loss of life is tragic under any circumstance
10:45but when it's a fellow pilot it's it's it's it's really hard to deal with
10:52within hours the Taliban claims responsibility
10:57amid the specter of a terrorist attack the NTSB is assigned to lead the US investigation
11:08although it wasn't ideal it's one of those things that we had a job to do and so let's go get it done
11:18Tim LeBaron heads up the team of five investigators this investigation was a lot different because we were
11:26flying into war zone when we first got there we were given bulletproof vests and tedlar helmets to
11:31wear into the accident site as this is an American base the civilian NTSB will have to work closely with
11:40the military what do you got for me a military sweep of the crash site has already turned up the black
11:46boxes the US military had found the flight data recorder in the cockpit voice recorder before we
11:52arrived and had sent them back the United States to the NTSB laboratory so we were very hopeful that we
11:58would get good information from those recorders that would help explain why the airplane had
12:02crashed to report for me but there's another surprising piece of news the sweep has uncovered no
12:09evidence of a missile attack you're sure the Taliban claim was purely opportunistic let's see what we
12:17have here okay with the most obvious explanation for the crash eliminated the team must now take a new
12:24look at the wreckage the damage to this aircraft was some of the most extensive fire damage I've had
12:31to work with in my career so we really didn't have much to work with 75 percent of the plane has been
12:41consumed by fire or destroyed by impact forces but the crucial tail section is still almost intact the tail
12:51wings hold the planes flight control surfaces including the all-important elevators which the pilots move
12:58up or down to control the plane's pitch and pitch was a problem from the start of flight 102 we had that
13:07structure remaining so we did have something of value to look at with regards to a possible scenario for
13:15the accident they take a close look at the tail wing mechanics we looked at the hydraulic actuators for
13:22the elevators I really couldn't find any problems with that so everything seems to check out no problem
13:29here I can get those guys get that nose down if the flight controls were working then something else
13:37must have made the plane uncontrollable
13:44every last scrap of evidence is collected including a number of unidentified parts found on the runway more than a mile from
13:52the crash site
13:55anybody know what this is let's find out our team was in Afghanistan one time and one time only so it was very important for our team that we document what we
14:04document what we could find what we could because we knew that would never be able to return and see the wreckage again
14:10let's get those photos to Boeing right away
14:12the pieces of wreckage will be sent to the United States where the manufacturer will have to identify them
14:22with all the evidence now collected from the crash site investigators move their operations indoors
14:29our headquarters was in the basement of an old control tower
14:33okay let's clean this place up I'll set up there
14:35yeah there really was no workspace down there there were a bunch of computers
14:39there were signs that warned of asbestos and it was a pretty rough environment
14:45as they are settling into their temporary headquarters a video of the accident appears on the internet
14:53holy cow
14:55holy cow
14:57there it is
15:01shot from an unknown vehicle on the perimeter road
15:03it reveals a huge clue about the plane's erratic climb and fall
15:13looks like a problem with the cargo load
15:15the aircraft's movement in the video suggests it was carrying too much weight
15:21and that the load through the plane off balance
15:24the weight is very important in a cargo accident more so than a passenger accident per se
15:30because passengers have assigned weights it's very standard there's much more room
15:35margin of error to work with passenger weights and baggage than when you're flying cargo
15:41a 747 freighter plane can carry just about any type of load
15:46it is the cargo company's responsibility to ensure that the aircraft is not overweight
15:52I've heard it frequently in the cargo business about you call we hauling
15:57sometimes the crew knows in advance what they're going to be doing and sometimes it's all last minute
16:02some of the early questions were you know what was the cargo in the airplane
16:07was it full
16:09how heavy was the cargo
16:11by examining the cargo manifest
16:14investigators discover that the plane was carrying an unusual load
16:18armored vehicles called MRAPs
16:21or mine resistant ambush protected vehicles
16:25these massive heavily armored cars can sustain roadside bombs
16:30they even have bulletproof wheels
16:33the crew had never flown these type of vehicles in this charter
16:36in fact the airline had not carried these kind of vehicles that were loaded on the airplane
16:42the plane was carrying five MRAPs weighing between 12 and 18 tons
16:48each vehicle was chained to a custom built pallet
16:51and secured with straps to the plane's main deck
16:54the cargo in this particular case was very heavy
16:58it was the first time they'd ever flown five vehicles this heavy
17:01ready to put some numbers in there
17:04yeah go ahead
17:05the crew landed at Bagram Air Base with a full cargo load of two hundred and seven thousand pounds
17:11then they refueled increasing the fuel load to a hundred and six thousand pounds
17:17zero fuel weight is two five nine two
17:21investigators calculate the precise weight being carried
17:26max takeoff weight is eight hundred and seventy thousand pounds
17:29we have two hundred and seven thousand pounds of cargo plus fuel
17:33they learned that even with the heavy cargo and fuel load
17:37the plane was not overweight
17:39it was almost two hundred thousand pounds under the safe limit
17:43weight was definitely not an issue
17:47something else must have brought the 747 cargo plane down
17:51even if the weight of the cargo was not responsible for the crash of flight 102
17:58the balance of the load could be the problem
18:01if the aircraft is loaded from the outset out of balance
18:05then that affects the performance of the airplane
18:08bring up the schematics
18:10investigators map out the placement of the MRAPs in the hold
18:13to study the balance of the load
18:16fill it with our cargo
18:18three MRAPs weigh eighteen tons each
18:21on the ends are smaller versions that weigh twelve tons a piece
18:25center of gravity with our vehicles in position looks like thirty point four percent
18:30after a few calculations they determine the balance of the load
18:34the airplane actually could carry the weight
18:36and as loaded was within the center of gravity
18:40it's a puzzling assessment but there's another possibility
18:44even if the load was balanced before takeoff
18:47it could have shifted as the plane was lifting off
18:51the focus now turns to the loading procedures
18:54specifically were the MRAPs properly secured
18:59standard cargo containers are locked into a hardware system
19:03built on tracks in the floor
19:05but oddly shaped oversized cargo like the MRAPs can't use these locks
19:12heavy nylon straps are secured to tie down points around the hold
19:17what became critical to me was the process of calculating the number of straps
19:21necessary to restrain these five vehicles
19:24the loadmaster on board the plane used a national airlines manual
19:28to calculate how many straps were needed to secure the vehicles
19:32based on their cargo operations manual
19:36the numbers were determined to be 24 straps for the 28,000 pound
19:41Matt V's and 26 straps for the three 40,000 pound Cougars
19:46and seeing his rationale for calculating those numbers
19:50all seemed to make sense to me
19:53despite the appearance of the dash cam video
19:56analysis has shown that the plane was not overweight
19:59it was properly balanced
20:02and the load was secured according to company's standards
20:06investigators need to find out what was going on inside the plane
20:11information from the black boxes will be crucial
20:14my airplane
20:17flight data recorders record what the elevator and the ailerons
20:21and what the control pitches are doing
20:23so we were very hopeful that we would get good information from those recorders
20:27that would help explain why the airplane had crashed
20:31hello
20:32a call comes in from the NTSB's head office in Washington D.C.
20:37hey
20:38you have the readouts?
20:40the black box data is in
20:42that's great
20:43but there's a problem
20:45really?
20:46I got a call from our director John Delisi
20:48and he informed me that unfortunately the flight data recorder
20:51and the cockpit voice recorder had quit working shortly after takeoff
20:56things started to go wrong shortly after liftoff
20:59known as the point of rotation
21:02but this is precisely the moment when the black boxes stopped recording
21:06having the FDR-CVR after the point of rotation would have been very helpful
21:10if we had none of that information
21:12thank you
21:14we really had to revert back to old methods of investigating
21:19so I call it old school methods
21:21investigators decide to contact eyewitnesses who might have seen the plane take off
21:29ok what else did you see?
21:31on a base of this size there may be thousands of people who could provide potential clues
21:37alright thanks very much
21:40you need really to interview many different witnesses and listen for the common thread
21:46that's the same through all of the witness statements
21:48sorry what did you see?
21:50one witness reports an unusual sight
21:53a runway sweeper is sure he saw puffs of smoke trailing behind the airplane after liftoff
21:59and it wasn't coming off the wings or out of the engines
22:03his testimony raises the possibility that a fire inside the plane may have caused the crash
22:10if a fire had started inside the cargo hold during liftoff
22:16there would be evidence of this on the pieces of wreckage from the interior of the plane
22:22the interesting thing was the tail portion
22:25the aft pressure bulkhead which is white in its color
22:28did not have any evidence to support that we had a fire on board the airplane
22:32the airplane before the impact
22:34there's no sign of any smoke residue
22:36there couldn't have been a fire on board
22:39investigators are at another ampass
22:43they still have no hard evidence about the final fatal moments of flight 102
22:53when you go to an accident scene where everything appears to be burned up and there's not a lot left
22:58how in the world can you do an investigation
23:01one thing for sure is there's always evidence
23:05bring up the CVR stand by
23:07in a search for answers investigators turned to the cockpit voice recorder
23:13it cut out just three seconds after liftoff
23:16but it was recording during the crew's hour-long wait on the tarmac
23:20what the heck
23:21what the heck
23:22let's hear the whole two hours might be something there
23:24there's your trouble Brad
23:27what is it
23:28sounds like the first officer is showing something to the captain
23:30there's your trouble Brad
23:32what is it
23:34one of the damn straps
23:36what is it
23:37buzzed
23:38buzzed there
23:39the CVR suggests the first officer found a broken strap
23:42inside the cargo hold
23:43like
23:45so are you going to be throwing more straps on that thing
23:48well it just shifted apparently
23:50did the truck move
23:51yeah just tighten up on the straps
23:53holy crap one of those things actually moved
23:56so we're hearing the crew talk about that the load had shifted
23:59also that a strap had broken
24:01definitely piqued our interest
24:04go again
24:05all the straps are keeping them from moving backwards
24:08those things shouldn't budge an inch
24:10despite investigators earlier conclusion that the heavy load was properly secured
24:14and therefore could not shift
24:16the CVR recording indicates that the opposite was true
24:19so from that information we know that they had a load shift when they came in and landed
24:24and that was very important to us in our investigation
24:26all the straps are keeping them from moving backwards
24:29we're loose
24:30what the hell do you think is going to happen when you slam it on the runway
24:33slam on the brakes and don't use reverse
24:36well there ain't nothing you could have done about that
24:38I'm getting off this plane
24:40I'm scared
24:41they have no idea how serious this really is
24:43really the crew is not trained or equipped to actually be involved in knowing whether the restraints are proper for the load
24:53I hope instead of just replacing that strap he's beefing the strap up more
24:58yeah he's cinching them all down
25:00stop
25:01he would be load master Michael Sheets
25:05the load master in a cargo operation is the one that's responsible for the security of the load
25:12so everyone is depending upon them
25:14what's up dude
25:16did you throw that other strap away
25:18did you put a couple more on
25:20how far did it move a couple inches
25:22yeah they just move a couple inches because it's nylon you know
25:24these things are so heavy you'd think they probably wouldn't hardly move no matter what
25:29they always move
25:31everything moves
25:33so if those straps weren't fixed right
25:35then the back vehicle could have come loose on takeoff
25:38that cargo shifts during rotation
25:41you'll wind up with a potential pitch problem
25:44did the MRAPs shift after takeoff?
25:46to answer this question
25:48the team must find a way to piece together events in the cargo hold in the moments before the crash
25:53so there's no evidence of a weapon
25:56investigators need to prove that one of the heavy mine resistant ambush protected vehicles shifted during the flight
26:04clues might be hard to find in the minimal and scattered remains of the aircraft
26:10but the one thing as investigators that we do is we go into a very chaotic environment and we bring order to it
26:18okay guys great just put that down right to the center there
26:21so I gathered as much of the aft pressure bulkhead structure as I could
26:25and I believe we came up with at least 90 to 95 percent of it
26:29the aft pressure bulkhead is an airtight wall
26:32it protects the cargo area from the non-pressurized tail section of the aircraft
26:40investigators sort out pieces of the liner that covers the cargo hold side of the bulkhead
26:48you definitely go with this guy here
26:51come on
26:52take a look at this
26:53I can guess what that is
26:55and you could read the words Goodyear
26:57what became obvious was that the tire from the aft mat V had impacted the aft pressure bulkhead
27:03and left that tire impact on the liner
27:08bam
27:09it looked as if that tire had pressed up like a rubber stamp on the aft pressure bulkhead
27:14only one tire capable of doing that
27:16the mark matches the spare tire in the top right corner of the rear vehicle
27:22the vehicle itself was found tipped over in the wreckage
27:25damaged but not destroyed by fire
27:29pass me that flashlight will you
27:34the metal antenna box from the rear of the same MRAP is damaged
27:38and provides another big clue
27:41look at that
27:44paint transfer
27:47the box sits up high at the back of the MRAP
27:50that looks like a direct hit
27:52the only place that we could think of where there was orange paint was the cockpit voice recorder and the flight data recorder
27:59to hit the flight recorders the MRAP would have had to shift at least 12 feet
28:05could it have moved that far
28:07a few quick measurements show that the height of the paint transfer on the antenna box lines up neatly with the location of the orange recorders inside the plane
28:17the antenna box sat about 104 inches above floor level and where the CVR and FDR are located is 104 inches above the floor of the aircraft
28:32now you're starting to see a chain of events that this vehicle had to be moving in an afterward direction
28:38both black boxes stopped recording seconds after takeoff
28:43because a 12 ton MRAP knocked them out
28:47but even if the heavy vehicle damaged the flight recorders
28:51would it have been able to somehow bring down a huge 747
28:56investigators turned to the only wreckage left to examine
29:08the collection of unidentified parts found on the runway
29:11these items were all recovered from the runway
29:14in the area near the point of rotation for the flight
29:17rotate
29:21at Bagram airfield the runway stretches for over 2 miles
29:31the parts were discovered at the spot where the aircraft lifted off
29:36one mile from the site of the crash
29:39it is uncertain what relevance if any they have
29:43where were these parts on the airplane did they come from the nose section
29:46did they come from the aft section of the airplane
29:49what function did they serve on the airplane
29:52experts at Boeing have been able to identify them
29:56here we go
29:58hydraulic return tubing
30:00one of the parts
30:01a broken piece of tubing
30:03comes from hydraulic system number 2
30:06bring up the hydraulic system schematic
30:09the 747 has 4 hydraulic lines that power the control systems of the aircraft
30:14hydraulic system number 2 carries fluid along the deck floor
30:20and through the aft pressure bulkhead at the back of the plane
30:24the tube runs through here
30:26the number 2 hydraulic system operates one of the 4 airplane elevator panels
30:31the elevator panels control pitch from the tail of the aircraft
30:34if the rear vehicle shifted backwards through the bulkhead
30:37if the rear vehicle shifted backwards through the bulkhead
30:41it could have hit the hydraulic tubing affecting control of the airplane
30:45okay let's play it
30:48investigators decide to take a closer look at the dash cam video
30:53play it again this time in slow motion
31:15upon close examination they notice something odd
31:18freeze
31:24something's not right
31:26advance a few frames
31:28a little more
31:30stop
31:35what's going on
31:37something's wonky with the landing gear
31:40large aircraft like the 747
31:43they have a very complicated landing gear
31:45they have a very similar
31:46system to carry the loads that they carry
31:48they come down together and they go up together
31:51and it takes several hydraulic systems to make that happen
31:54the hydraulic systems that control landing gear
31:57also regulate various other parts of the plane
32:00including control surfaces that affect pitch
32:06using animation software
32:08the investigators create a match for the 747 with its 5 sets of landing gear
32:12now let's compare the model to the video
32:15now let's compare the model to the video
32:21these are down
32:23and this one here
32:25is up
32:27that shouldn't happen
32:29that shouldn't happen
32:39positive climb
32:41on national airlines flight 102
32:44one of the last commands recorded refers to the landing gear
32:48gear up
32:50gear up
32:52but after that exchange not all the gear retracted
32:54when I see a configuration of an airplane with part of the landing gear up
32:59part of it down
33:01I immediately think that they've had a hydraulic failure of one or more of the hydraulic systems
33:07it looks like damage to one of the four hydraulic lines may have happened in the air
33:12now
33:14which systems are out
33:20body
33:22landing gear
33:29the nose and body landing gear didn't retract
33:32it must have been system one
33:33we were able to determine that the number one hydraulic system had been damaged
33:38at some point before the airplane hit the ground
33:41the discovery of the broken hydraulic line
33:44explains the eyewitness account of smoke
33:47as hydraulic fluid vaporizes behind the airplane it appears to look like smoke
33:53investigators think they have finally cracked the mystery
33:56the heavy armoured vehicle came loose
34:03smashed through the back of the plane
34:05and took out the hydraulic lines
34:08making the plane uncontrollable
34:14after eleven days in Bagram
34:17the investigators are ready to head home
34:20all that's left to do is wrap up the case with a simulation test back in Washington
34:24we really thought that we had the cause of the accident
34:30but there was more to the story
34:34at NTSB headquarters in Washington DC
34:39glad to be back
34:41investigators are preparing to finalize the case
34:44all they have to do is to verify their theory
34:47the damaged hydraulics made it impossible for the pilots to recover from the steep climb
34:51so once we got back to the United States
34:54the next step was to do simulations
34:57reenact the accident scenario
35:00first they model the 747 with two broken hydraulic systems to test the cargo shift
35:06Airplane Performance Group Chairman Tim Birch oversees the simulations
35:13if I had one of these armoured vehicles move back
35:16and there was an associated center of gravity shift
35:20is the airplane controllable
35:22ok what else do we know
35:24let's try the new balance numbers
35:27let's take what we know up to a point
35:31and then start doing the what if scenarios with the simulation
35:35to see if we can put together a story that makes sense
35:38ok plane let's see what you do now
35:40but when they run the simulation of the rear vehicle coming loose
35:45something totally unexpected happens
35:48NOS comes down and flies out of trouble
35:51let's shift even more weight back
35:53let's push the center of gravity even further
35:58let's try that
35:59even with two hydraulic systems broken
36:13and an MRAP crushed into the back of the plane
36:16the simulations show that the aircraft can be controlled
36:20alright we're missing something
36:23the theory that seems so solid in Afghanistan is now a bust
36:26so we started scratching our heads
36:31there was something more that we were missing
36:33most of the airplane wreckage
36:36now lies buried near the crash site in Afghanistan
36:39thousands of miles away
36:41only selected parts have been sent to the United States for analysis
36:46investigators must sift through photographs from the site
36:51to search for new evidence that might explain what caused the crash
36:56so we needed to look further and the next thing behind the aft pressure bulkhead that can control pitch on the aircraft is the jack screw
37:19hey
37:27where'd that stabilizer jack screw end up
37:29the horizontal stabilizer is a large control surface that helps balance the plane in the air
37:35the jack screw about six feet tall
37:38lowers and raises the edge of the stabilizer in response to the pilots commands
37:45the jack screw found at the crash site was bent and severed right near its base
37:53the most likely explanation seemed to be that the damage occurred on impact
37:57but just to make sure it was sent to the US for testing
38:02what we were surprised to find out was that the jack screw had actually been pushed aft
38:07and had broken loose from the airplane
38:10results show that the jack screw was bent backwards
38:13the opposite of how it would have bent in the crash
38:16so that raised the big question why what could have pushed it aft
38:29do we have a print out of this
38:31to find out what could have hit the jack screw
38:34investigators consult a diagram of the airplane's aft section
38:37they take some careful measurements and come up with a match
38:42yep
38:45straight hit
38:47I was able to determine that the bumper of the mat V lines up directly with the motor of the jack screw in the area where it detached from the lower fuselage
38:58they input the new data the simulation now includes a broken jack screw that makes the stabilizer free floating
39:10one MRAP at the back
39:12two elevators down
39:19equals one uncontrollable plane
39:21investigators finally know that an MRAP crashing into the jack screw is what brought the airplane down
39:28but there's still one major mystery
39:31we're not done yet
39:33there's one more question
39:34how did that MRAP come loose?
39:36in bag room
39:38the load master had calculated the correct number of straps to use on each vehicle
39:42he based his calculations on the company's cargo operating manual
39:46how could the cargo have come loose if he followed the right procedure?
39:52I immediately began contacting other cargo operators to understand what is supposed to be done to restrain free floating cargo using straps
40:02when executives from Boeing review the procedures, they're less than impressed
40:07the manufacturers were quite shocked at how they were interpreting the requirements
40:12to get the maximum load capacity out of each strap
40:16it has to be tied down at a precise angle
40:19changing the angle changes the straps capacity
40:23the airline hadn't spelled this out in its manual
40:29Boeing when you look at their manual they say that if you pull on a strap directly
40:33let's say that it's worth 3500 pounds
40:37but if you go up on a 45 degree angle
40:40it's worth even less
40:42and if you pull on it a 90 degree angle
40:45it's worth zero
40:47National Airlines manual said regardless of angle
40:51each strap could be counted for 5,000 pounds
40:55Boeing's own calculations found that National Airlines Flight 102
40:59took off with less than half the straps required on each vehicle
41:05At the most they could have carried one MAP-V vehicle
41:10What's up dude?
41:13Investigators find no fault with flight loadmaster Michael Sheets
41:18he had little training
41:20he wasn't certified
41:22without knowing it he'd based his calculations on a faulty manual
41:25my heart goes out to the loadmaster in this situation
41:29the data the manuals that he had to go by were incorrect
41:33so he was really in a no-win situation
41:38but the cargo shift itself would not have brought down the plane
41:44the crash ultimately occurred because the sliding MRAP
41:49damaged the horizontal stabilizer
41:50you take away the horizontal tail
41:53you're not going to be able to control this airplane in pitch
41:56this was an uncontrollable event
41:59without the horizontal stabilizer
42:02the pilots inputs made the plane do the exact opposite of what they wanted
42:07a command to lower the nose
42:09suddenly caused the plane to pitch up
42:11there's a total disconnect between what you're doing as a pilot
42:15and what the airplanes doing
42:16and it must have been terrifying
42:20I can't truthfully imagine it other than just sheer panic
42:25the NTSB's final report finds that the probable cause of the accident
42:33was National Airlines inadequate procedures for restraining special cargo loads
42:38it concludes that the improper restraint of the rear vehicle allowed it to move back
42:46hit the aft pressure bulkhead
42:48knocked out the two hydraulic systems and the horizontal stabilizer
42:53making it impossible for the crew to regain control of the airplane
42:56one of the key recommendations is for mandatory certification of all cargo handling personnel
43:09a move that would standardize their procedures, training and workloads
43:15I know that there are economics involved in using more certified people
43:21but I certainly hope that they end up making load masters in these cargo operations
43:27certified just like anybody else
43:30so reflecting back on this investigation
43:33there were many hurdles
43:35we went into Afghanistan with a very very small team
43:39we had to go back to old school methods
43:41but at the end we actually came out with safety recommendations
43:48that I believe are going to prevent an accident like this one from happening again
43:53I don't forget the tragedy
43:56but I also have a lot of pride that I believe that we've been able to make a difference
43:59to make a difference
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