What would you do to survive when all hope seems lost? Join Alice and Zach as they explore one of history's most remarkable survival stories. On October 13, 1972, a plane carrying a Uruguayan rugby team crashed high in the Andes mountains. For the survivors, this was just the beginning of a 72-day ordeal in one of Earth's most hostile environments. Facing starvation, extreme cold, avalanches, and the crushing news that the search had been abandoned, these ordinary young men were forced to make extraordinary—and controversial—choices to stay alive. Discover how medical student Roberto Canessa and teammate Nando Parrado ultimately trekked across the seemingly impassable Andes mountains to save their friends, completing one of the most incredible rescue missions of all time.

Sources:

• Time magazine: "A Survivor Recalls the Harrowing 1972 Plane Crash Behind Society of the Snow" by Megan McCluskey, January 5, 2024
• My Favorite Murder Episode 307: Fun Cracker Reveal
• Wikipedia: Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571
• Encyclopedia Britannica: Uruguayan Air Force flight 571

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits: Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

On August 25, 2001, a Cessna 402B carrying R&B superstar Aaliyah crashed shortly after takeoff from Marsh Harbour Airport in the Bahamas, claiming all nine lives on board. Discover how multiple preventable factors—an overloaded aircraft, an unqualified pilot with falsified credentials and substances in his system, and a charter company operating without proper authorization—led to this devastating tragedy. The episode also reveals how Aaliyah herself sensed the danger and refused to board, only to allegedly be given an unidentified pill before being placed on the doomed flight.

• Official accident investigation report from the Bahamian Civil Aviation Department
• My Favorite Murder episode #304 titled "Show-Off Time"
• Wikipedia articles on Aaliyah and the 2001 Marsh Harbour Cessna 402 crash
• "Baby Girl: Better Known as Aaliyah" by Kathy Iandoli (2021)

Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com

Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod

Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

What happens when an ordinary day of paragliding transforms into a battle against one of nature's most violent forces? Join Alice and Zach as they explore the extraordinary survival story of Ewa Wiśnierska, a champion paraglider who was literally sucked into a massive thunderstorm and carried to an altitude higher than Mount Everest. Discover how this elite athlete endured temperatures of minus 50 degrees, oxygen levels too thin to sustain consciousness, and violent hailstorms that should have proven fatal. Learn what happens to the human body when suddenly exposed to conditions more extreme than the "death zone" of high-altitude mountaineering—without specialized equipment or training. Buckle up for an incredible journey into the stratosphere and back.

Sources:

• Wikipedia article on Ewa Wiśnierska
• "Not Today" podcast, Episode 141: "Straight To The Stratosphere"

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits: Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas. This special episode featured guests Lydia Stern and Terren Judson.

On August 16, 1987, Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashed just moments after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, killing 154 people and leaving only one survivor—a four-year-old girl who became known as the "miracle child." Discover how an experienced crew's missed checklist, combined with schedule pressure and a disabled warning system, led to one of America's deadliest aviation disasters. Learn about the fundamental safety changes that emerged from this tragedy and why Flight 255 became a watershed moment for aviation checklist procedures worldwide.

• NTSB Accident Report AAR-88/05: "Aircraft Accident Report - Northwest Airlines, Inc., McDonnell Douglas DC-9-82, N312RC, Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, Romulus, Michigan, August 16, 1987"
• Mayday: Air Disaster - Season 9, Episode 4, titled "Alarming Silence"
• NTSB Investigation Database Case DCA87MA046
• Aviation Safety Network Database Entry for Northwest Airlines Flight 255
• "The Sole Survivor: Cecelia Cichan's Story" - Various news interviews and documentaries
• NASA Ames Research Center Checklist Design Studies
• FAA Advisory Circulars on Takeoff Warning Systems

Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com

Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod

Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

In Part 1, we explored the three terrorist incidents that shaped TSA policy. Now, we examine whether the agency actually works. Join Alice and Zach as they dive into the TSA's shocking 95% failure rate in security tests, the human cost of security theater, and the recent policy changes that have everyone asking: if we can keep our shoes on now, why couldn't we before? After 23 years and over $200 billion, has the TSA made us safer, or just made us feel safer? This episode asks the tough questions about one of America's most controversial federal agencies.

Sources:

• "Transportation Security Administration" - Wikipedia
• "It Was Shoes On, No Boarding Pass Or ID. But Airport Security Forever Changed On 9/11" - David Schaper, NPR, September 10, 2021
• "A Look at How Airport Security Has Evolved Post 9-11" - Diane Gerace, Philadelphia International Airport, June 11, 2021
• "DHS to End 'Shoes-Off' Travel Policy" - Department of Homeland Security Press Release, July 8, 2025
• "TSA's new airport security: What travelers need to know in 2025" - Doc Louallen, ABC News, July 17, 2025
• "Is TSA PreCheck still worth it after security changes?" - Steph Whiteside, NewsNation, July 18, 2025

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits: Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

Over two decades after 9/11, the Transportation Security Administration is finally letting us keep our shoes on at airport security. But how did we get here? Join Alice and Zach as they dive deep into the three terrorist incidents that shaped modern airport security: Richard Reid's shoe bomb attempt, the 2006 transatlantic liquid bomb plot, and the underwear bomber. Discover the shocking intelligence failures, the heroic passengers who actually stopped these attacks, and how each incident led to the security measures we know today. This is Part 1 of our examination of America's most controversial federal agency.

Sources:

• "Transportation Security Administration" - Wikipedia
• "Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab" - Wikipedia
• "2006 transatlantic aircraft plot" - Wikipedia
• "Richard Reid" - Wikipedia
• "It Was Shoes On, No Boarding Pass Or ID. But Airport Security Forever Changed On 9/11" - David Schaper, NPR, September 10, 2021
• "A Look at How Airport Security Has Evolved Post 9-11" - Diane Gerace, Philadelphia International Airport, June 11, 2021

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits: Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

On February 12, 2009, a routine commuter flight from Newark to Buffalo became a catastrophic lesson in pilot training and aviation safety. When stick shaker stall warnings activated during Colgan Air Flight 3407's approach, the captain's response turned a recoverable situation into an unrecoverable tragedy. Join Alice and Zach as they explore how fatigue, inadequate training, and a fundamental misunderstanding of stall recovery led to the deaths of 50 people—and sparked the most comprehensive aviation safety reforms in decades. This is the story of how one crash changed everything about how we train pilots and regulate regional airlines.

Sources:

• NTSB Aircraft Accident Report AAR-10/01, "Loss of Control on Approach, Colgan Air Flight 3407"
• "Colgan Air Flight 3407: How a Single Crash Sparked Unprecedented Reform" - Aviation International News
• "Crew Errors Led to Fatal Colgan Air Crash" - Defense Daily
• Code7700.com Case Study: Colgan Air 3407
• Wikipedia article on Colgan Air Flight 3407
• Mayday: Air Disasters Season 10, Episode 4 "Dead Tired"

Find FINAL BOARDING CALL online:

• Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com
• Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod
• Facebook: Final Boarding Call

Credits: Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.

When ambition and rule-breaking collide in the deepest parts of the ocean, the consequences can be catastrophic. Join Alice and Zach as they explore the shocking 2023 implosion of OceanGate's Titan submersible, which claimed five lives during an expedition to the Titanic wreckage. Discover how a series of controversial design decisions, regulatory shortcuts, and repeatedly ignored warnings from industry experts led to this modern tragedy, raising profound questions about safety, innovation, and the future of extreme tourism.

• Documentary: "OceanGate Is Worse Than You Thought" by The Fool
• Documentary: "Fatal Flaws: The OceanGate Story" (2024) by 7NEWS Australia

Website: finalboardingcallpodcast.com

Instagram: @FinalBoardingCallPod

Facebook: Final Boarding Call Podcast

Final Boarding Call is hosted by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas, researched and written by Alice Stern, produced and edited by Alice Stern and Zach Stemas.