''Miracle Landing'' (also known as ''Panic in the Open Sky'') is a 1990 American
made-for-television
A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...
drama film
In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...
based on an in-flight accident aboard
Aloha Airlines Flight 243
Aloha Airlines Flight 243 (IATA: AQ243, ICAO: AAH243) was a scheduled Aloha Airlines flight between Hilo and Honolulu in Hawaii. On April 28, 1988, a Boeing 737-297 serving the flight suffered extensive damage after an explosive decompression ...
that occurred in April 1988. The
Boeing 737-200
The Boeing 737 is a narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Boeing Renton Factory, Renton Factory in Washington (state), Washington.
Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retains the Boeing 707, 7 ...
was flying from
Hilo, Hawaii
Hilo () is a census-designated place (CDP) and the largest settlement in Hawaii County, Hawaii, United States, which encompasses the Island of Hawaii. The population was 44,186 according to the 2020 census. It is the fourth-largest settlement i ...
to
Honolulu, Hawaii
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...
, when it experienced rapid decompression when a section of the fuselage was torn away. With one flight attendant blown from the cabin to her death and 65 others injured, the aircraft was able to make a successful
emergency landing
An emergency landing is a premature landing made by an aircraft in response to an emergency involving an imminent or ongoing threat to the safety and operation of the aircraft, or involving a sudden need for a passenger or crew on board to term ...
at
Kahului Airport
Kahului Airport is the main airport of Maui in the State of Hawaii, United States, located east of Kahului. It has offered full airport operations since 1952. Most flights into Kahului Airport originate from Daniel K. Inouye International Ai ...
, on
Maui
The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...
.
''Miracle Landing'' stars
Connie Sellecca
Connie Sellecca (born Concetta Sellecchia; May 25, 1955) is an American actress, producer, and former model, best known for her roles on the television series '' Flying High'', ''The Greatest American Hero'', and ''Hotel'', for which she was nomi ...
,
Wayne Rogers
William Wayne McMillan Rogers III (April 7, 1933 – December 31, 2015) was an American actor, known for playing the role of Captain "Trapper" John McIntyre in the CBS television series ''M*A*S*H'' and as Dr. Charley Michaels on ''House Calls'' ...
,
Ana Alicia and
Nancy Kwan
Nancy Kwan Ka-shen (; born May 19, 1939) is a Chinese-American actress, philanthropist, and former dancer. In addition to her personality and looks, her career was benefited by Hollywood's casting of more Asian roles in the 1960s, especially in ...
. The film aired February 11, 1990, on
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
and has since been shown in
syndication
Syndication may refer to:
* Broadcast syndication, where individual stations buy programs outside the network system
* Print syndication, where individual newspapers or magazines license news articles, columns, or comic strips
* Web syndication, ...
on network broadcasts throughout the world.
Plot
In February 1988, two pilots in a flight simulator face the challenge of landing a crippled jet that experiences a cabin decompression, an engine fire and a loss of hydraulics. The three simulated emergencies foreshadow the events of Paradise Airlines Flight 243, taking place two months later.
Three crew members: Madeleine "Mimi" Tompkins (Connie Sellecca), Captain Robert "Bob" Schornstheimer (Wayne Rogers) and Flight Attendant Michelle Honda (Ana Alicia) are flying together on Paradise Airlines Flight 243. First Officer pilot Tompkins has been selected for training to become a full Captain in the airline, having been the first female pilot to be hired by Paradise in 1979.
Paradise Airlines 243 is an inter-island flight from Honolulu to Hilo, with a return to Honolulu the same day. The flight takes off over Hilo, and soon beverage service begins. During that time, nothing out of the ordinary occurs, but soon after, David Kornberg (
Will Estes
William Estes (; born October 21, 1978) is an American actor known for his role on CBS police drama '' Blue Bloods'' as Jameson "Jamie" Reagan, a New York City Police Department officer and the youngest son of the police commissioner, played by ...
), a young boy travelling with his mother (Jane Daly), calls the lead flight attendant, C.B. Lansing (Nancy Kwan) and asks her about the crack appearing in the ceiling.
At that moment, chaos breaks loose and the entire front and top half section of the airliner, apart from the cockpit and cargo hold, blows off in a clean separation. In the chaos, Michelle falls to the floor and clings to a passenger's seat, C.B. is blown from the aircraft off-screen, and passengers are badly injured from debris and decompression. The third flight attendant Jane Sato-Tomita (Patty Toy) is thrown to the cabin floor and sustains serious head injuries, clinging to other passengers to avoid the same fate as C.B. The cockpit crew is unaware of the full scale of the disaster and believe a bomb or decompression has occurred. Soon passengers seated in the section that was not swept away have oxygen masks fall but it is useless as all the lines were destroyed. However, the aircraft was at a low altitude thus it had not affected them as badly. Mimi and Bob contact Kahului Airport to declare an emergency.
Soon, the pilots are faced with the fact they may crash and passengers would die, and both Mimi and Bob have flashbacks to her training days and his US Air Force times, respectively. Michelle has a flashback to walking the shoreline with her father who as a soldier in the Army, has died. Jane's injuries worsen and Michelle struggles to climb to her and help her. Later, she also feels she might lose it from the chaos and picks up the call phone only to find it dead.
Dorothy Hendricks (Herta Ware) leans out of the airliner and appears to be in a state of shock before her husband George (Jack Murdock) notices and pulls her back inside. Michelle then begins to instruct the passengers on a possible crash landing or water landing and passes out life jackets. Gail Kornberg becomes hysterical when she cannot get a life jacket for David, but soon is calmed by Michelle. Roy Wesler (Glenn Cannon) panics when he sees
hydraulic fluid
A hydraulic fluid or hydraulic liquid is the medium by which power is transferred in hydraulic machinery. Common hydraulic fluids are based on mineral oil or water. Examples of equipment that might use hydraulic fluids are excavators and backhoe ...
leaking from the wings. The tower alerts Kahului Fire and Rescue personnel and they arrive before the crippled jet lands. Finally after several tense minutes, Mimi and Bob are able to figure out a plan for the emergency.
After some time, the airliner lands but with difficulties in the brakes and hydraulics. The pilots were worried that the landing might result in a broken aircraft and fire, but miraculously their landing resulted in no deaths and the emergency notification allowed crews to treat and evacuate passengers immediately.
Cast
*
Connie Sellecca
Connie Sellecca (born Concetta Sellecchia; May 25, 1955) is an American actress, producer, and former model, best known for her roles on the television series '' Flying High'', ''The Greatest American Hero'', and ''Hotel'', for which she was nomi ...
as First Officer
Madeleine "Mimi" Tompkins
*
Wayne Rogers
William Wayne McMillan Rogers III (April 7, 1933 – December 31, 2015) was an American actor, known for playing the role of Captain "Trapper" John McIntyre in the CBS television series ''M*A*S*H'' and as Dr. Charley Michaels on ''House Calls'' ...
as Captain Bob Schornstheimer
*
Ana Alicia as Michelle Honda, Flight Attendant
**Shantel Cropper as Young Michelle Honda
* Patty Toy as Jane Sato-Tomita, Flight Attendant
*
Nancy Kwan
Nancy Kwan Ka-shen (; born May 19, 1939) is a Chinese-American actress, philanthropist, and former dancer. In addition to her personality and looks, her career was benefited by Hollywood's casting of more Asian roles in the 1960s, especially in ...
as Clarabelle "C.B." Lansing, Chief Flight Attendant
*
James Cromwell
James Oliver Cromwell (born January 27, 1940) is an American actor and activist. Some of his best-known films include ''Babe'' (1995), '' Star Trek: First Contact'' (1996), ''L.A. Confidential'' (1997), '' The Green Mile'' (1999), ''The Queen'' ...
as B.J. Cocker
*
Jay Thomas
Jay Thomas (born Jon Thomas Terrell; July 12, 1948 – August 24, 2017) was an American actor, comedian, and radio personality. He was heard in New York from 1976–1979 on top-40 station 99X, and later on rhythmic CHR station 92KTU, and in L ...
as Ed Meyer, Maui Tower Supervisor
*
Armin Shimerman
Armin Shimerman (born November 5, 1949) is an American actor and author.
Early life
Shimerman was born into a Jewish family in Lakewood Township, New Jersey, Lakewood, New Jersey, on November 5, 1949, the son of accountant Susan and house painte ...
as Rick, Maui Tower Controller
*
Will Estes
William Estes (; born October 21, 1978) is an American actor known for his role on CBS police drama '' Blue Bloods'' as Jameson "Jamie" Reagan, a New York City Police Department officer and the youngest son of the police commissioner, played by ...
as David Kornberg
* Jane Daly as Gail Kornberg
*
Herta Ware
Herta Ware (June 9, 1917 – August 15, 2005) was an American actress and activist.
Early life
Ware was born Herta Schwartz in Wilmington, Delaware, the daughter of Helen Ware, a musician and violin teacher, and Laszlo Schwartz, an actor wh ...
as Dorothy Hendricks
*
Jack Murdock as George Hendricks
*
Matt McCoy as Doug Torbel
* Glenn Cannon as Roy Wesler
* Jeff Allin as Jeff Thomas
* Kathleen Bailey as Cindy Thomas
* James Grant Benton as Kapail
* Ray Bumatai as Kili Honda
*
Troy Evans as Sonny Tompkins
Production
Principal photography for ''Miracle Landing'' took place in
Honolulu
Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island ...
,
Oahu
Oahu () (Hawaiian language, Hawaiian: ''Oʻahu'' ()), also known as "The Gathering place#Island of Oʻahu as The Gathering Place, Gathering Place", is the third-largest of the Hawaiian Islands. It is home to roughly one million people—over t ...
, Hawaii. The aircraft used for the movie, bearing the colors of the fictitious Paradise Airlines, is a Boeing 737-297CT (Advanced), registered as N70723. At the time, it was owned by Aloha Airlines, the airline involved in the Flight 243 incident. That aircraft was used by
WestJet Airlines in Canada until 2002 (re-registered as C-GCWJ).
The aircraft was later scrapped in 2003.
Reception
''Miracle Landing'' was considered an authentic and accurate portrayal of Aloha Airlines Flight 243. In his later review, Sergio Ortega said: "''Miracle Landing'' is one of the most technically accurate air disaster movies ever."
''Miracle Landing'' won the 1990 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Special Visual Effects.
References
Notes
Citations
Bibliography
* Russell, Alan and Kok Loong Lee, ''Structure-Property Relations in Nonferrous Metals''. New York: Wiley-Interscience, 2005. .
External links
*
*
Miracle Landing Review
{{Dick Lowry
1990 films
1990 television films
1990 drama films
American aviation films
Films scored by Mark Snow
Films about aviation accidents or incidents
Drama films based on actual events
Films set in 1988
Films set in Hawaii
Films set on airplanes
Films shot in Honolulu
CBS network films
Films directed by Dick Lowry
American drama television films
1990s American films