The Gimli Glider! Explained

[@davewalker9926]

I flew the partially repaired 767 from Gimli to Winnipeg a few days after the incident. - Capt. David Walker, Flight Manager 767 (retired)

[@Rx7man]

That's interesting!.. how "repaired" was it? They got the nose gear fixed, new tires, etc on the back?, maybe a little bodywork with pop rivets?

[@davewalker9926]

@@Rx7man It was a very partial repair. We couldn't raise the landing gear. Max speed of 210 knots indicated. Only two pilots allowed, no passengers.

[@joewaldner6986]

@@davewalker9926 Fascinating. I'll assume to save weight you would have calculated bare minimum of fuel to get you off the ground and to Winnipeg. Did you go VFR? You need 30 minutes extra fuel or was that waived?

[@Rx7man]

@@davewalker9926 I'm not surprised about no passengers allowed! Good job getting it home

[@gustavmeyrink_2.0]

@@davewalker9926 where would they have got passengers from on a drag strip? 'Come to see the drag racing and get a free flight to Winnipeg'?

[@donalddecuypere8757]

Good day. I'm 83 now, but back when this occurred I was an Enroute Air Traffic Controller in the Winnipeg Area Traffic Control Centre. This is the first time that I've heard the whole story of this incident that I observed at the time. Thank you.

[@rosekay5031]

You must have some stories to tell

[@calvinv3478]

@@rosekay5031 definitely

[@rolfen]

There are many documentaries and articles about this incident. However this channel is very good at telling stories, I'm glad you heard it here first.

[@MrSigmatico]

I think they have done a documentary on National geographic as well

[@thenorseguy2495]

@@MrSigmatico Yes. That is where I first heard about this

[@martquin8232]

Hello, my name is Martin Quintal and I am the son of first officer Maurice Quintal. I know captain Pearson pretty well as my dad flew many times with him. Mr. Mentour pilot, you made quite a good video about the story of air canada flight 143. Maybe that event be remembered to all pilots.

[@wisdomrules8474]

You must be so proud of your father, Martin! Are you a pilot too?

[@Iugeer]

You must be so proud of your father, Martin! Are you a pilot too?

[@tarekadam9652]

I met Bob at my dad’s office in Selkirk when I was maybe 10 years old. My dad was always cool, calm, and collected. An emergency room surgeon. However, he was really excited to chat with Bob after the event. I’d never seen him like that. A striking memory.

[@johndone5906]

I flew as a training Captain on Boeing 727, 737 (200-900), 747 (200, 300 an 400), and also for a short time on the 767. The MEL is a pilots document, it is an absolute no discussion no override book. You are correct there is a maintainable version of the MEL that gives the engineers more latitude to dispatch buy using one time only maintenance release usually to get the aircraft home for repair on non-revenue flight. The Captain Never has the right to override the MEL even if receiving approval from maintenance control. This story I have used many time to demonstrate this doctrine to new Captains. Aviations ability to learn from past mistakes is one of its strongest features. Once again your ability to turn complex technical discussion into easy to understand story is superb. I think we need a medal for “excellence in aviation story telling”.

[@lodnisroub]

I used this incident several times in my physics classes, vector math, glide ratio, the importance of correct unit conversion, and to test whether they do a reality check on their results and understand how flying works. It is a perfect example :-D

[@dutchhoke6555]

Exactly..check your work. I recall unit conversions from college physics ; You're either right on, or way off.

[@joshcarter-com]

In any physics class I took I was required to have units on EVERY number. Teacher would mark it wrong without units. That sounds harsh but this example is precisely why you do that. If the units don’t work out then you’re doing the problem wrong!

[@IroAppe]

I also thought about that. But if they were even slightly neglecting, which the wrong conversion ratio hints towards, they probably just took the number 1.77 and wrote kg/l behind it. In that case, writing the units down, wouldn't have helped, because after the number they then wrote kg, and the rest of the calculation then works "correctly", even though it isn't, because they haven't checked their prerequisites.

[@joshcarter-com]

The physics nerd in me is compelled to mention that 1 liter of water has 1 kilogram of mass. It makes a good sanity check: if you’re writing down a liquid conversion that’s substantially different than 1 Kg/L you should wonder, is this close to the same density as water? If so the number should be around 1.

[@R2Bl3nd]

​@@joshcarter-comThat's the first thing I thought of when I got to the relevant part in the video; The density of fuel tends to be a bit less than water but not an extreme amount. 1 kg equals 1 l, of water, so unless your fuel is made of mercury, it's a pretty good approximation if you just want to do a sanity check. I don't know why they weren't more careful about the calculations here but I guess that's just the thing. There was just a particular combination of human failures. Almost always the chain is broken at some point. In this case, the chain of events leading to utter disaster was broken only by superior piloting skills.

[@capt.davidtomlinson9951]

One other factor in the successful conclusion of this story is the condition of the Gimli strip. Built in 1943 for the Canadian airforce and, after 40-years, it was still in great shape! I say that proudly as my Dad built it ...

[@henkvandenbos9769]

He did a great job!

[@davecrupel2817]

Your dad indirectly saved the lives of everyone on that airplane! BAM! how do you like that one?

[@cathyburkart9395]

👏👏👏♥️

[@darrellshoub7527]

wow ! just ... wow !!!!!! That is so cool . I love those kind of mini sories in the comments !

[@ethelcross3599]

First things first, I think you are a very handsome gentleman, your voice and accent are charming...hsving said all that, I find your videos and narrative absolutely funtastic and entertsining...I have done a lot of flying as a passenger the longest ones with Qantas from Aussieland to my country Nicaragua..I am now a happily retired passenger in Nicaland enjoying your videos and remembering one flight where the Pilot allowed me to Enter the cabin and sit in the stewardess sit and he explained a few things to me...this, of course was before 911...

[@bartomand3681]

My best friend was one of those kids. His dad was one of the first people on site with both of his pits fire extinguishers. They were interviewed for one of the books that was written about it. The Air Canada maintenance crew that were dispatched from Winnipeg ended up running out of gas on their way to Gimli.

[@jimmesc]

They ran out of gas ? ? ? Seriously ? ? ? That is hilarious ! 😂

[@moi01887]

@@jimmesc Yeah, that's just too ironic.

[@zygas25]

Oddly enough this whole dilemma started due to funky math

[@tomriley5790]

Oh you couldn't make it up:-)!

[@Guyfromhe]

I read those bike kids got "attacked" by a Cessna emergency landing or something like 10 years ago in a pickup truck on the highway... Is that true?

[@halepauhana153]

As a Canadian pilot, the story of the Gimli Glider is the stuff of legends here. I heard that when C-GUAN was retired to the Mojave Desert in 2008, Captain Pearson, FO Quintal, 3 of the flight attendants, and some of the original passengers, all went along for the last ride.

[@deepakshetty8165]

That is unique

[@NicolaW72]

Indeed.

[@jamesjay1979]

That is cool!

[@pawllein2594]

Awesome

[@Robbo1966]

Wonderful to hear this

[@joesanchez4895]

Bob Pearson was respected in the late 80s . The first flight I ever boarded at five years old the flight attendant mentioned his name and he came out and said hi to the cabin . Cheers and applause instantly filled the cabin. Well deserved too! This is the best explanation I have Ever seen for this accident! Thank you!!

[@dbr2355]

I lived in Gimli from 73 ( grade one) to 89. I rember learning the metric system that year. The Air Force pulled out of Gimli in 1972. It was a training center. To me and my friends the old base was a playground to us, as in the early years of my life, we lived in the PMQs next to the base. In 1984, I was in my driveway ( in 1980 we moved about 5 miles from the base out to the countryside close to i tiny place called Husavik) downwind of the airbase when the plan flew a few hundred feet overhead. It was very silent with just some wind rushing past it, this was audible as they were close to me and the ground. I thought it was weird such a large aircraft was heading in. Next day, there it was.. I was working in the base during this summer ( still young guy going from grade 10 to 11) at Hanger 5, which was the operations of OCA ( Ontario Central Airlines) as my father was employed there. Air Canada approached my dads Boss, Barney Lamm, and made him a deal. The deal was, help us, and let our guys set up a work base in your hanger and in return Air Canada granted Barney and Marion ( his wife) a leftime pass on Air Canada Flights ( they have long since past. Barney is a legend, look him up.) Barney gave them his own office to use and directed my father to help in any way he could. My Father and I, along with others, moved equipment to the runway/dragstrip ( jacks, a large"moose" tractor) to haul it back to the hanger after the front wheel was repaired. The nose was missing allot of material in the general area of the undercarige. We tried using our 10 ton moose which had a 460 ford V8 and creeper 1st gear and a small dozer hook together, but the tires had sank into the pavement enough ( our bigest aircraft was a DC3 .....its hot in the summer there so the old asphalt was soft and not made for a heavy aircraft like this) that it was a no go... blew the clutch on the moose. Air Canada operations had to flatdeck a big 30 ton moose from the Winnipeg Airport to move the plane. Incidentally when the plane came to a stop, not only was the nose gear collapsed, all the other tires we're missing almost the whole bottom of them from the brakes being jammed on as the plane barreld down the dragstrip. The rubber was completely gone like somebody sliced the bottom of the tires right off . When the day came to leave after repairs were done, they made an announcement that they would be leaving on the following day, in the afternoon. However, they pulled a little bit of a fast one because on that particular day, as I was pulling out of the driveway to head to the hangar to start work at 8am, I saw the plane flying overhead and heading back to Winnipeg. They just didn't want to have anybody around when they left, I guess just in case. One other point I like to just correct is that there wasn't a drag race going on, but there were children playing on the drag strip and then in the pit area there was a small circuit track. So the people who were actually at the races that day were using the circuit track with midget racers at the far end of the 1/4 Mile Strip in the pit area. When the plane came down it came right down on the centre guardrail of the 1/4 mile track ( was an NHRA sanctioned track at the time...saw many a race there) and picked out all the short little post that were holding it in place. The posts were old and weak. The plane came to rest long before it reached the pit area which is a good thing because at the beginning of that 1/4 milestrip are the Christmas lights and also there is a building there a small booth as well as wires going back and forth. There is an active runway in Gimli still to the day, but he chose the "wrong" one I think because it was visible first . The runways are parallel and the tiwer is unmanned. The next year I worked the Gimli Parks . We honored the flight crew by bring some of them in for the Icelandic Celebration on the August long weekend. I even got to drive in the parade in my convertible Beattle with Mayor Ted Arnason riding high in the back tossing candies to the kids. Great memories.

[@pcguy619]

That was a great story. I really hope it's immortalized here!

[@pradiptanugraha6410]

it's ironic that the pilot that flew the plane back to winnipeg is also here in the comments

[@pradiptanugraha6410]

it's ironic that the pilot that flew the plane back to winnipeg is also here in the comments

[@arfyness]

Come for the video, stay for the audience story time!

[@michaelrmurphy2734]

I think the Gimli Glider is in the desert in Arizona now. It should be returned to Manitoba to that airstrip. When the airplane runs out of fuel have a CANADIAN pilot on board! We have done it twice, you know!

[@jimbaritone6429]

One of the other lucky breaks that Bob Pearson and Maurice Quintal had was that the ATC at Winnipeg was still equipped with a large, high-power military "skin-paint" radar system, in addition to the more modern transponder system. They llit that up in order to be able to see the altitude, range and bearing of the aircraft - since it no longer had a transponder and was not visible on the regular ATC system. The controller was able to give Quintal pretty good readings on his range and bearing as well as height above ground, so Maurice Quintal was able to calculate their descent rate and forward speed in addition to position. My parents lived in Edmonton; my dad, also a pilot, knew Bob Pearson quite well. I remember the news in the papers and on TV at the time, and I was introduced to First Officer Quintal a bit later. In spite of the procedural errors that led to this happening, it's hard to overstate just how amazing Pearson's performance was in side-slipping and yawing that 767. He had almost no power, poor visibility because of the aircraft attitude and cockpit windows, and although Quintal was getting good information from Winniped ATC and plotting course and distance to the Gimli strip, Bob Pearson was carrying the can, and had absolutely zero options. Not enough speed or altitude (or control function) to do a full turn, or go around. Nope, he had to reduce airspeed and loose a lot of altitude in a pretty short time. It remains one of the most outstanding episodes of airmanship I know. Both Pearson and Quintal were very experienced - I belive Bob Pearson had over 16,000 hours in large jets, and Maurice Quintal over 4200 hours, in addition to his time in the RCAF. If it was going to happen, there would not be too many crews who had that combination of experience and skills. Several years later, I flew on that particular 767 to YVR, and noticed that there was a small plaque mounted near the forward entranceway, saying that this _was_ the famous "Gimli Glider."

[@roderickcampbell2105]

Even more information I didn't know about. Thanks for adding this. The flight crew's performance is legendary. No one is perfect and to get this aircraft down without fatalities is amazing. I would have loved to see that plaque!

[@kwerk2011]

That's a brilliant addition to the video, thank you!

[@donnix768]

It stayed with the air canada fleet until 2009 i believe.

[@alexmcintyre8229]

A few months after the landing in Gimli Manitoba, Bob Pearson and Maurice Quintal were both working with each other again and they both quickly realized that the 767 that they were on board was the “Gimli Glider”

[@trooperdgb9722]

Hadn't one of them operated FROM that (now closed) airbase while in the RCAF? And had more familiarity with that runway than most other pilots would have had? Ahh..I should have just kept watching!

[@starcraftguy1]

Also worth noting is that several air crews gave the situation a try in the simulator but all crashed. So a very unique situation with rare circumstances.

[@cayrick]

The consequences were different for the actual flight crew than for the wanna be's.

[@ilovecops5499]

NO, THAT IS A CONSPIRACY THEORIE, IT IS NTO VERIFIED, I FATT CHECKWD IT!

[@agcons]

@@ilovecops5499 Im srue yu di d teh bets reseearc h.

[@marhawkman303]

@@cayrick well part of it is experience. Pearson did maneuvers in a 767 that, for stated reasons, no one trains on. It's that simple. NO one in their right mind would do that side slip during normal operation because of the risk of flameout. Pearson was a person who had practiced the maneuver in other aircraft. He hadn't in a 767, but. well he at least knew how to do the maneuver safely. The part that's most impressive.... is that this wasn't a CRASH landing... nope. Not normal, by any means, but not a crash landing. But C-GAUN left Gimli under its own power and was returned to active service.... yeah... it came in with no fuel, skidded down the runway.... but wasn't wrecked. It takes a heck of a pilot to land an aircraft like that. I'd love to shake his hand.

[@gordonepema722]

@@marhawkman303 The sideslip explanation given by Petter was a bit weird - the engines were dead, so turbulent air off the forebody wouldn't affect the engines here. Sideslips do present a risk of stalling the wing that is partially blocked by the forebody. Not a risk for this aircraft-plenty of wing I suppose. I know of a Cold Lake T-33 crash caused by a sideslip maneuver where that happened - too close to the ground to recover.

[@RobinHood70]

As one of the people who requested this a while back, I'd like to thank you for covering this story. This was easily the most detailed version of it I've ever heard, and included several facts that I'd never come across in any other video about the incident. Thank you!

[@jeremyO9F911O2]

There's a museum today in Gimili dedicated to the incident. Nice little town to check out too, especially during the Icelandic festival.

[@alfredomarquez9777]

EXACTLY RobinHood70 !!! This video comfirms the excellent contents and insight of MENTOUR PILOT, it is a very valuable channel indeed. I was nicely surprised to learn several unknown aspects too, even when I had read at lenght on this accident.

[@michaelwoodhams7866]

For a couple of years I taught a physics course to student pilots. The very first thing I did with them was the Gimli Glider fuel calculation (as unit conversions was the first topic.)

[@scottguffie7759]

I remember watching the "Mayday: Air Investigations" Episode covering this incident and they made it sound like it was almost entirely the ground crew's fault/ Glad to hear that the problem was much more complex than just one person screwing up.

[@steveedwardsab]

I thought I was alone in this thought. I even thought I missed that part of the story from Mayday.

[@mrbigw100]

Yeah they said the fuel truck used pounds instead of kgs or something didn’t they

[@Kanbei11]

It often is, but that doesn't make good TV so they skip over the nuance

[@anjakellenjeter]

Yeah, ACI isn't always good with nuance. This is particularly noticeable if you watch some of the early episodes with cases they've revisited later due to losing the rights to the earlier seasons - some of the newer ones have greater nuance than the older ones. I do remember seeing the refueller log for this in that episode though and there's no denying it was pure jokes as far as technical paperwork goes.

[@MissusAnon]

In an aircraft investigation there is never one single cause, but a chain of mistakes that lead to an accident. In the end there are usually some more culpable than others, but it doesn't change that the airlines are a system of people working together holding each other accountable, I mean we have to be. We're humans capable of error.

[@likebot.]

I remember the Gimli Glider incident and later being annoyed when learning it was a Imperial/Metric error still being made 10 years after Canada converted to Metric. What you explained here really helps because I hadn't known that the 767 was the first Boeing in Canada to have Metric guages and that this particular peice of equipment had a fuel tank guage malfunction. Thanks for this!

[@davidianmusic4869]

News reports of the day left it solely to the conversion error, little or no mention of broken gauges. The impression I was left with was the ground crew was in error. As good as the flying was, I’m less impressed with the aircrew.

[@alfredomarquez9777]

@@davidianmusic4869 Don't forget to take into account that the Confirmation Bias of Captain Pearson was favored by his previous conversation with the previous flight captain, who seeded the misunderstanding, and even more facilitated by the tecnician that left the Circuit Breaker open, that inclined Pearson to believe that the whole fuel gauge system was fully inoperative. A perfect "Swiss Cheese holes" alignement case!

[@likebot.]

@Andrew Phillips it began in 1970 lasted 15 years. Schools in my province started teaching it in 1973 but we used both systems right up to University.

[@TheOwenMajor]

@@likebot. Metricfication in Canada was another one of Trudeau's efforts to shape the country in his image, it was never popular and died with his government.

[@likebot.]

@@TheOwenMajor What does PETRO-CAN stand for?

[@cgirl111]

As over a two decade nuclear power plant operations supervisor I learned early on that as far as turn overs are concerned it's "trust nobody - check everything". It served me well.

[@brandtaylor93]

trust but verify

[@mmi16]

As a 5 decade railroader - You NAILED it. Turnover is the most dangerous time on the job. What you understand and what THEY understand can be two very different things. Additionally - don't remove blocking devices on 'in service' equipment - the blocks are there for a reason.

[@cgirl111]

@@mmi16 This is why when a nuke plant goes into an outage, which is operations busiest time, we go to 12 hour shifts to eliminate one turnover per day.

[@alfredomarquez9777]

@@mmi16 I agree completely... See the CSB (Chemical Safety Board) video on KZbin on the accident with explosion and fire at the BP Refinery in Texas City... There you can see the operators leaving early and the following turnover arrive late, and the absolute lack of coordination and communication! The same exactly on the accident where a Turboprop lost the horizontal stab-elevator because maintenance left the repair incomplete, and the next turn did not inspected the partial repair!

[@Muck006]

Basically all nuclear power plant accidents happen because of HUMANS MAKING MISTAKES. The technology is safe ... IN THEORY ... but people can turn a valve the wrong way or have brainfarts while designing a power plant (like "let's put the emergency batteries in the BASEMENT of our power plant at the shore"). Because of "humans make mistakes" nuclear power is UNSAFE ... and shouldnt be used. And do NOT trust "experts" who never held a spanner in their life ... like a certain "physicist" Angela Merkel, who signed off on a nuclear waste dump here in Germany while she was minister of ecology under Helmut Kohl ... and which is now so irradiated that cleanup can begin in 2030 at the earliest.

[@dansv1]

I almost didn’t watch this because I’d heard the story at least 3 times before. However this presentation had much more information.

[@Hans-gb4mv]

I mostly know it from the movie.

[@Trotters79]

Same. Lots of details mentioned here which appear to have been simplified or left out in the Air Crash Investigation / Mayday TV series.

[@Markle2k]

@@Trotters79 Even other aviation KZbinrs didn't as clearly communicate the issue with the MEL that made it clear why the pilots were demoted/suspended at first. It seemed like they were scapegoated before by the airline.

[@SYNtemp]

@@Markle2k Eh, or they shifted own error to the airline... both quite possible. IMO, they showed excellent skills while correcting own and also others errors...

[@aaronsmith5433]

@@Markle2k I was scapegoated in a similar faction(not my fault but blamed on me). Upset initially, I soon calmed down and enjoyed my unpaid vacation to do some traveling I otherwise would have never been able to. I know they'd never go for it , but I'll take the blame for anything just to do that again.

[@barryaiello3127]

Although Pearson was part of the error that allowed it to run out of fuel his flying ability was insane, holding that large bird in a slip with but a whisper of hydraulic boost was done with pure determination and an impressive display of physical strength.

[@mathewlovesnow4939]

Yes, he was part of the error. math and measurement conversion mistake. US Imperial measurement vs Metric (international) measurement. for his flying skills that help landed the plane, thanks to his experience and skills as glider plane pilot

[@didreams969]

I’m so glad they got credit and appreciation for their brilliant handling and being mentally able to respond and not panic

[@alan2804]

Air accident investigations are one of my favourite subjects, they combine the technical, analytical and the human side of events. Some are shocking, some are absolutely fantastic like Captain Chesley Sullenberger landing safely in the Hudson river. So whether the cause was human error, incompetence or just back luck or design failure they all have an individual story to tell. Please keep the series going.

[@kodewerk]

Amazing that it worked out as well as it did. Fun fact, the crew sent out from Winnipeg had their truck run out of gas on their way to recover the plane. I also love your use of conformation bias and how it played a role in this disaster. Unsurprisingly, you see this all the time although the situations are never quite this dramatic.

[@brentgalye2936]

I was at the races in Gimli that day, watched the whole thing. Also had the pleasure of taking most of the crew for real glider rides at the air cadet gliding camp a year or two later. If Bob had been a couple of miles short he could have used our farm strip... LOL, little bit short.

[@Dirk-van-den-Berg]

One question Sir: in the report Mentour says: the emergency slides were hanging almost vertical. How did the people on the plane get out? The wings were too high to jump to the ground.

[@orbitalpotato9940]

@@Dirk-van-den-Berg they just got out the front ones lol

[@Dirk-van-den-Berg]

@@orbitalpotato9940 Why Lol? I don't see anything funny here.

[@orbitalpotato9940]

@@Dirk-van-den-Berg im loling at the lack of critical thinking in your comment.

[@brentgalye2936]

@@Dirk-van-den-Berg The R1 and R2 slides where almost vertical (most aft slides) and those that came out those doors were for the most part injured, The over wing exits and the forward exits were much better. The over wings the passengers slid off the front of the wing, not the aft where the slides were and only had a short drop to the ground. The forward exits the slides were almost flat to the ground and after jumping onto the slide they only had to shimmy down the slide to exit. It was an exciting day in Gimli to say the least. I also watched that very same aircraft take off from that airport some time later after temp repairs and that was also exciting. I had the pleasure of also flying on that plane a few years later on a trip to Europe.

[@poppabear9279]

I know someone else who needs an outstanding airmanship award. Petter, for delivering some excellent content on public awareness, continuous training and consistently calming public opinion about air safety and even teaching young aspiring pilots an inside view at what being a pilot really means.

[@davidanderson4091]

I am astonished that there was any possibility at all to have a _"circuit breaker out"_ indication while it was closed (pushed in). Without exception, in 20 years of aviation maintenance, every circuit breaker tag I have ever used could *not* be fitted to a closed circuit breaker, and if the circuit breaker was pulled and tagged, you could not push it in without removing the tag.

[@mehere8038]

What year did you start? If you started after this incident, then your experience isn't the least bit uprising, let alone astonishing is it. The results of investigations into incidents like this is normally to make system changes that eliminate the possibility of it ever happening again, which is what you are describing finding in your work

[@davidanderson4091]

@@mehere8038 After I completed my training, I started my _"hands on aircraft"_ career in 1973 working on C-130 Hercules and P3B Orions. Every C/B on those aircraft had a round, black head with the rating written on it. When you pulled the breaker, the shaft was white (so you could see it was pulled) and slimmer than the head. The tags were small red plastic rectangles with an upside down keyhole - the large end slipped over the head of the C/B and the small end slid down snugly over the shaft. It was physically impossible to push the C/B back in with the tag in place. We all had our own tags with our names on them, so that anyone could look at the tag and know who pulled and tagged that breaker.

[@TheDevilWAH]

I always love the attention you give to all partied involved in these incidents (enginees, ground crew, cabin crew, ATC,etc) While the pilot is at the center many of the stories it rally gives a sense of how all the role orking togather are what ends up minimising the imact of the issues the occour and often end up with every one safely walking away.

[@rootsid]

I am not a pilot nor do I have any connection to the aviation industry, however I do always learn from and enjoy Mentour Pilot video's. Thank you sir!

[@allantucker102]

I was there. He just missed several runway protrusions of metal rods a previous renter of the property had put in as barriers to runway use. It sure was quiet until people realised it was landing on the inactive runway, not the active one. All in all a miraculous day.

[@RicardoMartinez-oh9sq]

Just as US Airways Flight 1549, or even more miraculous.

[@amlangupta3513]

I met Captain Pearson a few years ago - a friend had arranged for the captain to be the speaker at an event and we had a chance to talk with him prior to the speech. Very nice guy and quite the story.

[@MentourPilot]

Indeed! Well handled after the first few mistakes

[@taliajo118]

I've met him too :) I used to work at a travel agency with his daughter, and he would come in quite often. Very nice guy.

[@jeremyroberts4760]

I agree, this was an outstanding presentation that illustrates how ALL aviation accidents result from a chain of events, rather than one singular fault. Regardless, these pilots do deserve to be commended as they brought the plane in successfully and saved lives, the ultimate job of the cockpit crew. Great work!

[@didreams969]

they must have mentally thanked the C and FO for the rest of their lives because we know , from the Mentour, that many other pilots would have failed to respond correctly to such an unusual fault..

[@zoidberg444]

One of the most legendary bits of flying in history - there was a lot of experience in the cockpit that day and it showed. There are a fair few similarities to the miracle on the Hudson. The experience of both pilots, the captains being accomplished glider pilots. Good CRM and a fair bit of luck. As someone who is familiar with both metric and imperial - my father and my grandfathers would frequently work in imperial I always work in metric and metric alone. When you confuse the two that is where things like this happen. NASA lost a $100 million spacecraft because they combined metric and imperial measurements. The report into the accident came to some very sensible and helpful conclusions. I believe Maurice Quintel passed away a few years ago. RIP. Edit: Also thanks for explaining the exact mathematical error that they made. I have seen plenty about this accident but never exactly where the error crept into their fuel calculations.

[@AaronOfMpls]

From what I've read elsewhere, the conversion factor might not have been prominently labeled as lb/L or kg/L in the form either. Rather just "density" or "specific gravity". Or if it was, everyone might've ignored it, being too used to the old lb/L factor. As for the Mars Climate Orbiter: NASA actually had been 100% metric for some years before. But their contractor Lockheed-Martin had used US Customary in their bit of the MCO's guidance software -- and had neglected to convert the numbers to metric before passing them on to NASA's part of the software. At Mars, the MCO was supposed to lose some speed by passing through the planet's upper atmosphere on its way into orbit. But instead, it passed too low in the atmosphere and burned up.

[@baksatibi]

Worth mentioning that the aircraft (C-GAUN) was repaired and flown for Air Canada until it was retired in 2008.

[@Banditt42]

It went to the airplane graveyard in the states and gave the military tower there a fly by before landing.

[@Hans-gb4mv]

I wonder how they got it out of there. Did they do emergency repairs on site and fly it out of there, or did they dismantle it and transport it over land?

[@DimitriPappas]

@@Hans-gb4mv Great question. On site repairs seems more feasible I would think, but would love to know for sure

[@baksatibi]

@@Hans-gb4mv According to Wikipedia _The aircraft was temporarily repaired at Gimli and flew out two days later to be fully repaired at a maintenance base in Winnipeg. Following the full repair, the aircraft was returned to service with Air Canada._

[@richardtruesdell8289]

@@Hans-gb4mv "Hey, I need some fuel and a set of snow tires at Gemli drag strip"

[@Dobermanator]

I'm Canadian so I know this one. Another glide landing equally as amazing was a Canadian Air Transat Flight 236, in 2001 ran out of fuel over the Atlantic and needed to glide for quite a long time before a heavy landing.

[@jimbaritone6429]

Bob Piche was the Captain on that flight, wasn't he? I met him years earlier, when he was a bush pilot, I think in norhern Quebec/northern Ontario. That was a fair bit east for us - took a long time to get there from northern Alberta in a DHC-2 Beaver. I was just a kid, but I was checked out to fly the Beaver on floats anyway, so I could give my Dad a break on long trips. The reason I remember Piche was that he knew, or had flown, that particular Beaver, and came over to talk to us. I could be wrong, and I might be thinking of somebody with a similar name. But, it's a small world up that way. When I heard about the JetBlue incident, "Gimli Glider - again" was the first thought that popped into my head. Wasn't the same cause, but still another astonishing glide.

[@roymaddocks3184]

Mentour has done a video of that one, too

[@SamanthaBobowski]

@@roymaddocks3184 what is it called, I want to see that one too please.

[@superopa1306]

Brother-in-law and I were inside that plane the following morning. Drove down from a nearby campsite we were staying at. Next to no security and very easy to get onto the plane and into the cockpit. Too bad no cellphones back then to take pictures or videos. Have visited the Gimli Glider Museum in Gimli a few times. Two years ago, met Captain Robert Pearson. What an experience.

[@mlfett6307]

I love telling this story too. As an ex-Montrealer, I remember when it happened and our confusion over changing to metric (we still use both imperial and metric in our lives as a result of living next to the US). Thanks for sharing it!

[@thebiffer100]

Just for interest sake I used to fly with Bob Pearson as his second officer on the B727 back in the early eighties just before AC took delivery of our B767s. He was a most wonderful and skilled captain, a pleasure to work with and a funny guy especially on our layovers. I went on the L1011 when he went to the B767. The downfall of course came when Canada decided to convert to metric and all hell broke loose, especially in the aviation sector and prematurely, in my opinion. We did not really understand it fully but nonetheless Transport Canada approved it. The bad luck that day would have that snag of an un serviceable fuel gauge which according to the M.E.L. required a fuel dripstick check on the tanks done independently by the flight crew AND maintenance the way I remember it. ALL pilots feared and hated to perform these checks as they are complicated and involved using not just charts and figures but inside the cockpit walls are spirit levels to determine the angle of the aircraft as it is sitting and apply it to the corrections. THIS is where it should have stopped. Errors are a certainty combined with the newly integrated conversion charts. Even if things were left in Imperial standards it is challenging enough. In the immediate aftermath the airline CEO at the time instantly attempted to dismiss Pearson and Quintal for the blame, and yet in the U.S. they received the highest award distinguishing them as heroes that demonstrated the finest aviation skills ever attempted in a grave emergency SAFELY. The Canadian government was so determined to make the change to metric this was just the most obvious blunder, and as the saying goes "be careful what you wish for".

[@MentourPilot]

Thank you for those added details!

[@MrSigmatico]

@@MentourPilot Why is the fuelgauge on whatever is fueling a plane in volume when what you want is weight, it only serves to cause confusion and with all the safety in the airline industry I can not get my head around having to do an extra calculation like that to make it to your destination. How is hundreds of peoples lives dependent on some random persons ability to divide or multiply something by whatever on the day?

[@willshedo]

@@MrSigmatico I guess it is because the fuel that is pumped into the tank trucks is paid for per volume (liter or gallon), the measurement how many fuel a truck can load is done in liters, not in weight. The pilots on the other hand have to know how many kilos their (creating an example) 5000 liters of fuel weigh to calculate depending things like taking-off speed and many more. One should think, somebody that made it to being pilot should be able to do relatively simple calculations like this. I guess the real bug at the time was the change from pounds to kilos which had not arrived in everyones head.

[@RicardoMartinez-oh9sq]

The highest award most deserved. That landing is almost beyond belief.

[@LilleyAdam]

excellent question and point. just leave it in base units of kg.

[@dougtarbet6193]

The Captain’s glider experience saved the day. By crossing the controls he created enough drag to slow the aircraft and bleed off altitude to be able to land on the decommissioned runway. I heard through the grapevine that when the parameters of this incident were put into an Ar Canada 767 flight simulator every pilot who tried it crashed. On another note I was boarding an AC 767 in Toronto a couple years after the incident and I asked the stewardess if she knew the tail number of the aircraft. She replied that she didn’t and asked why? I replied oh I just wanted to know if it’s number 304 (if memory serves here). She looked puzzled so I said, you know, the Gimile Glider? The look of horror on her face was priceless. I laughed and told her not to worry. The 767 is a good bird and left to take my seat.

[@jasonwhite1069]

It was 604. I worked on the ramp for Air Canada, in Vancouver, in the late '80s, and whenever 604 was in I would go sit in Bob Pearson's seat.

[@johnandrews3568]

@@jasonwhite1069 did the seat have huge indents to make way for Bob Pearson's giant, titanium balls?

[@RicardoMartinez-oh9sq]

The captain knew the dynamics of flying as a classical musician knows his or her instrument. Just amazing.

[@sanniepstein4835]

Captain Pearson was also the first pilot to land a commercial jet without engines, so he had no examples to give him confidence.

[@martbosman8373]

Most other pilots know enough basic arithmetic to prevent it.

[@colin5196]

@@martbosman8373 Well, aren't you snotty, Mart ... do you think math would have saved everybody from a flock of geese ingested into the engines. Let's ask Sully. Oh, and what do you know of "most other pilots" anyway?

[@michaelrmurphy2734]

But not the last of course!

[@adamf663]

@@martbosman8373 most pilots are not part of the maintenance staff.

[@everydayisathanksgiving8025]

​@@martbosman8373 nevertheless, the conclusion of the inquiry was that the captain and his copilot were not responsible and they were cleared.

[@jjquinn2004]

Years ago, I used to conduct a training course that touched on work / life balance and we would discuss this incident. One of the characters that the movie follows is a very driven individual - he was even shown making last-minute business calls from the airport pay phone. During the flight, and once he knew what was happening - because as you said, the flight attendants kept the passengers fully informed - his priorities changed and he wrote a letter to his wife. I am sure he was not the only one on the plane who did that. A lesson for us all.

[@sukhygill9596]

i love this, the crew deserved the first time award, shame on those who suspended them, this is a great outcome, change comes slow, rushing only allows for things to go wrong

[@looneyflight]

That should have been a dual award. Outstanding Airmanship and Terrible Math Skills.

[@garyodle5663]

As an airline flight dispatcher I always wondered how this could have happened. You explained it very well.

[@jrmckim]

I know everyone and their grandpa has done JAL 123 but what hasnt really been covered is why the Japanese government took so long to respond to the crash. The accounts of the survivors says the many of the passengers were actually alive but died because rescue services took hours to respond. The US military even tried to intervene but was turned down by Japanese authorities. The story of those brave pilots really captivated me. While teaching in Japan, I actually went to the crash site and saw the mementos and offerings left by the families and public. Its very surreal and heartbreaking to see these families still mourning after 30+ years. I would really love to hear your take on this accident and aftermath. I know it's been covered so many times but I think you could help explain in detail the events leading to and the effects this crash had on the world afterwards. I really hope you give it some thought. Good luck and have a great day. ✈👍🏻

[@anjakellenjeter]

Yumi Ochai - the surviving deadheading flight attendant's account of what happened after that crash is utterly heartbreaking. She lay on the side of that mountain for hours and heard all but three of the plane's passengers die - from their injuries or exposure to the cold - whilst hearing helicopters come and go. Despite the feeling surrounding the US's ''military occupation'' of Japan, the fact that so many people could have survived had the US military not been turned away literally as the first medic was about to leave the helicopter caused significant scandal - so much so that no one will admit to who actually ordered the US away. And not surprising because no one in the Japanese government is ever going to lose face by admitting that they chose a time when people's lives were at stake to get into a jurisdictional pissing match.

[@Baffled_King]

@@anjakellenjeter A story of heroic, but doomed, airmanship. They managed to fly an unflyable plane for a few minutes in their brave struggle to survive. And yes, the Japanese government's refusal to accept help is a bitter pill

[@zapfanzapfan]

"But when will I ever need math skills in real life?"...

[@9999AWC]

If you know additions, substractions, multiplications, and division, you have the necessary math skills to be a pilot.

[@alfredomarquez9777]

@@9999AWC Not quite correct... Some knowledge of trigonometry or angles and triangles is needed in addition to basic arithmetics. In addition to those maths, a good grasp on the physics of flight and the many systems on complex aircraft of today is becoming critical. If pilots conrinue the alarming tendency to become button pushers, more avoidable accidents will occur. Both Mentour and Captain Joe have shown the importance of knowing the engineering aspects of nowaday planes.

[@brianarbenz1329]

If the United States ever catches up with the civilized world and converts fully to the metric system, we have Capt. Pearson and his crew's mishap to learn from.

[@matekochkoch]

@@9999AWC Pilots have a different skill set than waiters.

[@robopup1]

I need them every day, I'm a civil engineer

[@ltmohapi8932]

One of my favourite episodes on Aircrash Investigation. Had to talk about it after seeing decommissioned airport that had been turned into an airstrip in Thaba Nchu, South Africa. Mentour Pilot, very thorough and detailed explanation, even for the layman. I have always loved crab landings and think that Captain Pearson was a hero despite initial errors by him and others at large

[@zachary3352]

I don't know what it is, but Petter, you have a way of telling these stories that's so engaging. I love when I start imagining being a character in the story, and your storytelling allows me to do this naturally! Thanks for making us all smarter pilots and people.

[@86budda]

Thank you for this video, that's one of my favorite accidents in the history of civil aviation. I used to work for a company creating software for airlines and I always had this story in mind when dealing with unit systems and conversions. We were always very strict about handling units of measurement in the application code. Safety first!

[@mzytptlk]

Mr. Olszewski: Glad to know from you. My grandfather was Wsievolod Olszewski from Poland.

[@cayrick]

Peter that was very thorough. I met a man who was a private pilot who at that time could visit the cockpit. The stewardess who set it up was busy and just as he reminded her again, she had a look of terrror in her eyes and said "We're going down".

[@PilotThumper]

This is an amazing story. A great example of a pilots additional training resulted in a pilot who thought outside the norm to save lives.

[@MentourPilot]

Indeed, unfortunately they were also part of the chain that caused it.

[@PilotThumper]

@@MentourPilot very true. It's amazing the amount of knowledge a PIC has in there heads when working with such amazing machines. Thankfully he was able to get the plane landed with no loss of life and this helped to prevent this from every happening again. Truly an amazing story. I have watched a number of shows on this one and was one of the reasons I joined the Air Cadets as a kid to learn how flying a glider works :P

[@BennyGeserit]

@@PilotThumper When it happened the pilots were demoted pretty quick but Pilots interviewed on American television described the landing as landing the Space Shuttle blindfolded. Air Canada didn't know how incredible a landing feat this all was.

[@PilotThumper]

@@BennyGeserit exactly! Thankfully the pilots appealed the decision and flew for many years and even got awarded for the amazing work they did bringing this machine to the ground in one piece.

[@dan_]

@@BennyGeserit To be fair, they did make 3 major mistakes that directly led to the incident even becoming an incident in the first place. Obviously they should be praised for how they subsequently dealt with it, and "any landing you can walk away from.." etc, but they did also wreck a plane through their own incompetence and lack of attention to clearly very critical procedures. I'd have been amazed if they weren't given a strong reprimand after this. You wouldn't give a license to a new pilot in training who made a sequence of blatant mistakes but happend to miraculously get the plane down safely from an almost impossible position they'd got themselves into. I certainly hope you wouldn't anyway!

[@jayminor9757]

This was the clearest, best presented explanation of this incident, particularly in regards to the fuel quantity calculation errors, that I have heard. Thank you very much from a AME with 48 years under his belt and private pilot for 30 years.

[@BoJack_HorseFly85]

I love how you can give so much more and so much better information in about half the time most documentaries require to present this story.

[@JessLuvnNicky]

I never heard this story until last year. I am a public librarian in Canada and I had NO idea that caption Pearson was actually visiting my library all summer! Until another library visitor came in while he was there one day and she asked if I knew who he was. He is a great lad to chat with!!! ✈️🤓

[@GermanTabor]

As an A&P I appreciate all your videos. I always learn something new about accidents I thought I understood. What you're doing for the aviation community is awesome, you don't skip the details and you base everything on the report.

[@pauloamenta3083]

Peter, I found your channel few days ago, I really enjoy all the clear information you share with us; all the videos are very informative and help me learn a lot. I live in Winnipeg and know the story well. actually my daughter finished the glider course with Air Cadets at that exact base in Gimli 2 years ago and there is a museum at Gimli dedicated to this story and they have some parts of the original plane. Congrats and thanks for sharing those videos with us.

[@Akasen1226]

I have somehow listened to this particular story multiple times between multiple channels and each time after the first, I am left thinking "Man, that's like one too many times a Canadian flight has run out of fuel midflight. Wait they're attempting to detour. Oh one of the pilots use to fly at a military base...wait has the base been converted to a speed way? Oh, it's this story." And it just never gets old to hear this story.

[@leotuscadero9572]

Hello there I'm just a truck driver that enjoys watching your documentary on air line crashes. Watching your videos take the Pressure off of everyday truck driving Thank you for sharing these videos

[@lxcien4867]

„Pearson is going to attempt a side slip“ The best sentence of the aircrash investigation series...

[@dan_]

Here it is, slightly edited: watch?v=jVvt7hP5a-0

[@Geigerzaehler]

I really expected "Déja vu" in this moment.

[@saulekaravirs6585]

@@Geigerzaehler He side sliped into a place he'd been before, where they were racing cars. "Deja Vu! and I've been in this place before. Higher on the Street and Know it's may place to be me! Wooooo!"

[@moi01887]

@@dan_ Cool video! Kind of funny though... they make it look like the plane was coming down at almost a 90-degree angle to the runway. Slips in real life aren't nearly that dramatic.

[@stanthology]

On the way into Midway Airport in Chicago in a 737 the pilot was side slipping the jet big time. It was quite violent! When it landed, there was an audible gasp. (of relief!) I knew what he was doing because of a general interest in aviation. I got the impression lots of the passengers thought we were crashing. (old airport. short runways. A few years later, a jet went out of the airport off the end of the runway and someone in a car got killed on the road.)

[@MajorHavoc214]

I was in high school when this accident happened and it inspired me to learn the metric system before I joined the US Army.

[@jacyborreaux919]

It’s really easy! Everything is multiple of 10

[@bobbrewer5182]

I grew up with the metric system, and have learned small amounts of imperial in several jobs, I think metric is a far more logical system.

[@mikehenderson631]

Thank you very much for your service sir

[@rysacroft]

Growing up the UK I learned both systems at an early age. About 30 years ago I had a German pal who could not really get his head around imperial units. He thought that the inch could only be divided into tenths, twelfths or eighths. Because I had studied technical drawing I showed him that it was easy to, for example, drill holes in a piece of metal that were five thirteenth of an inch apart. I think that his brain exploded :)

[@sevenlux7093]

@@rysacroft Why to do it simple, when it can be done complicated ;-)

[@iamtheiconoclast3]

As a Canadian and long time fan of your channel I was super stoked to see you had covered our iconic aviation incident. As usual your analysis was fascinating and so well explained that even a layperson such as myself could understand. I doubt that anyone has told it better. :)

[@isabellind1292]

I wish one of these aviation channels would cover the little known flight out of Montreal in the 1950's when a bomb that was planted aboard the aircraft blew up killing all 24 souls. The last woman executed in Canada was hanged for her role in the conspiracy.

[@ChrisZwolinski]

I remember when this happened, I was almost 15. Just another in the many difficulties and mix ups while we were converting from imperial to metric. Many lucky factors came into play as well, the gliding capability and pilots knowledge of the area. Love the review you did on it. Awesome flying.

[@docjanos]

Excellent presentation. As a motorsport historian this incident has entered the lore of that discipline. Your explanation of the aeronautic side is the most thorough I've yet seen. One point of correction. It was not a drag race that was being held at the time but rather a sports cars race. To explain the distinction, drag races feature side by side runs of two vehicles down a completely straight road, typically 1/4 mile, plus extra space for slowing down. A decomissioned airport like Gimli is perfect and indeed such races did take place there, but not that day. When the Canadian Forces abandoned the field it was taken over by several racing organizers. On that day the Winnipeg Sports Car Club was having a meeting. Sports cars use a complete circuit consisting of different types of turns at different venues. At Gimli their course used the runway as the front straight and start / finish line. The cars then wound through a series of access roads to the west of the airfield before returning to the runway. A typical day would have featured 5 -6 races of 20-30 minutes in duration. Cars of similar performance characteristics compete with each other within the individual race. The famous photo that you also show has a group of Formula Fords stopped in front of the plane. Formula cars are built purely for racing and F Fords are very popular and very inexpensive scaled down versions of the more famous Formula One and Indy 500 type cars. Other shots I have seen of the incident showed cars like a Porsche 356--essentially a lightly modified for racing version of a road going sports car. I am not clear if there was an actual race going on when the plane approached and while there was of course considerable danger of people being hit, their were some fortuitous aspects to having this activity going on. Road races require there to be well coordinated communication between the various parts of the circuit and this would have gone into emergency mode (once the shock of the unusual situation wore off!). Then they had emergency equipment, personnel and fire-fighting materials at the ready, which I understand was used to help with the post-accident procedures.

[@joelmorry2864]

Fantastic! This happened in my own home province in Manitoba!

[@MentourPilot]

Indeed!

[@ariochiv]

Is that a good thing?

[@siglavikingkearns8108]

@@ariochiv Depends who you ask. I live near Gimli - they've opened a small combination museum and detailed explanation shop. They tried to buy the actual 767 when it was retired but it was too costly. There are some pieces of the airplane there though.

[@ariochiv]

@@siglavikingkearns8108 I guess a small town embraces any notoriety they can get. 😊

[@siglavikingkearns8108]

@@ariochiv um No. Most of us wish to be left in peace.

[@sandihunter1260]

We were racing at Gimli in September 1982 a year before the incident in July 1983. It was a fun race track to be at but can't imagine what the road racing people must have felt that day when they saw the airplane coming in for a landing. A wonderful Canadian story.

[@JoeBeaudette]

As someone from Winnipeg, I always love hearing this story. Great video Petter!

[@raymondstrom7686]

The Canadian National Radio Control Championships were flown off that strip in 1978. I competed there and took home top prize. The strip was in pretty good condition, which is why the drag guys used it too. Nice smooth track with long runout. I could only imagine the terror for the two kids on bikes with a 767 chasing them and probably making a lot of scraping noise. If we had been there then, it would have been all eyes in the skies since that was our practice anyway. Dragsters, mostly heads under hoods. Great story Mentor Pilot.

[@clueck1948]

Excellent review. More detail about the accident than I had heard about previously. I am so glad this turned out as it did without any deaths. I am a retired airline pilot and it’s always interesting after an incident to unweave the web and follow the path that leads us to the problem. And since we know there can be problems we have backups and check lists to try to prevent serious issues from happening. But we are not always successful, as in this case. Thanks to the skill and the professionalism of the crew and ATC personnel this incident turned out well. And then put a drag race and many people on your only runway....crazy. I also did not realize a sideslip would alter the efficiency of the RAT. Thank you. Well done.

[@MentourPilot]

Thank YOU for watching. It’s always great to hear input from colleagues!

[@stvtppng]

I know this story well but it's so much more chilling and rewarding to hear it from a pilot's perspective. Thank you. (From Montreal)

[@danielkeirsteadsr6939]

My favorite too. along with the landing on a levy in Louisiana after losing both engines due to hail na

[@thomassletvik1353]

I remember this sentence from the Air Crash Investigation episode: "Captain Pearson is out of fuel. Out of engines. Out of options." Not a good situation to be in.

[@mrrolandlawrence]

Well technically he did still have 2 engines. not quite the same as the b707 where they ripped off the engines and pylons on a delivery flight.

[@spacemanmat]

Not out of options, he very skilfully used those options available to him to land the plane without anyone getting killed.

[@garethmurtagh]

I loved the commentary when they saw the two kids cycling up the runway with the plane approaching them. “Without its engines the plane is silent, and one thing the Boeing 767 doesn’t have as standard is a horn!” 🤣🤣🤣

[@samiam619]

Thomas Sletvik, that’s why I Mostly avoid those fake documentaries. And not in a tRump kind of fake. Meaning they want to spice up the story with Hollywood slick headlines.

[@cayrick]

@@garethmurtagh Surprised it wasn't a report recommendation.

[@joesinakandid528]

Capt. Peter, very well done, Sir! Your observations and cautions certainly reflect and dovetail on my experiences (40 years) USAF, enlisted, Munitions career field as well as a low time little 'ole private pilot. PS - the pillow colors and their significance do not go un-noticed. "Green to Green or Red to Red, Perfectly Safe to Go Ahead." - Joe - TSgt (Ret)

[@CW-rx2js]

This incident is quite well known in aviation and every Canadian should know about the Captain's great airmanship

[@franziskani]

Along with poor maths skills (and conversions, incl. a servies of conversions are NOT high maths either. you just have to be careful and it is good to have a plausibility check). I understand that they have a lot to think of before start, and one can make mistakes, but there is such a thing as plausibility checking. It is not too much to aks to go the extra mile when you have no (working) fuel gauge about the results of such a critical calculation. Even if whoever does such a calculation is normally good with such tasks, that should also be independently verified. That could include calling someone from the company to give them the values for the calculation, but not telling them the result they had gotten - and asking them to double check. They made several bad mistakes - and saved their lifes with good flying skills.

[@willd1790]

I'm not sure if I'd call this good airmanship-a incredible feat of flying once they were in the emergency, but they had every opportunity to never be in that situation in the first place. I end up feeling very conflicted about the whole thing, which makes me feel weird being a good Canadian lol.

[@alexeibobyrev2250]

Flying general aviation in Canada it always amazes me that we calculate the weight and balance in pounds, fuel in gallons then call the fuel service and request fuel in litres. E6B gets a bit of a workout when I want to go flying. 😀. Great content!

[@TheOwenMajor]

It's because of our half *ssed adoption of metric. It was a pet project of a single government that never had any widespread support.

[@jasonwhite1069]

@@TheOwenMajor You really don't want to let go of that bone!

[@jimattrill8933]

It's easy. The fuel company is paid for volume of fuel delivered not the weight of it which varies with the specific gravity which can change all the time. Maybe they should be paid in pounds or Kg of fuel but the bowsers measure fuel flow and volume, not the weight.

[@rishabhmehta2477]

Side slipping a commercial jet with no engines. Awesome video

[@MentourPilot]

Yep.

[@MentourPilot]

Thank you!

[@Werrf1]

Thank you for laying out the errors so clearly - both the conversion, and the exact details of the failure of the fuel gauges. I'd heard about both, but not the details of exactly what went wrong.

[@debbieguitor1745]

These pilots are legends in Canada. My brother lives in WInnipeg and I’ve been to Gimli. Amazing story!!

[@bluemoyie8618]

Thank you for that, you've given an excellent description and explanation of this incident. Not only my non-trained opinion, but I have that from an active airline captain. I've watched the re-enactment, and held my breath even though I knew it was not real life. The extreme tunnel vision that the captain experienced during severe stress is something that I can very much relate to. I appreciated your giving details from the final report, and of what became of the flight crew and cabin crew. The cabin crew certainly deserved the recognition that they received in keeping the passengers safe and calm. And, I believe that the award given to the captain and first officer was well deserved.

[@DrTrin]

I performed cargo weight and balance for Fedex flights in Canada. Even though it has been 8 years since I did that job, and I knew the outcome of this story, when those incorrect calculations appeared on the screen, in seconds I yelled out, "No no no no!" and stood up from my chair. The adrenalin rush was huge. All good now.

[@LilYeshua]

I haven't heard it this detailed though.

[@YesYouAreAbsolutelyCorrect]

This is the first time I heard, that this mistake had it roots in flight crew own hands! In the documentaries they usually point at the ground crew. Thank you for all the details.

[@sonnybowman]

I totally agree.

[@jimattrill8933]

As an aircraft technician in the RAF I always carried a little slide rule so I could convert Imperial gallons to pounds. The aircraft I worked on - AW Argosy had gauges in lbs and the tankers were in imp gallons. I always asked the tanker drivers for the Specific Gravity of the day because it varied a bit. I also knew the conversion for litres as some tankers were in litres. We never had any tankers calibrated in pounds so this was all normal. But our fuel gauges always worked! And the aircraft would never have flown with inoperative gauges.

[@HMac411]

That is a fantastic story and just became my favorite aviation story as well. The capper was that, ultimately, the Captain and First Officer were awarded for their airmanship. Amazing story!

[@jimbeckwith5949]

Gimli Glider is one of my favourite aviation stories. I fly Gliders, so all the more interesting! Except the ones I fly are various types of German ASKs at 400-600 kilos (the weight of 7 passengers?) all up, can't imagine something so heavy with that adverse glide ratio. Always feel safer ascending rapidly at 5,000ft catching a Wave than I do in a jet airliner. Sailplanes are designed to work without thrust, jetliners are not. Great casts BTW, many thanks!

[@redlywaxer]

Read this story years ago in Readers Digest. It is an amazing story and took on new meaning to me with the technical aspects and pilot knowledge you shared it with! Thank you for bringing this amazing story back to life for us!

[@avflyguy]

Back in the early 2000's, I recall a story that probably didn't make headlines (out of the country). A contract flight crew was dispatched from the US to El Salvador to ferry a helicopter back to the US with several fuel stops. After 4 days of lousy weather, an opportunity came up to get 1st leg done. A US passenger (actually the owner of the helicopter) was also along for the ride - total of 3. While flight crew was busy w/ flight planning and other government red tape, they told the passenger (a low time fixed wing pilot) to go out to put in 150 gallons of jet fuel. Fired up and off they haphazardly went. Unfortunately, the fuel was in liters not gallons. Predictably the engine quit while over a jungle and crashed. It tooks a couple of days (bad weather) to find the downed ship. Unfortunately, the front of the helicopter had broken loose from the fuselage, so the 2 pilots were ejected to the canopy floor where they both became victims of native jungle predators. The passenger in the back survived still buckled in and got a front row seat to the carnage below. Not sure anyone knew or recognized the hasty mistake of rushing things and nobody caught the fueling error. Instead of 150 gallons, they got 150 liters - as *150* was what the display showed on the fueling pump meter.

[@hughmungus1767]

Why on earth didn't the fuel gauge show the units that were being measured?

[@pearlkt]

I sadly witnessed a major air show tragedy and been so scared of flying since . I have watched you and another gent who have helped me conquer fears. Thank you for breaking things down

[@papabear562]

The first time I heard of this incident was when I saw the movie with William Devane as the pilot. This video explains all the holes I wasn't aware of. Thank you so much!

[@sandygrogg1203]

I l9ve this story…and never tire of it, what a miracle…

[@MentourPilot]

It was indeed!

[@RicardoMartinez-oh9sq]

Nobody made a movie about it, but it was indeed a miracle.

[@coca-colayes1958]

Mr Mentour you have a fancy way of saying the word “centimetres”

[@alphalunamare]

Stopped me in my tracks that did, it was like hearing a new word for the first time :-)

[@HoosierRallyMaster]

@Andrew Yes I bet he pronounces "kilometre" differently from you, too. But in the opposite direction.

[@nathansmith1085]

As a pilot, how do you like the show Air Disasters? Its one of my favorites. I always loved the story of the Gimbli Glider, but no one has explained it as well as you just did. That is why I love this channel! Thanks!

[@MentourPilot]

I like the series! It is a bit simplified and dramatized but it’s definitely worth watching!

[@andreas_hs]

it runs on German TV as well from time to time and is titled "Mayday-Series". It is both mostly very sad and very interesting and the series adds a lot of drama to the incidents. And I love your professinal view on these things ✌👏😁

[@patrickbaker2802]

the wall street journal, of all places, had this story front page, and after reading it I felt i had an understanding of how this happened. awfully good thing one of the pilots knew this field. I have picked up more details over time, but the JOurnal article stands up fine. Flying with inop fuel gauge , confusion over usgallons vrs other gas measurements - that made for the possibility of this incident. The pilot earns respect and admiration for his timely, skillful contributions. The fact remains: captain didn't know his fuel status at takeoff, and was obligated to know what he had then. If he has to measure himself to reassure himself, then he must do so. One can not fully understand the silence after both engines went out, the bad, bad feelings at the time, and the glee when a proper runway was within possible glide distance. Nose gear notwithstanding........

[@Vincent_Sullivan]

Hi Petter; I would like to congratulate you on doing a fine job on the Gimli Glider video. It provides much more detail and more accurate detail than most presentations on the subject. Being a Canadian and also having worked in the aviation field earlier in my career the Gimli Glider incident is one that I have looked into very deeply. Given that, I am impressed that you added a few details to my knowledge. To return the favour I can add a few additional details to your story. As you noted, the flight was to be 2 legs: Montreal to Ottawa (about 200 Km.) and then Ottawa to Edmonton (about 3000 Km.). Under normal conditions and to promote efficient aircraft operations it was practice to load fuel in Montreal sufficient for the leg to Ottawa and then load fuel in Ottawa sufficient for the leg to Edmonton. Given the failed fuel gauges, following this procedure would require the tanks to be dripped in Ottawa to provide confirmation of fuel on board for the leg to Edmonton. The time required to do this would not have allowed the flight schedule to be kept. During the handover in Montreal the incoming Captain in addition to briefing Pearson on the fuel gauge problem proposed a time saving procedure: Load all the fuel necessary for both legs of the trip in Montreal and tanker the fuel for the Ottawa to Edmonton leg from Montreal. This would save time in Ottawa by eliminating the need to drip the tanks. (Which they ended up doing anyway - but that is another part of the story.) Pearson elected to follow this procedure and did the calculations (with errors) accordingly and requested fuel to be loaded based on his calculations. When the fueler was finished loading fuel he entered the cockpit with his paperwork indicating fuel loaded and between Pearson, Quintal, and the fueler mathematical confusion ensued. When the final number was worked out, due to the confusion level, Pearson was very uneasy about the number so he asked the fueler a critical question: "Is that about as much fuel as you usually load for this flight?" The fueler replied "Yes, that is actually quite a bit more than I usually load for this flight." The problem was that nobody had told the fueler that he was loading fuel for BOTH legs! His reply was based on his assumption that he was loading fuel only for the Montreal to Ottawa leg - which is a leg of only about 200 Km. To be fair, the fueler should not have to know what legs he was loading fuel for but his reply would have pushed Pearson's confirmation bias in the "Everything is OK" direction which, given later events, was unfortunate. If I recall correctly there was also a maintenance engineer in the cockpit at the time working on some other minor issue which would have added to the confusion and interrupt level in the cockpit. Finally, being satisfied that all was OK, they started up the aircraft and manually programmed the FMS with the amount of fuel they thought they had on board and departed for Ottawa. Arriving in Ottawa they recorded the (incorrect) fuel number on the FMS and then shut down the aircraft. Still being uneasy about the fuel quantity on board they eventually did drip the tanks, performed the same (incorrect) calculations with the same (incorrect) conversion constants. The number they got more or less agreed with the number they had recorded from the FMS so they started up the aircraft, manually programmed that number back into the FMS, and took off for Edmonton. The rest is history...

[@adamfrazer5150]

You are a First-Rate storyteller - many thanks for covering these events, but it's your engaging and complimentary approach that make all the difference to me 👍🇨🇦

[@aattc1]

One of the greatest aviation stories ever!!! I actually have a small piece of ac 604. Love your videos. Thank you Petter

[@J_Stronsky]

This story makes me feel a whole lot better about the time I misjudged how much fuel I had left on the highway - doesn't seem so bad now :P

[@darrellshoub7527]

THIS HAS GOT TO BE one of my FAVORITE of ALLLLLLLLLLLLLL your many episodes !!!!!!!!!!!! it is absolutley COMPLEX, EPIC and LEGENDARY !!!!!!! Great job, Mentour !!!

[@Karl419.]

I love this story :) Heard about it all my life. I have lived only 40 miles from Gimli, all my life! My family even has a cottage/cabin in Gimli that has been in the family for generations! There's a fascinating museum dedicated to this story in Gimli too! I even have met the pilot, several times in Gimli!

[@petertaylor8170]

Thank you for explaining this in more detail than Hollywood did. My recollection of the film is that the blame was placed on the guys doing the refuelling. One asking the other either how many kilo's in a pound or how many gallons in a litre.

[@zoidberg444]

The rule of these sorts of accidents is that numerous people are at some degree of fault and that was probably because there was something wrong with the system. Pearson and Quintel both signed off on the fuelling of the aircraft. No one was innocent in this.

[@MikkoRantalainen]

It's really interesting that *any* pilot would even thought that it's okay to fly without fuel gauge. It's not unheard to get fuel leak in the air and without a fuel gauge, there's no way to figure that out in time.

[@JohnSmith-oe5kx]

My impression from the video is that Pearson misunderstood that Weir had flown in that way, and he claimed that maintenance staff told him that the official MEL permitted it. But I agree with your reasoning. And if you want a perfect example of a midair fuel leak leading to a dead stick landing, watch the Air Transat video! Canadians seem to have a knack for running out of fuel but living to tell about it...

[@myparceltape1169]

The video reminded me of the 3-column conversation chart, the centre column was usually 1 to 9. If you have got the conversion factors wrong, or used them the wrong way, a glance at the chart brings you back to reality.

[@macandrewes]

Excellent video. Absolutely the best explanation I have ever heard of this incident. Little known fact: If Gimli hadn't been available at the time, they could easily have diverted to nearby Oin and Gloin. So they had options.

[@init100]

When I was a kid, my grandparents were subscribed to the local version of the Reader's Digest monthly magazine. At the end of each issue, there was a longer piece, almost a mini-novel. The story of the Gimli Glider was one of these mini-novels, and that's how I first heard this story. I and my brother spent quite some time reading these magazines, especially since my grandparents had kept many years' worth of these magazines in their basement.

[@MystikalDawn]

I flew on the aircraft shortly before her retirement, short flight from Halifax CYHZ to St. John's CYYT, there was a plaque in her front galley as you boarded that recognized her as the "Gimli Glider".