A Desperate Crew and Their Awful Decisions - The Extraordinary Tale of ALM Flight 980

Comments · 1.5K

• DI

  @DisasterBreakdown · 1 year ago · pinned

  Thank you so much for watching this video. if you enjoyed it please leave a like and don&apos;t forget to subscribe. This video was really made possible thanks to my amazing Patrons over on Patreon who have generously contributed to the channel. If you want to support me and my work further you can always join the Patreon from £1 per month right here: <a href="https://www.patreon.com/c/DisasterBreakdown">https://www.patreon.com/c/DisasterBreakdown</a><br><br>My Socials<br>Twitter: <a href="https://x.com/Chloe_HowieCB">https://x.com/Chloe_HowieCB</a><br>BlueSky: <a href="https://bsky.app/profile/chloehowie.bsky.social">https://bsky.app/profile/chloehowie.bsky.social</a>

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• PE

  @PeterKellner-ww8ui · 1 year ago

  My mom and dad were on this flight, both in their mid 20s. George and Martha Kellner. My mother passed away two months ago comma January 12 comma 2025. she was pregnant with my sister, Catherine. It was their last vacation before they would settle down for the birth in New York City. &nbsp;I was about one years old and they had left me with my grandparents, who also lived in New York City. My mother and father were sitting in the last row of the plane, which helped save their lives. My father had a pilot’s license he obtained while getting his law at Columbia University, and told my mother well before they hit the water that they were out of fuel. My mom told me that my father calmly put on his lifejacket, then hers, and then made sure she was buckled in. Then, he told her that after they landed, she should follow him down the aisle onto a wing, to the end of the wing, and jump in the water. He didn’t tell her that the odds of the plane not breaking up were slim. Once in the water, he emphasized that she needed to swim as far as possible away from the plane, that in the event they were separated she should not stay by the plane, which he said people would do. He said the submerging plane’s whirlpool could drag people under. &nbsp;A man sitting near them died of a heart attack by the time they hit the water; and upon impact, the seats in front of them collapsed forward on passengers. &nbsp;My father grabbed my mother’s arm and she followed him exactly as he said: they got off the end of the wing into the water and swam a distance. &nbsp;Others followed them and they connected themselves with belts and ties, but not before a panicked man grabbed6 my father and nearly drowned him; my dad broke free and watched the man drift away. My mother was one of the first to be lifted into the helicopters that flew out from St. Martin, roughly 52 miles to Shark’s Gull, where they landed. She would sit in a lawn chair by the runway for hours, waiting for my father to be brought back. &nbsp;My dad and Harry Evans stayed in the water until everyone else had been lifted out. My father was second to last, the steward, Harry, was last. A crewman asked my father if he was ok and my nonsmoking father simply said, give me a cigarette. The surviving passengers were made to stay briefly in St.Martin, so that airline executives could visit with them and ask them sign what my father described as a legal document. Having just graduated from Columbia Law School he read it carefully and then handed it back, unsigned. It relieved the airline of significant liability , and it was only after this catastrophe that the airlines instituted the coverage that exists to this day.

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• CR

  @cribbe6547 · 1 year ago

  Flight Attendant Margareth Abraham was a real hero. She no doubt saved countless lives by helping passengers don their lifevests and pushing passengers back into their seats right before the moment of impact. What a brave woman, RIP

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• CA

  @CanIBorrowYourShovel · 1 year ago

  It&apos;s always such mixed feelings when a crew makes a mistake that causes a crash but then handles the crash like heroes.

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• DE

  @DejabluebearTC · 1 year ago

  Chloe, I could watch a 30 minute breakdown or a 3 hour breakdown-you do these so well! Between you and Mentour Pilot, I learn so much about these accidents. Thank you for all you do!

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• SU

  @sunnyfon9065 · 1 year ago (edited)

  Nice to see IKEA sharks in the thumbnail lol

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• AL

  @alexcarolan8825 · 1 year ago

  The balls of steel the men and women need as flight attendants is crazy. So much respect for those in that job!

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• RO

  @robinauseer499 · 1 year ago

  the captain made mistakes that ended up crashing the plane, but at least good on him for working his hardest to minimize damage and rescue his passengers and crew. he didnt panic or abandon his station, and he accepted responsibility for those mistakes.

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• LE

  @LeilaHawk · 1 year ago

  I can not get over how incredibly indecisive the flight crew&apos;s communications were.

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• ST

  @streakyanchovy · 1 year ago

  I saw Blahaj in the thumbnail and instantly clicked. Banger video as always

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• US

  @user-zo3qs2lf8w · 1 year ago

  DeWitt fell victim an airline that put profit over safety. While questionable decisions were made on his behalf he displayed a high level of skill and selflessness in saving those he was responsible for. Lastly it speaks to a person&apos;s character when they can openly admit fault for their actions. I think he was a good individual.

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• BM

  @bmused55 · 1 year ago

  This was a sad case of what is known as &quot;get-there-itis&quot;. &nbsp;One case of many since. &nbsp; <br><br>I remember an interview with the captain where he said the plane actually briefly went partially under water and that the control surfaces actually worked as they would have in the air.

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