Customer Reviews

On a Wing and a Prayer: Interviews with Airline Disaster Survivors

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Malcolm MacPherson is known for his edited compilation of Cockpit Voice Recorder transcripts "The Black Box", in which he takes CVR transcripts from NTSB reports and edits them down to a more manageable size, and, I suppose, for dramatic effect at least to his way of thinking. Unfortunately, his editing there, and here, is frequently ill-advised. He is not a pilot or flight crew member, or especially knowledgeable about aircraft operations, and it shows.

In "On a Wing and a Prayer", he takes verbatim accounts (from the NTSB Survival Factors Group records) from survivors and witnesses and edits them into a somewhat coherent account of the accident from the perspective of the victims. Unfortunately, due to his lack of aviation background, he frequently does not know what is important and what isn't important to achieve an understanding of the accident, and, worse, frequently inserts 'clarifying' information in brackets into the survivor testimony that is sometimes completely wrong. It would have helped immensely if he had had a pilot and flight attendant review his manuscript for errors and editorial quirkiness. Don't misunderstand me; I don't think that Mr. MacPherson is a bad writer, per se (in fact, I think he is a sometimes brilliant writer, particularly noteworthy is his recent "The Cowboy and His Elephant"); I just think that in technical areas that he has virtually no comprehension or understanding of; it would be wise to have genuine experts review the manuscript for errors.

I think that this book is interesting to read, as so often the ordeal of the survivors is quickly forgotten after an accident, and it is frequently these perceptions and the information that survivors offer that are vital to improving future air safety. Three stars overall. I appreciate this interesting and important concept being explored in book form; I would have liked the author to have had his work proofread for accuracy of his interpretations, and sensibility of editorial choices.

I bought On a Wing and a Prayer because I really felt like reading about airline disasters. I bought it on a whim, partly because the cover looked interesting and partly because I am interested in aviation. I found the book interesting, but it was alittle too detailed for my liking.

On a Wing and a Prayer not only includes cockpit voice transcripts and alerts, but passenger analysis. In other words, you don't just get the story about the accident, but all the in-depth coverage as well.

Overall, I really didn't like the book because it was too detailed. I would not recommend this book to anyone that just wants to read about disasters. However, if you really like books that break down things step by step, On a Wing and a Prayer is the book for you.

Mr. Macpherson is to be commended for putting together such an excellent book. I read it all in one day and I just couldn't put it down. Once you read through these stories you realize how very courageous people can be. I was most touched by the gentleman named "Gary" who was a passenger on Northwest Flight 1469. I felt so for this horribly burnt man and have not been able to get him out of my mind. My sincerest hope is that recovered from the accident. I also had my eyes opened in reading the words from the Flight Attendants and Cabin Crew - In an emergency we are all simply human beings and we all have the same fears and worries about an aircraft accident. Each and every accident story leaves the reader with a profound understanding of what it is like to live through an aircraft accident. I will be changed forever and will never board an aircraft again without paying very close attention to the safety briefing.

I picked this book up on a whim and read it cover to cover in one sitting. It includes CVR transcriptions interlaced with passengers' and flight crews' recollections, and occasionally eyewitness accounts. There's heroism, bad judgement, fear, and bravery; there's humanity. In the introduction MacPherson makes the statement that "'The most likely outcome for the serious surviveable accidents is that most occupants survive,' according to the NTSB's March 2001 report." There is absolutely no editorializing, and no author comment; the transcripts are directly from the CVR and tower transmissions, and the survivors' accounts are from the NTSB interviews after the accidents. The editor stays away from the stories almost to the point where I wished he would step in and tell what happened, but the reports say a lot in between the lines. It's a compendium of how ordinary air travelers live through an extraordinary event.

In one of my earlier reviews I stated that Macarthur Job's Air Disaster Volume 2 was the best book of its kind I ever read. Since then I have read several more such books. I can truly say this is the worst.

The idea is a great one. Describe these accidents through the accounts of survivors. This could be done in several ways. One approach could be to explore survivors stories in depth, getting into their minds as they faced the incredible. The author would have to do several long interviews, but it would make for a great work. Instead, MacPherson fills each chapter with short quips from passengers and crew, mostly quotes from media. We hear that passengers are 'scared', 'cold' and 'confused'. One stewardess declares it is a miracle anyone survived. The statements are so similar and repetitive it is all but impossible to distinguish one crash from another, whatever the cause. In fact the disasters even come across as dull, unworthy of attention.

Another approach would be to focus on the causes of the accidents. Here the author could cover flight details and use the passenger comments for affect throughout. We might not learn as much about those involved, but would learn a great deal about the disasters. But again no luck. We are told almost nothing about how or why these planes went down. The introduction to each chapter tells us only that the planes took off and then crashed.

If you have never been on a plane before or know nothing of the subject you might get something out of this. Most of us would do better to stick with other sources.

Displays human characteristics under stress, the positives and the negatives. Provides only "snap shots" of what happened in various disasters. Not a bad book although I wouldn't recommend it as a present . . .

I am a sucker for these type of books. For some reason I can not get enough of them. There is so much drama and excitement, almost regardless of how the author writes just because of the situation that is being described. For these reasons I thought this book was going to be a can't miss hit in my household. It got close. The author took a number of recent airline crashes and detailed out the NTSB interviews with the crash survivors. It makes for some gripping reading, if nothing more then you can picture yourself in the same situation because the descriptions these people give are just what the average person would say.

The author starts each section out with a brief description of the incident that gives the reader a little too few details. I understand that the author was having the book focus on the words of the survivors, but I would have liked more then one paragraph of the crash details. Most times the author did not even tell the reader the cause of the crash. He did, however, always include the death toll of each event. What was interesting was the range of accidents, some were the much covered accidents where multiples of people died and some were little know events. I liked reading more about the smaller events that have lower casualties, but just as much drama. I also appreciated the authors editing of the comments keeping them flowing in a chronological order.

Overall the book was good. It was full of excitement if for no other reason then due to the events that were being covered. I did want more crash details if for no other reason to understand the crash its self a little better. This might just be me being too picky, but I enjoy understanding why the crash took place, not just the outcome. If you enjoy books that cover this topic then I would suggest you pick up a copy of this book.

This book presents a deviation from the typical aircraft investigation set, with its dramatic telling from the point of view, through witness statements, of individuals involved in accidents. Hearing their sometimes stark retelling, as well as information from dead-heading crew who *know* what those sounds really are, presents an unusual and compelling read. Macpherson does not dominate the text with commentary and instead lets those with first-hand knowledge tell the story. Very well done and very readable, and will stick with you.