Challenger: The Final Flight

I can remember this as a kid and always had a fascination with the disaster. And this is a amazing documentary. Brings back so many feelings.

Much like President Kennedy's assassination on 11/22/63 or the terrorist events of 9/11/01, the moment that the space shuttle Challenger exploded just minutes after take-off in 1986 is one of those "where were you when..." moments. This documentary looks back at the tragedy and its context in American culture at the time.

The first two episodes are more history lessons than anything else, setting the groundwork for why the space shuttle program--and Challenger specifically--was a topic of conversation throughout the 1980s. It also examines all the crew members of that fateful voyage, including of course the much-publicized schoolteacher Christa McAuliffe. Your enjoyment mileage may vary for these episodes, as besides interviews with surviving family members they don't bring much more to the table other than context.

The final two episodes, however, really dig into the exact reason behind the malfunction (faulty o-rings) and clearly re-trace a faulty decision-making process from NASA that placed slavish devotion to schedule (and some hubris mixed in) over protecting human life. These episodes are riveting, especially when key NASA players are interviewed for their thoughts after the passage of time. You might be surprised at the recalcitrance of some of them.

Overall, this is a solid and balanced (both context and deep-dive) look at an incredibly sad event. It will bring tears to your eyes on multiple occasions. The access to family members of the astronauts, former high-level NASA officials, and even certain celebrities of the time are the hallmark here, along with a solemn lesson to be learned about the value of safety versus hubris.

The facts that are known about this inexcusable disaster are all over the net. If you are interested in the technical aspects of the accident read the Rogers Commission report.

This is the story of the Challenger disaster from the viewpoint of a lot of people that were there at the time. I found those views compelling and with all of that background information, by the fourth episode I felt like I was back in 1985. It was like I was right there, with all of those people.

Not exactly on topic but a bit of trivia: I worked for Morton Thiokol when the Challenger accident happened. There was a mandatory employee meeting the day after the disaster. We were all required to sign non-disclosure agreements. We were told that if we were caught saying ANYTHING, even the word Challenger, to ANYONE (even co-workers), we would be fired immediately.

I found it interesting that the name "Roger Boisjoly" wasn't mentioned once. The man who probably fought harder than anyone to fix the o-ring problem gets passed by? While the series held my interest for all four episodes, a little more tech and a little less teacher would have been better, for me at least.

I've seen every documentary on space and the Challenger that have been produced. Many were bad, some were good. This four part series is pretty good, covering familiar ground and likely a good refresher for anyone who lived through those times, or more beneficially for those younger people who are just raising their awareness and understanding of this troubling catastrophe.

The producers did use the "it's going to blow up" scenario as the dramatic leverage (e.g. cliffhanger) here. I think its overuse is justifiable, though, given the fact that if the NASA decision makers had listened to the whistleblowers and weighed the risks, the crew would have been pulled off Challenger until corrective design changes could be made (or at the very least, until a launch attempt in February when temperatures were above freezing could be attained).

One remarkable thing to note: Americans were proud of our accomplishments then, and the early footage of the shuttle launches proves it with various video segments showing people actually waving flags and saying how proud they were of their country. It is sad to think that that very footage seems so alien now, given how bad many citizens of America love to trash their own country.