Equinox: The Box
Click here to screen
Synopsis
The Black Box is much more than a flight recorder. It’s a symbol of reassurance to passengers who know that if a plane crashes the authorities will know what happened and why, and will take steps to ensure the fault is corrected. In a society where safety is paramount, airlines lead the way in showing care and dedication towards the prevention of accidents. Or do they? Is the ubiquitous black box the informative miracle-tool we are told, or an exercise in public relations by the aviation industry? Evidence uncovered by Equinox points to the latter. It suggests that many black boxes only monitor a few aspects of a plane’s operations, and thus rarely provide the key information flight investigators require. And when the data provided by the box does reveal the cause of an accident, steps are not always taken to rectify the problem. What more could we be doing to ensure air travel is as safe as can be at the dawn of the 21st Century?
The Black Box is much more than a flight recorder. It’s a symbol of reassurance to passengers who know that if a plane crashes the authorities will know what happened and why, and will take steps to ensure the fault is corrected. In a society where safety is paramount, airlines lead the way in showing care and dedication towards the prevention of accidents. Or do they? Is the ubiquitous black box the informative miracle-tool we are told, or an exercise in public relations by the aviation industry? Evidence uncovered by Equinox points to the latter. It suggests that many black boxes only monitor a few aspects of a plane’s operations, and thus rarely provide the key information flight investigators require. And when the data provided by the box does reveal the cause of an accident, steps are not always taken to rectify the problem. What more could we be doing to ensure air travel is as safe as can be at the dawn of the 21st Century?
Duration
1 x 50'
Definition
SD
Genre
Factual
Subgenre
Science
Producer
DARLOW SMITHSON PRODUCTIONS