Flight 901 – Mt Erebus Disaster

On the morning of 28 November 1979, Air New Zealand Flight TE901 departed Auckland Airport in Māngere on an 11-hour sightseeing journey to Antarctica. At 1:49 p.m., tragedy struck when the aircraft crashed into the lower slopes of Mt Erebus, claiming the lives of all 237 passengers and 20 crew. It remains the worst civil disaster in New Zealand’s history. In this program, we retrace the flight path of TE901 and explore the complex and compelling story behind the doomed journey. Along the way, we search for answers, and the lessons that must never be forgotten.