Crash Landing: The Rescue of Flight 232 (1992)

Authentic drama of United Airlines flight 232 from Denver to Chicago. The DC-10 crashed during an emergency landing at Sioux City Gateway Airport on July 19, 1989. 184 people survived, ... See full summary »

Director:

Lamont Johnson

Writer:

Harve Bennett

Stars:

Charlton Heston, Richard Thomas, James Coburn

Won 1 Primetime Emmy. Another 1 win & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charlton Heston	...	Captain Al Haynes
Richard Thomas	...	Gary Brown
James Coburn	...	Jim Hathaway
Leon Russom	...	Bob Hamilton
John M. Jackson	...	Lt. Colonel Dennis Nielsen
Tom O'Brien	...	Chris Porter
Philip Baker Hall	...	Sam Gochenour
Tom Everett	...	Mack Zubinski
Carmen Argenziano	...	First Officer Bill Records
Bruce McGill	...	Flight Engineer Dudley Dvorak
Arthur Rosenberg	...	Dennis Fitch
Bill Geisslinger	...	Chuck Sundberg
Steven M. Porter	...	Gary Anderson
Stephanie Dunnam
Mariangela Pino

Storyline

Authentic drama of United Airlines flight 232 from Denver to Chicago. The DC-10 crashed during an emergency landing at Sioux City Gateway Airport on July 19, 1989. 184 people survived, partly thanks to the ground rescue workers who had 40 minutes to prepare for the event.

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Plot Keywords:

rescue | airplane accident | iowa | based on true story | number in title

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Taglines:

In 1988, Sioux City Iowa organized a revolutionary "Disaster Preparedness Program." On July 19th, 1989, they needed every trick in the book.

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Genres:

Action | Drama

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Certificate:

PG-13

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

24 February 1992 (USA)

Also Known As:

A Thousand Heroes

Filming Locations:

Nebraska, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bob Banner Associates, Helios Productions, The Gary L. Pudney Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

As of 2013, Gary Brown is still the director of Disaster Services for Woodbury County, Iowa. His techniques for disaster preparedness have been taught worldwide to firefighting and EMS personnel.

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Goofs

The plane at the end is taking off at a completely different airport (and at a completely different time), as witnessed by the trees alongside the runway. There are no trees along either of the KSUX runways.

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Quotes

Chuck Sundberg: I'm just beginning to feel it.
Gary Brown: Feel what?
Chuck Sundberg: Stress. You know what it's called just as well as I do, post-traumatic stress. We're all going to go through it. When this is all over, we're all going to need a little therapy, and just plain talking to people we love.
Gary Brown: What are you saying, I'm flipping out?
Chuck Sundberg: I don't want you taking anymore meetings, no more 5 AM thank-you letters. Go home and you sleep. I know you will. I just laced your coffee.
Gary Brown: You did not.
Chuck Sundberg: No, but I'll belt you if I have to.
Gary Brown: Alright, ...
[...]

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Connections

References Emergency! (1972)

User Reviews

Well worth the viewing

I first saw this movie on TV, and then found it online for purchase several years later. It is a great depiction of how to do things right from an emergency services standpoint. So much so, that I show it in EMT refresher classes that I teach to emphasize the points of teamwork and advanced planning that are required to respond adequately to this type of emergency.

This is an excellent viewing for those in emergency services that are used to seeing things done from a Hollywood standpoint-it doesn't glamorize the job like so many other attempts at this type of movie do, but still recognizes the contributions made by volunteers and career responders.