User Reviews

This lengthy docu-drama deals with the cause and aftermath of the Air New Zealand air crash on Mount Erebus in Antarctica in 1978. It pulls few punches and is hard to "put down" so to speak. Frank Finlay as Mr Justice Mahon is quite brilliant and almost all the other members of this essentially New Zealand cast are pretty good too. The drama does not depict either the Air New Zealand management or the New Zealand government of the time in a good light and it is hard to conclude that this position is not correct. However it has undoubtedly made this a controversial production in some circles and it has not been released on video yet. Vested interests might prevail to ensure it is never released which would be a real pity and a loss to legitimate free speech. Copies of the broadcast are hard to come by and should be snapped up if they come your way. This is one of the best docu-dramas of it's type I have ever seen and is frequently re-watched in my home.

I cannot heap enough praise on the tv mini-series from New Zealand which recounts the enquiry into the Air New Zealand DC10 tragedy in Antarctica. It begins with the DC10 leaving for a day trip to the Antarctic and follows the alarm when the plane is reported overdue. Next we follow the court of enquiry, headed by Judge Peter Mahon, brilliantly played by Frank Finlay and we hear the Air New Zealand management attempting to blame the flight crew for the accident. What follows is possibly the best piece of television I have ever seen. I have watched it countless times, and always discover something new. It is a great shame that this has never been released commercially and one wonders whether the 'powers that be' have played a hand in this.