Flight 90: Disaster on the Potomac

I'm a big fan of disaster movies. The more preposterous and over-the-top, the better! You know, "Airport"-style, or "The Towering Inferno". Of course, it's a lot less fun when it's a half movie/half documentary-drama about a tragedy that really occurred; - especially when made only two years after the incident and still fresh in the mind of everybody. "Flight 90" isn't the type of film you watch for entertainment, but to learn something more about what happened, or out of respect for the casualties and the families they left behind.

"Flight 90: Disaster on the Potomac" is a retelling of the drama that occurred on 13th of January 1982, when - during terrible wintery weather conditions - a Boeing airliner crashed into an interstate bridge and sunk in the ice-cold Potomac River in Washington D. C. 74 of the 78 passengers and crewmembers lost their lives, and another 4 unsuspecting motorists on the interstate did as well. Since it's a serene production, and made for television, the film doesn't show much of the actual crash but focuses on character drawings (mostly of the few survivors) and the complicated rescue mission. It's a worthwhile film and it succeeds in passing the message that every victim of every incident has a name worth remembering and background story worth telling.

This is a movie that should be put on video. It is very well done and very accurate. I haven't seen it since it originally aired on network television, but I still remember it very well. I remember the character played by Donnelly Rhodes kept passing his opportunity to escape to other survivors. It was heart-breaking to watch that play out. I remember Richard Masur's character trying to swim out to assist the survivors. I remember the woman who lost her husband and baby trying to find her will to survive. I was young when it aired and I remember people making a big deal about it the days leading up to it because it was so effective and accurate. I know I'd love to see it again.

This TV-movie about the January 13, 1982 crash of Air Florida Flight #90 into the Potomac river is for the most part a well-made docudrama surrounding many of the people involved in the story. Legal hurdles prevented some stories from being depicted, in particular that of Lenny Skutnik who dove into the river to rescue Priscilla Tirado from drowning. Skutnik felt that any movie about the event was exploitative and thus refused to let his story be dramatized. His scene is confined to a look-alike actor (billed only as "Man On Shore" in the original credits) jumping in at the appropriate moment. However, compensation is offered by focusing on the more neglected story of mental hospital worker Roger Olian (Richard Masur) who first swam out to give the trapped passengers enocouragement before the helicopters arrived. His story is as remarkable as Skutnik's ultimately and the TV movie allowed those of us who weren't familiar with his efforts to see how there was more than one hero that day who jumped into the Potomac to provide help.

The docudrama approach with no special effects of the plane crash managed to work well because there is a desire to keep things as authentic as possible, which includes a large use of actual news footage of the rescue operations, which is blended in seamlessly with the scenes of actors in the tank. Gil Melle's score is a bit awkward and the most dated aspect of the production, but still has some hauntingly beautiful sections when he gets away from the synths.

A few postscripts to the story of the survivors. Nikki Felch's marriage to David Frank did not last and she sadly died of pancreatic cancer in 2002, just two weeks after Burt Hamilton also passed away. Joe Stiley was forced into early retirement by his injuries and lives in Washington state. Priscilla Tirado has not granted an interview in more than ten years and remains traumatized by the events that saw her lose her husband and baby. By far, the happiest story has been that of Flight Attendant Kelly Duncan (who is given the least attention of any of the survivors in the movie, with greater focus coming on the other two flight attendants who were killed) who today teaches at a Christian pre-school and has three children.

This movie is one of the best of its genre as far as I am concerned. Though made for TV, a fair amount of research and money has gone into its production, evident from how close to the actual facts the movie is. Being a well documented true story, it's good to see the movie adhering to this. The writing and characterisation is very realistic - nothing two dimensional or superfluous here. It also follows the characters through a little of their day before and why they're travelling on this particular flight. You become emotionally attached and care about them, wondering who is going to live and who is going to die.

Brilliant performances from the cast only raise the picture further. Barry Corbin and Dinah Manoff both went on to successful sitcoms (Northern Exposure and Empty Nest respectively), and it's not surprising from their acting in this film. The on screen chemistry between Jamie Rose and Kate Vernon (as flight attendants) has to be seen to be believed. It's enough to make you think they were actually friends in real life, not just actors brought together for a movie. They truly become who they're portraying.

What really adds to the film is the detail. The same airline that actually crashed is featured in the movie, the same aircraft type, and the details as to why the plane crashed are added in a way that you'll notice without it being in your face or detrimental to the story flow. Impressively, the actual cockpit dialog from the flight is repeated almost verbatim in the movie. Finally, actual news footage of the rescue that day is incorporated into the acted out footage, adding a deal of realism rarely seen in "crash movies".

The only bad marks I can give the film is for the total unrealistic "crash" scene. Obviously there was no special effects budget. Also, the "cars on the bridge" are obviously not real and shot in a studio, another downfall for a movie that is otherwise virtually flawless.

Flight 90: Disaster On The Potomac - definitely worth watching, and not one to miss - for plane buffs and movie buffs alike!

A good reenactment of the facts of Jan.13th 1982, when AF90 sunk in the freezy Potomac river. How can an air crash change the vision of the survivors about life? We can see in this picture the workers, stewardesses, pilots and passengers amidst a strong snow storm, and the worry of some of them ,specially Joe Stiley(Stephen Macht) about the ice in the wings,and when he asks about it, nobody answers. The actitude of some survivors, as Arland Williams(Donnely Rhodes) is enough to make you understand the meaning of life in a critic situation. I think this is one of the most dramatic scenes of the movie. We see also the drama behind the rescue workers in the helicopter and the efforts to save these shocked people of a frozen river. And the special effects, in the moment when airplane starts to stall and everything falls from the roof of the plane, the safety position of Joe, Nikki Felch, Bert Hamilton and Kelly Duncan( a great play of Kathleen Wilhoite as the youngest stewardess)

This picture shows us an important lesson: You must be very crazy to aboard an airplane in a snow storm, unless you are sure you won't end your flight in an ice trap.