6B Friday. December 6, 1996 UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN Shows examine plane crashes Wreck footage reveals clues AP Television Writer LOS ANGELES — From the opening footage of a wreck at the bottom of the shark-infested Atlantic to a look at the swampy remains of the ValuJet crash, the Learning Channel's Survival in the Sky is not for white-knuckled filers. But don't despair. Viewers of the miniseries are reminded more than once that, statistically speaking, flying is still the safest way to travel—and that there are efforts underway to make it even safer. All four of the miniseries' one-hour segments will air beginning at 6 p.m. Sunday. The individual segments will be rebroadcast Monday through Thursday. Aside from stark and deadly images from some of the world's worst air disasters, the miniseries also shows how investigators piece together bits of charred debris to determine what went wrong and how air safety can be improved through the tragedies. There also are compelling tales from survivors' near-death experiences and how they dealt with guilt. "One of the reasons we did the miniseries was the fascination with airline disasters, but also from our point of view we tried to give people really good inside information, and I think you get that," said Nancy Lavin, an executive producer for The Learning Channel. "It also shows the National Transportation Safety Board's point of view on investigations, and I think you feel as if you've got the inside track on what they do." One tragedy mentioned but not profiled is TWA Flight 800, the Paris-bound 747 that exploded minutes after taking off from John F. Kennedy Airport on July 17, killing all 230 people on board. "It happened a little bit too late for us to get into." Lavin said. Safety board investigators told The Learning Channel they would videotape the next time the agency's "Go Team" was dispatched to the scene of a crash. It so happened that the next crash involved a VaultJet plane slamming into three feet of water in the alligator-infested Florida Everglades, killing all 110 aboard. "We flew over the accident site, and all it was was water," said Greg Feith, board investigator, in the fourth episode Crash Detectives. With all the high-tech equipment employed to find the two black boxes, the flight data recorder was unearthed after someone simply stepped on it. silence that came over everybody because we were all probably thinking the same thing: 'How are we going to do this?' "The airplane had submerged, and we saw that it was going to be a hell of a job," he said. "There was this And it was Feith who discovered the most likely cause of the crash: 144 oxygen generators in the cargo hold — a breach of regulations concerning hazardous materials — one of which ignited on takeoff, sparking a chain reaction that caused the fire that burned through the cabin floor. Two-thirds of all accidents are the result of pilot error, according to the miniseries. A case in point is the opening segment of the Feb. 6 crash of a Boeing 757 that plunged into the Atlantic Ocean minutes after takeoff from the Dominican Republic. All 189 people, mostly German tourists, were killed. "Investigators found that a cockpit instrument wasn't working," the narrator said. "The captain knew it, but took off anyway. Everyone aboard paid the price." The submerged wreckage, the narrator said gravely, is a lasting monument to a pilot's mistake. Perhaps the most dramatic footage is in the third episode. A Wina and A On the way to Chicago from Denver, the plane lost its tail engine and was forced to land in Sioux City, Iowa, cartwheeling into a ball of flames across the runway and adjacent cornfield. In the end, 112 died. Amazingly though, 184 survived. Prayer, aptly titled for its profile of a 1989 emergency landing of a crippled United Airlines DC-10. Off-duty pilot Denny Fitch was credited with helping land the plane. "I was an ordinary pilot who had an extraordinary day," said Fitch. It took Fitch 16 months and eight surgeries to recover from the injuries, but he remains a pilot today. Survivor's guilt, he found, was incredibly bad but was partially alleviated when he met with another survivor a year later. "We started crying." F recalled. "She said, 'I'm so glad to meet you, you're my hero.' I told her I was sorry I couldn't save her husband." "God wanted him, let it go," she told him. "That was a huge leap for me, for somebody on the airplane to tell me it was all right." Fitch said. In the end, it turned out that a fault in the engine fan led to the explosion, severing hydraulic lines and rendering the flight controls useless. "As hard as we try, we don't have perfection," Fitch said. Elmo doll tops list of Christmas toys By Liz Musser Kansan staff writer When you poke its stomach, it laughs and vibrates. It may sound risqué, but the "Tickle Me Elmo" doll is the most popular item of the Christmas season. "It's like the Power Rangers and Cabbage Patch Kids," said Dennis Long, supervisor of the toy department at SuperTarget, 3201 Iowa St. "This year, 'Tickle Me Elmo' is the one thing that everyone wants." The doll is modeled after the little red Sesame Street character, Elmo. "Tickle Me Elmo" has a spot in its stomach that, when touched, triggers a laugh. Sometimes Elmo talks. Sometimes he vibrates as if he is laughing. Long said that on the day after Thanksgiving, SuperTarget sold out of the doll within hours of opening. "Whenever we get a new shipment, they are gone within minutes," he said. Elmo" doll as a birthday gift in November. "The vibrating really took me by surprise," she said. "I'm not sure if it's supposed to be the convulsions you go into when you're laughing or what. Some people have described it as foul." SuperTarget sells "Tickle Me Elmo" for $24.99. Wal-Mart, 3300 Iowa St. sells them for $27.99. The other popular item of the season is Nintendo 64, a new video game system that has three-dimensional graphics. "Nintendo 64 is hot as fire," said Kevin Lober, assistant manager of Wal-Mart. Lober said that Nintendo 64 was so popular that warehouses were distributing them on an allocation system, meaning that only a limited number of Nintendos are sent to each store. The number is determined by the store's sales history. Lober said that customers had not been unruly about the toy shortage. "Anywhere they go, they're finding the same thing," he said. "It's just part of the season." 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TEXTBOOK PRE-ORDER your Spring '97 textbooks Pre-ordering your textbooks means they're packaged and waiting for you before classes start. That will save you time hunting for books. Pre-order customers also get first 'shot' at used books in stock, which saves you money, up to 30% off new prices. Plus you'll save an additional 5% on your entire purchase if you pick up your pre-order before the first day of classes. Your Pre-Order must be received by December 18, 1996 Please indicate contact this order to for: Fall___ Spring___ Summer___ Department Number Instructor or Staff (Please note it Lab or Department Group) LINE NUMBER (IMPORTANT) TIME/DAYS PREFERENCE New Used ENG 205 Kielman 82345 8:30 MWP | | | | | | | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | How Books Will Be Ready 3 Days Before Classes Begin Phone: ___ KU Address: ___ City: ___ State: ___ Zip: ___ KU Phone: ___ Home Phone: ___ Fresh Sarah Jeff Ored *The Fine Print* ebooks not returned will be picked up the 2nd day of classes will be returned to stock *Pre-Oder must be picked up before 1st Day of* classes to be eligible for 5% discount ebooks not returned will be available prior to start of classes *All books are returnable, with receipt, through* back of classes *All NEW books must be audible to new quality for* full refund ebooks not received by December 18, 1994 Jayhawk Bookstore your Book Professionals at the top of Naismith Hill 420 Crescent Road Lawrence, KS 66044 843-3826 FAX: (913)843-9578