Welcome to the Black Box Aviation Podcast, where Tom and Mike break down the latest in aviation news, airline industry updates, pilot stories, air travel trends, and real-world flying experiences.

This episode is packed with surprises, industry drama, and jaw-dropping aviation stories — including a live FedEx delivery surprise that shows up during the recording!

✈️ What we cover in this episode:

• A surprise gift delivered by FedEx LIVE during the show
• Flying with dogs on seats — a real JetBlue passenger story
• MD-11 cargo aircraft lawsuits and the growing safety concerns
• FAA grounding of MD-11 jets and what it means for cargo airlines
• NTSB investigations and maintenance controversy
• The recent U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds F-16 crash and pilot ejection
• Thoughts on the Netflix aviation documentary “Air Force Elite: Thunderbirds”
• Global Airlines and the push to revive the “Golden Age of Air Travel”
• Deep dive on the Airbus A380 — the world’s largest passenger aircraft
• Delta Air Lines revenue losses tied to government shutdown impacts
• Honest pilot talk about career progression, the Boeing 777, and real-world airline life

Plus, shout-outs to new listeners and swim meet teammates helping grow the show!

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📞 Hotline: (203) 699-6792 (leave your message!)

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Buckle up — this week in aviation has been absolute turbulence.
From major software recalls to a global cargo fleet grounding, winter runway scares, and wild stories from the road, Aviation Chaos Week breaks down everything shaking the industry.

✈️ This Episode Covers:
🔹 Airbus A320 global software recall impacting airlines worldwide — what caused it, who’s hit hardest, and how long disruptions may last
🔹 UPS MD-11 inspection crisis — why the fleet grounding now appears to be months, not weeks, and how cargo operations will be affected
🔹 Delta Connection runway slide-off in Des Moines — how fast winter weather can snowball into an incident
🔹 Stories From the Road — Bananas at Big Y 🤦‍♂️
🔹 Stories From Home — The Garbage Man episode
🔹 How airplanes get their names — from Pan Am Clippers to FedEx’s Purple Eagle aircraft honoring St. Jude patients

We look behind the headlines and share the pilot perspective — what’s real, what’s assumed, and what passengers never hear about.

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It's Thanksgiving — aviation style. 🦃✈️
On this episode of the Black Box Aviation Podcast, Tom & Mike dive into the emotional, hilarious, and downright chaotic reality of spending the holidays as a pilot.

We cover:
🍽 Childhood Thanksgiving traditions (and the family chaos that came with them)
🌨 New England vs Florida — the wildest Thanksgiving weather events ever recorded
⚠️ The Portland Gale tragedy: the 1898 storm that reshaped New England history
🚢 The grounded Venezuelan freighter and Palm Beach flooding of 1984
🛄 Life on the road during Thanksgiving — loneliness, travel disasters, and unexpected moments of joy
💰 The rookie pilot who thought his $100 steak dinner was company-paid… until payday
🦃 Spotting wild turkeys on layovers and finding makeshift holiday meals across the world
🌴 Thanksgiving in Hawaii — sushi, coconut water, and Chinese food instead of turkey

This episode blends aviation, weather history, travel, comedy, and real pilot life — perfect for anyone who’s flown over the holidays or wondered what it’s really like behind the cockpit door.

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Ladies and gentlemen — welcome aboard another adrenaline-charged episode of the Black Box Aviation Podcast, where aviation gets real.

In today’s episode, Tom and Mike break down the chilling story of Swissair Flight 111, an MD-11 that departed New York for Geneva in September 1998… and never arrived. What began as a routine transatlantic flight quickly turned into one of the deadliest and most defining aviation emergencies in Canadian history.

We walk step-by-step through:
✈️ The mysterious smoke in the cockpit
✈️ The crew’s decision-making under pressure
✈️ The rarely practiced “smoke and fumes” checklist
✈️ The catastrophic role of the in-flight entertainment system
✈️ How this disaster reshaped aviation safety forever

From crew resource management to electrical fire procedures, this episode exposes the unsettling complexity of in-flight emergencies and the razor-thin line between control and chaos at 35,000 feet.

Whether you're a pilot, an aviation enthusiast, or someone fascinated by real cockpit drama, this episode is a must-listen.

📩 Contact the Show:
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📞 Hotline: (203) 699-6792 (Leave your name and message!)

📺 Find our YouTube Shorts: The Black Box Aviation Podcast — clips from every episode.

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Welcome back to The Black Box Aviation Podcast — where we dive into aviation, travel, and the wild, unbelievable stories from the world of flying that you need and want to know. Hosted by Tom & Mike, two pilots who love airplanes and aren't afraid to get technical.

On March 31st, 1992, a 28-year-old Boeing 707-321C departed Luxembourg carrying 70,000 lbs of freight. What should have been a routine climb turned into one of the most incredible saves in aviation history.

⚠️ At 32,000 feet, the crew encountered severe turbulence and a double bang.
💥 Not one — but two engines detached from the right wing mid-air.
🔥 A fire warning blared.
🛑 Systems failed.
👨‍✈️ Control of the aircraft became almost impossible.

With no engines on one wing, limited flight controls, and an unfamiliar runway ahead, Captain Berglund, First Officer Emery, and Flight Engineer Boone pulled off a textbook demonstration in crew resource management, airmanship, and problem solving under extreme pressure.

They landed the aircraft in flames — and every person on board survived without injury.

We break down:

• The technical factors that caused the catastrophic engine separation

• The exact decision-making that saved the flight

• What investigators discovered about metal fatigue and pylon integrity

• How aviation inspections changed after this accident

If you enjoy the episode, it helps us tremendously if you:
➡️ Rate 5 Stars on Apple, Spotify & Amazon Music
➡️ Leave a review — it boosts the show in search!

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✈️ Today’s Episode: Trans-Air-Service Flight 671⭐ Support the Show📩 Contact the Show🎧 Listen now on:

Welcome back to The Black Box Aviation Podcast, where Tom & Mike dive into aviation, travel, and everything you need and WANT to know about the world of flying.

This week is PACKED:

✈️ Breaking News — MD-11 Grounding

• FAA Air Directive grounding the MD-11, DC-10 & MD-10 fleet

• No inspection or repair guidance released yet

• NTSB briefing findings — CVR captured final 2 hours of audio

• What this means for pilots currently flying the MD-11

• Simulator concerns, schedule cancellations & pilot readiness

🚀 This Day in Aviation History — Skylab 4

• The final mission to Skylab launched November 16

• Chrysler’s surprising impact on the space race

• From Saturn rockets… to the 1990 Chrysler Lebaron (yes, really)

🛩 Stories From the Road

• Teaching kids to drive vs teaching pilots to fly

• Taxiing everything from a T-1A trainer to a C-5 Galaxy

• The stress of right-seat 180° turns in a jet with a 223-ft wingspan

• Real-world perspective on spatial awareness after recent CRJ-900 mishaps

💰 SPONSOR
Check out Nate Ehlers — The Backseat Pilot
🔗 thebackseatpilot.com
🎟 Exclusive Podcast Discount: BLACKBOX (15% off)

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💬 Leave a written review — it helps aviation fans find the show

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In this chilling episode of The Black Box Aviation Podcast, Tom and Mike take listeners back to one of the most haunting winter aviation disasters in U.S. history — Air Florida Flight 90, the Boeing 737 that crashed into the icy Potomac River moments after takeoff from Washington National Airport in 1982.

This episode explores how improper de-icing, pilot error, and misjudged procedures led to tragedy — and how brave civilians and first responders turned a day of horror into a story of heroism and sacrifice.

Tom, an active airline pilot, also revisits key winter operations procedures from last week’s episode — including de-icing fluids, taxi operations in snow, and engine anti-ice techniques — breaking down what went wrong that fateful day and what modern crews do differently now.

🧊 Inside This Episode:

• The deadly chain of errors behind Flight 90’s failed takeoff

• Why winter ops training is critical for every airline pilot

• Heroic rescues from the frozen Potomac that inspired the nation

• How Air Florida’s mistakes reshaped cold-weather flight protocols

✈️ Hosted by Tom & Mike, your go-to aviation duo for real talk about flight, safety, and the stories that changed the skies.

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#AviationPodcast #AirFloridaFlight90 #WinterOps #AviationHistory #Deicing #PlaneCrash #PilotTalk #AviationSafety #BlackBoxPodcast #AviationAnalysis #ColdWeatherFlying

The skies are turbulent this week — literally and politically. 🛫
In this action-packed episode of The Black Box Aviation Podcast, Tom and Mike welcome Heather back in studio to unpack major breaking aviation news and real-world travel chaos.

✈️ Here’s what we’re covering:

• UPS Flight 2976 Update: Inside the investigation of the Louisville MD-11 crash and what the NTSB found in the recovered black box.

• MD-11 Fleet Grounding: Why UPS and FedEx grounded all MD-11 aircraft — and what it means for global cargo operations.

• Government Shutdown Fallout: Flight cancellations, ATC shortages, and how the DOT’s emergency 10% flight reduction plan could ruin your holiday travel.

• Heather’s Travel Anxiety: Between Hurricane Melissa and shutdown delays, vacation planning has never been more stressful.

• Plus: A heartfelt Veterans Day tribute, Nate Ehlers’ exclusive 15% discount code (“BLACKBOX”) at thebackseatpilot.com, and some wild stories from the road.

🎧 Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or Amazon Music!
📩 Contact the show:
✉️ [email protected]
📞 Hotline: (203) 699-6792
📱 Instagram / X: @the_black_box01

If you love aviation, real travel talk, and behind-the-scenes airline insight — smash that 5⭐ review and help boost The Black Box Aviation Podcast into more searches!

#BlackBoxAviationPodcast #AviationNews #UPSFlight2976 #MD11 #AirCargo #GovernmentShutdown #ATC #AviationPodcast #TravelDelays #PilotTalk #AirlineNews #AviationCommunity #AviationSafety #NTSB #FedEx #UPS #AviationUpdates #FlightDelays #AviationLife #HeatherReturns #VeteransDay

In this special breaking news edition of The Black Box Aviation Podcast, Tom and Mike dive deep into the tragic crash of UPS Flight 2976, a McDonnell Douglas MD-11 that went down shortly after takeoff from Louisville, Kentucky.

This episode hits close to home — Tom is currently qualified and flies the same aircraft type involved in the accident. With that insider knowledge, the hosts break down what’s known so far about the takeoff fire, engine failure, and possible uncontained engine event that led to the crash.

They analyze early footage from multiple angles, discuss the MD-11’s complex handling characteristics, and explain how its unique aerodynamic design can turn small errors into catastrophic outcomes. They also review official UPS statements, early NTSB details, and the impact this tragedy has had on Worldport operations and the cargo industry as a whole.

You’ll also hear expert insights on:
✈️ The MD-11’s history and accident record
🔥 How an “uncontained engine failure” unfolds
🧭 Normal vs. emergency takeoff procedures
📦 The operational impact at UPS’s Louisville hub

This is a must-listen for aviators, aviation professionals, and anyone seeking clear, technical analysis — not speculation — on one of the most significant air freight accidents in recent memory.

🎧 Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music
📬 Contact: [email protected]
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📞 Hotline: (203) 699-6792 — Leave your name and message!
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Tom & Mike are back in the cockpit for Episode 44 of the Black Box Aviation Podcast! We kick things off with a spooky recap of last week’s Halloween Spooktacular, featuring eerie listener stories — including one from a haunted hospital that’ll send chills down your spine.

Then, we shift gears from ghosts to gusts, diving into the realities of winter flying. From the frosty ramps of Anchorage to de-icing disasters in Brunswick, we’ll break down how pilots handle snow, ice, and holdover times when the weather turns wicked.

Plus, we talk about next year’s Spooktacular ideas (Haunted Hotels, anyone?), listener shoutouts, and some behind-the-scenes outtakes from the show.

✈️ Pilot Perks:
Use code BLACKBOX at checkout for 15% off at TheBackseatPilot.com — the ultimate aviation gear and gift site for pilots and avgeeks alike.

📬 Connect with Us:
Email: [email protected]
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Hotline: (203) 699-6792 — leave us a message!
YouTube: @TheBlackBoxAviationPodcast

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