Why Planes Crash Case Files: 2001-2003

By: Sylvia Wrigley

Narrated by: Charlie Boswell

This riveting series goes beyond the news clips and investigates the most harrowing and inexplicable plane crashes from 2001 to 2003. Appearing for the first time in a bundle, this book contains 33 incidents and accidents from the series so far. Please note that this is a compilation of the existing three books and does not include new content. Every chapter features a detailed walk-through of a real-life air emergency. The author combines official investigation reports and modern media coverage, as well as cockpit and ATC transcripts to take the listener through these accidents and near misses.

Why Planes Crash offers an exciting and compelling look at the critical moments which define an aviation accident, explaining both the how and the why of catastrophic accidents in modern times. From disintegrating airliners to in-flight suicide to maintenance shortcuts, the author looks critically into each factor that might have lead to the crash. Her investigations and deep insight aim to make the listener into a witness to the investigation, and, yet, it is comprehensive enough for anyone with no aviation knowledge to understand.

“For those aviation enthusiasts that wish to delve beyond the sensationalist headlines on aviation accidents Sylvia Spruck Wrigley's Why Planes Crash will satisfy their needs. Informative, critical and insightful.” (Hal Stoen, Stoenworks Aviation)

“The author has done a remarkable job in not only researching the evidence of the accidents she covers and in putting across the problems of an investigation, but she has managed to do this in a way that will interest and appeal to a wide range of readers.” (John Farley Obe, author of View from the Hover)

©2013 Sylvia Wrigley (P)2018 Sylvia Wrigley

Loved it!

Detailed and explained clearly for the layman. Very interesting and intriguing. Good narrator.
Exactly what I was looking for.

I felt like I was RIGHT there!!!

I got so engrossed in each chapter, my family all but wrote me off while I was listening to this book!!!

Excellent content & narrator

The book delivers what is promised, including the transcripts of conversations at critical moments in the flights. Excellent narration.

Exactly what I was looking for...

I love the structure of these books -- they're broken down into episodic chapters each closely examining a specific incident. Each incident is detailed in a pseudo-documentary style walking through reconstructions with additional color from the author and the occasional excerpt from the accident report itself.

If you appreciate science-channel'esque aviation or engineering documentaries, you'll likely enjoy this. If you're looking for a gripping drama of exaggerated heroics or conspiracy fear-mongering, this is not what you want.

Occasionally small parts can be a bit technical as important details are explained (some incidents are more interesting than others), but overall I truly enjoyed the efforts and would highly recommend this series.

I would also give the reader high marks as well.

Informative, Thoughtful, and Well Put Together

I've been slightly obsessed with air crash documentaries for years now but frustrated by the seemingly limited options out there to access them. This book plays a lot like one of those programs, discussing the events that lead up to a crash then a break down of the causes including explanations of the mechanics of an aircraft. Admittedly, sometimes the technical explanations go too far in the weeds for a lay person to really grasp, but you still come away with a basic understanding of why something went wrong.

I admire the author for choosing to focus on modern crashes as historical crashes have indeed been examined quite often and in most cases the contributing factors have long been phased out from the system. I can recgonize some cases but most are new and fresh making this well worth my time checking out. I sincerely hope the author will continue to write more in this series and would certainly check out another book if she ever publishes more.

Okay

The narrator is not a pilot and didn't understand aeronautical terminology. this review requires 15 words.

A little technical for the average lay-reader

This book was not quite what I was expecting. It is a very clinical dissection of various plane accidents (and near-accidents). There is not much attempt to add drama to the stories. You don't usually learn much about the personal lives of the pilots or the passengers, for instance. Even the names of the pilots are generally not included. It is a kind of summary of various accident reports, with some information also drawn from news reports. It is filled with aviation acronyms and jargon, making it a bit of a slog at times, especially for the lay-reader who has no aviation training. I almost gave up on this one, but decided to finish it. Some of the stories were interesting. Pilots and would-be pilots will probably have an easier time following the jargon-filled sections.

I will never again assume that flying, with all its computers and automation, is easy. Things can still go horribly wrong.

The narrator did a reasonable job with a difficult technical text. But there will be no awards for the narration. I noticed a few words mispronounced, and suspected a few words were omitted entirely. There was also a mushiness to the narration, as if the narrator was struggling with chewing gum or dentures. But overall it was tolerable, especially considering the difficult subject matter.