Mayday

Major real-life air disasters are depicted in this series. Each episode features a detailed dramatized reconstruction of the incident based on cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitnesses recounts and interviews with aviation experts.

Mayday (2003-present) is a Canadian true-events docuseries created by Bernard Vaillot and André Barro and broadcast on Discovery. Each self-contained episode rebuilds a real commercial air disaster through dramatized reconstructions drawn from cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, interleaved with eyewitness recollections and interviews with aviation experts. Narrator Stephen Bogaert guides viewers through each incident, and the recreated cast includes figures such as Captain Christian Hecquet, First Officer Joël Cherubin, and Investigator Grummett, portrayed by Burke Lawrence, Philippe Ayoub, and Justin Mader. The engine of each installment is the puzzle itself: a crew confronting a failing aircraft, a controller relaying fragments of information, and investigators reconstructing the sequence of small errors and mechanical failures that turned routine flights into catastrophe. Across twenty-six seasons and more than two hundred forty episodes, the format remains consistent, with each season offering a new batch of standalone stories rather than one continuing arc. The tone is sober, procedural and attentive, with a tense, methodical atmosphere that honors the victims while examining how safety systems succeed and fail. Fans of Seconds From Disaster and The Dropout will find similar resonance in its blend of forensic investigation and dramatized true events, though its focus stays firmly on aviation and the engineering of survival.

Viewers broadly acclaim the series for its methodical, carefully researched reconstructions of real air disasters and its clear explanations of what went wrong.

• Seconds From Disasterfactual reconstruction of disasters with investigative tone and expert interviews
• The Dropoutdramatized true events with investigative procedural structure
• Chernobylreal-event dramatization built on official records and expert testimony

Created by

Bernard Vaillot, André Barro

Release Date

2003-09-03

Episode runtime

46 min

Rating

8.8 / 10 (296)

What is Mayday about?

Each episode reconstructs a real major air disaster through dramatized recreations, recovered cockpit recordings, and expert and eyewitness interviews.

What is Mayday like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Mayday as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.

Is Mayday violent?

Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Mayday as moderate.

What did critics think of Mayday?

Viewers broadly acclaim the series for its methodical, carefully researched reconstructions of real air disasters and its clear explanations of what went wrong.

Which shows are like Mayday?

Shows with a similar feel include Seconds From Disaster, The Dropout, and Chernobyl.

How long is Mayday?

Mayday: 26 seasons, 240 episodes.

Is Mayday still running?

Yes, Mayday is still running.

Where can I watch Mayday?

In United States, Mayday streams on fuboTV, Peacock Premium, Philo, YouTube TV, Peacock Premium Plus.