FLIGHT
Yeah.
Wait a minute. Wait a minute.
Wait a minute, slow down.
Hold on.
No, I've been up since the... crack ‘adawn.
What tuition?
How much does it cost?
No.
No, no that's not true, that's not true.
You're the one that wanted him to go to a private school, not me.
Then put Knuckles on the phone.
Then tell him it's a two-way street, I call him, he's gotta call me.
Oh, he's my son now?
Because you want him to go to... you wanna fuckin' tuition check.
That's great, Deana. That's great.
You call me at 7 o'clock in the morning in Orlando
to shake me down for fuckin' money. That's great.
Does he even wanna go to the fuckin' school?
Alright, just...
I got a nine o'clock flight. Sit tight, I'll be in Atlanta and I meet him.
How am I a liar?
Yeah, but how does that make me a liar?
How-
Alright...
All right!
Alright. Bye.
– Was that your wife?
– My ex-wife.
But you, Trina, could my second wife.
No joke about that, puppy.
– Our flight's at nine. – Flight's at nine.
– Let's get to it. – Yes, let's get to it.
I'm feelin' a little lightheaded.
I shoulda ate somethin'.
♪Feeling alright...
♪I'm not feeling too good myself...
♪Feeling alright...
♪I'm not feeling that good myself...
I'll speak with you afte three other passengers get on board, is that okay?
– Good morning, Katerina. – Good morning, Captain Whitaker.
I'm sorry, sir, I'm gonna have to check that bag.
– Margaret. – Captain Whitaker.
– Good morning. – That sky gonna hold?
You’re not gonna make me spend another night in Orlando?
Don't worry, I’m gonna get you to your prayer meeting on time...
What is it? Jesus Christ Superstar? First 27 chapters?
That's right, Christ The King First Baptist Church, on Hazel and 9th,
and I’m still saving a seat for you right next to me.
– Save two. – I will.
– Good morning. – Good morning, Captain.
The walk around is complete.
Margaret!
Yeah, could you give me a cup of coffee, black,
lots of sugar, and... couple of aspirins, okay sweetie?
Okay, you want some?
– No, ma'am, thank you.
We flown together before?
– I don't think so, sir.
You sure?
Yeah. Ken Evans.
Whip Whitaker.
– Nice to meet you. – My pleasure.
Oxygen checks.
Checks. You want a hit?
– No, thank you sir.
– Are you sure?
– Yes, sir.
– Okay.
Sir, it's 8:50.
Is it? Alright, well let's push, I got a great "on time" record.
Yessir, you gottit.
How you feeling today, sir?
A little tired.
Quick turnaround for me, ten turns in three days. Off tomorrow...
– Here's your coffee. – Oh, thank you.
– And your aspirins. – Thank you.
And the manifest, with a 102 souls on board.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Let's get them tucked in, we’re ready to go.
Push.
– You got it.
Oh, please don't pick-up.
Don't pick-up.
Hello?
Hi, it's Nic, do you have any?
Cute.
Hey baby, come here, how are you?
It's good to see you. Nicole, this is Tiki Pot.
Tiki is my partner in this new series, he knows a lot of porn.
Look, I have two grams.
We are putting the narrative back in the porn, baby, and...
Desdemona.
You could totally play Desdemona. Look at you. You're perfect.
Fuck yeah, you're perfect. Let's... beautiful.
She do anal, 2000 one hour.
Alright, I don't do porn, Kip.
- Okay, listen. – Just... let me see the "h".
– It's an Othello theme, okay,
the Moor comes in, finds you in bed upon his nurses...
And he fucks me in the ass, huh?
College student. Very clean. Brett?
Wait, we're puttin' a whole new spin on "The beast with two backs", baby.
In fact, that's what it's called,
"The beast with two backs"... – Is that why you told me
you had somebody handling it. – .. or "Hole-thello", or "Butt-hole thello".
Show her the pipe, huh?
Tiki, that's your name?
Why n'you shove that in your ass and you call me in the morning?
Hey, Nicole. Nicole!
Hey slow down. Slow down! Nic, I am sorry. Alright? We're tweaked.
Okay, I am sorry.
Just stick around, it's not a big deal,
you gonna take some stills for me or something.
What's going on with you? I thought you were clean?
And now you're... you're like freaking out on me.
Com'on.
Don't cry.
I...
I just want to get faded, Kip.
I have a hundred, please. – No, keep it, keep it.
I don't want it, okay?
Listen.
This is the 'Taliban', okay?
Very heavy, okay? – I can handle it.
I don't want you shooting this shit, it's too heavy, alright?
I won't. I promise.
I'm just gonna smoke it out. I haven't... used needles in weeks.
Okay. No needles. And if you get a little too low...
you just do a little coke, okay, get yourself back up.
Right where you need to be. Alright?
– Yeah... Thanks. – Okay baby.
.. and that all your carry-on items are safely stored in the overhead bin,
or under the seat in front of you.
Also all electronic devices must be turned off at this time.
Our flight time to Atlanta is approximately 52 minutes,
flight attendants, take your seat.
So what'd you do last night? I crashed and went straight to bed.
All right, here we go.
Engine instruments, sir in the green.
Air speed's alive both side,
80 knots, crosscheck.
It's like a video game, right?
Nothin' like a little... 30 knot cross wind to exercise the ol' sphincter muscle.
E1...
and rotate.
We're to positive rate.
Gear up.
Yeehaw! Ride ‘em cowboy.
SouthJet 2-2-7, Orlando departure, radar contact,
turn left heading one-seven-zero, climb, maintain niner thousand.
Roger that, left one-seven-zero, climb and maintain niner thousand.
Don't want the autopilot, I'm flying today.
SouthJet 2-2-7, Orlando departure, what’s your ride like?
Oh Departure, this is SouthJet 2-2-7,
we've got some wild chop, I’d say moderate to...
I’d say severe turbulence, definitely severe turbulence.
No meal service today.
♪ feelin' alright...
♪ not feeling good, babe...
Shit...
What are you doing?
– Levelling off. – What?
See that little sliver of black between those two ugly clouds?
That’s a pocket of smooth air squatting right over Kissimmee.
Gonna thread that needle. Turn us right, thirty degrees.
Departure, SouthJet 2-2-7. We need to deviate 30 degrees right.
For weather.
SouthJet 2-2-7, 30 degrees right approved. Report back on course.
Oh, Lord!
He can't help you now, brother.
SouthJet 2-2-7, say altitude.
– What should I say? – Tell‘em we're climbing.
Uh, Departure.
We're leaving niner thousand for flight level 1-8-0.
Roger, 2-2-7.
– Approaching our maximum airspeed.
– You damned right,
we need the speed to punch through this crap.
It's awkward.
You're over-speeding, sir.
Trying to get out of this shitty air, if that's alright with you, Junior.
SouthJet 2-2-7 Orlando, you need to check your Mode-C.
Your transponder indicates you’re descending.
Departure, this is SouthJet 2-2-7, we're experiencing some rough air,
encountering some severe downdrafts. We’re in our climb now.
Roger, 2-2-7.
Sir, look at your airspeed. You’re way too fast for this rough air!
I'm right on the line, settle down.
Thank God, that's over.
Alright, turn us north, take us home. Your plane.
My plane.
Margaret, I'm coming up.
Shit, Sam.
Hey, Nicole.
It's a nice camera.
You know... you're like a little ghost.
Cause you never know when you're here.
Don't ever fucking touch my camera. Now get out!
Hey! Now as an building manager, I got a legal right to enter an apartment.
Especially if I feel the occupant be unwell,
and the occupant is not current on her rent.
Just give me a minute.
Fran, I have your rent, I wiill bring it down to you, okay?
Just let me take a shower.
You shower in my house.
You know, bring that money down, and we shower together.
Got that good water pressure.
You know that, ain'ya?
You’re in the perfect light there, Fran.
– Yeah? – Hmm. Back up a little.
Little more.
Alright... Tricky tricky, girl.
Now uh...
shower up and come on down.
In your fucking dreams.
Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, I'm Captain Whitaker,
if you look up, you'll see me here in the forward galley, I waive to you.
I want to apologize for the bumps this morning,
uh, evidently Florida doesn't like us Georgians.
Maybe it has to do with the beatin' the Bulldogs put on the Gators last fall.
Then I suggest to stretch out and relax,
air might be a little cranky, so we're gonna ask that you to remain in your seat
with you seat belt securely fasten around you.
We won’t have beverage service today but the flight attendants
will be going through the cabin with water and with snacks,
havin' you on the ground in Atlanta, in 40 minutes. Thank you.
Hey Nicole, open up.
Fuck, Nicole. I know you're in there, I can smell that shit cooking.
Better not you burning down my fuckin' building!
How can anybody sleep like that?
I don't know.
And how long has Sleeping Beauty been out?
26 Minutes.
We're gonna start descending any second now.
Well, looks like you will need to wake him up.
SouthJet 2-2-7, Atlanta Center, descend and maintain flight level 3-0-0.
Descend and maintain flight level 3-0-0, SouthJet 2-2-7.
– What is that? – The elevator feels really stiff, sir.
Right, don't force.
Hi, Margaret, get everybody strapped in, get everybody strapped in tight.
Ladies and gentlemen-
It's pulling left hard, sir!
Pull it back. Power back!
SINK RANGE. PULL UP.
Ladies and gentlemen, fasten your seat belts now.
Fasten your seat belts, now!
I have no control on my side. No control at all, sir.
Lost hydraulics. Center, this is SouthJet 2-2-7,
we've lost our hydraulics and, feels like our pitch control?
SouthJet 2-2-7, Atlanta Center,
- I understand you've lost hydraulics... – Turn on the back-up pumps, back-up pumps.
- .. and pitch control. – That is affirmed,
we are in a uncontrolled des-
SouthJet 2-2-7, Atlanta, say your digits, are your declaring emergency!?
Everyone is belted in. Are we going down?
Get belted in, with everybody in brace position.
Yes, that is affirmed. We are in a dive. We are in a dive!
We have lost vertical control.
We're gonna need drag. I want you to throw out everything we got,
the speed brakes, the gear, everything.
Here! Speed brakes!
Brace for descent. Head down, head forward. Head down, head forward!
Uh, gear's down, I think hydraulics is the problem, sir.
We need to dump the fuel.
Do it!
Ah, alright!
Atlanta Center, this is SouthJet 2-2-7. We're in an uncontrolled dive.
Descending out of 21,000 feet, we're declaring an emergency,
we dumped our fuel, we got a jammed stabilizer or something.
We need a block of altitude to work the problem,
and a heading to the nearest airport.
SouthJet 2-2-7, Hartsfield-Jackson Airport
– I can't hold it.
- is 10 O’clock and 20 miles – Dump the flap, dump the flap.
- is 10 O’clock and 20 miles – We're still fast!
- from your present position. – Just do it, do it. 30 degrees!
Turn left heading 3-1-5.
3-1-5, we'll try our best.
Alright, that bought us a little time, that bought us a little time,
now we got to revert to manual control. Your side first.
Okay, got it.
Nothing, no control!
Oh no, we're diving again!
PULL UP.
SINK RANGE. PULL UP.
Alright, okay okay.
I can't let go on my side, see if you can reach my side?
I can't reach it, sir.
Evans don't, stay strapped in, stay strapped in.
Margaret! Margaret.
Right at 15,000!
Alright, just relax, calm down, calm down.
Get you strapped into the jump-seat there. I need you to do something for me.
We're 12-9!
SouthJet 2-2-7, Atlanta, fuel dump is approved.
Thank you.
Cami! Cami, get back down!
No, Cami, get down!
I see you going below 10,000. How are you going?
– Uh, not good, not good.
– Oh no!
Margaret, there's a red lever right here next to my seat.
It says "manual control", you see it?
Uh, yeah.
Okay. On the count at three, I want you to pull it up,
turn it clockwise, push it back down.
Ready? One, two, three.
That's okay, it's okay.
Aah, come on!
Right, okay. Okay, it goes up.
Shit!
Cami! Cami!
Margaret!
Oh, Lord. We're coming under 7000, I see nothing but houses!
Evans, listen to me.
When I say, I want you to retract the flaps, retract the gears,
trim us nose down, okay, whatever you think's, gonna be the opposite,
so make sure you trim us nose down.
I trim down, what you gonna do?
Margaret. When I tell you, I want you to push this forward.
Full power, full throttle, can you do that?
– Yeah. Okay. – Okay. When I tell you.
Wait, wait sir. What do we do, and why would I trim down?
– We're gonna roll it. Okay? – What do you mean, rolling?
We gotta do something to stop this dive.
Margaret, what's your son's name?
Trevor.
– Say "I love you, Trevor". – What?
The black box, say "I love you Trevor".
I love you Trevor, you be a good boy. Mommy loves you.
Okay, here we go. I've got control.
Oh, Lord Jesus!
– Alright Evans, flaps. – Flaps!
– Speed brakes. – Speed brakes!
Margaret. Power!
– Gear up. – Gear up!
Oh Lord Jesus, we're inverted!
Good flying lesson. We’re level, we can maintain altitude like this.
SouthJet 2-2-7, Atlanta Center, I see your position
4 and a half miles southeast of the airport,
descending out of 1,800. Are you OK?
Atlanta Center, this is SouthJet 2-2-7,
we are inverted, I repeat we are inverted.
SoutJet 2-2-7, did you say inverted?
We're losing oil pressure, pump failure both engines!
We're alright, we're flying.
– Fire in the left engine!
– Put it out.
I'm right with you. Look at me, I'm right with you. Okay?
Atlanta, SouthJet 2-2-7, where's that airport?
2-2-7, it is one O'clock, three miles.
Alright, we're not gonna make that, our engines are burning up.
I see a field and a road ahead of us, we're gonna set it down there.
Roger, 2-2-7.
Oh no, fire in the right, now!
Margaret, we're coming back around.
Margaret, I want you to hit full power, full throttle, you understand?
Here we go.
Evans, speed brakes.
Speed brakes!
– Flaps full. – Flaps full.
We're losing the left engine.
SouthJet 2-2-7, I see you descending through 1000, do you concur?
Margaret, full power.
We lost the left engine!
– Let it go.
– We're losing power in the right!
We lost all power!
TOO LOW TERRAIN
Are we gliding?
We're in glide. Pitch for glide.
One hundred.
Fifty.
Forty.
Thirty.
Twenty.
– Brace. - Ten.
Brace for impact.
I got the pilot.
Somebody, give me a hand here.
Ooh, god, god.
Charlie Anderson?
How you feelin', Whip?
Initial reports look like you pulled some kind of move up there, man.
You saved a lot of lives.
How many?
On the 102 souls on board,
including the flight crew, 96 of them survived the crash.
Six people died. Two crew, four passengers.
Who... who on the crew?
– Listen. The protocol is- – Who in the crew, Charlie?
The protocol is that the NTSB has to be
the first to make contact with you, I can't...
And their agent's here, so...
Let me go get him, it's a bit of a show.
So there's... half a dozen of them. Alright.
Hey Craig. Morning.
Captain William Whitaker?
Nod if you can hear me and understand me.
I'm Craig Matson of the NT... NTSB,
and I am required as the lead on the Go Team
to make initial contact with you,
after a major incident like the one you had today.
You are in a hospital, in South Atlanta.
Are you aware that the plane you were piloting went down?
I have a doctor here who can explain the medical situation.
I'm Dr. Kenan. And the good news is, you're in good condition.
You did suffer concussion,
you have numerous lacerations around your left eye,
we're going to keep the patch on just for a few days, just as a precaution.
Your eye seems to be okay.
Now the MRI’s show that you have some strained tendons
in your left knee and ankle, and you have no broken bones,
but you have some deep bruising in your left thigh, and some
torn ligaments in your left wrist. Nothing serious.
So, as soon as we clear your concussion,
and you feel well enough, you can go home.
That may take a day, maybe three. Okay?
I won’t ask too much of you tonight, but as I said,
the NTSB is required to make initial contact.
How much do you remember about the flight?
Uh, I remember...
I remember everything up to the crash.
Okay... Mr. Whitaker, that’s fine.
I am required to inform you that this incident did result in the loss of life.
The current information states that of the 102 souls on board, we lost 6.
Two crew members, and four passengers.
59 people were treated and released.
37 people remain-
– Who died on the crew?
The two flight attendants... Camelia Satou and Katerina Marquez.
The rep from your Pilot’s Union, Mr. Anderson, will be our contact for you,
it’s important that you follow your Union’s guidance on press and media.
The pilot’s union works closely with the NTSB.
So... I’m gonna head out. Good luck, Mr. Whitaker.
I knew Trina Marquez, she was...
We spent some time together.
Yeah, apparently she was not strapped in.
Survivor reported she was assisting a kid.
And Margaret Thomason, how's she doing?
Broken collarbone. Just, um, cuts, I mean she's banged up, but she’s...
she's here too, she's fine.
And Ken Evans, your copilot, he-he...
he took a bad shot to the head.
And now they’re keepin’ him in a coma just to let the brain swelling go down,
but we feel good about him. He’s gonna be okay.
What are you doing here, Charlie?
I’m flying a desk now.
I’m a rep for the pilot's Union.
You’re the rep for the pilots’?
Yeah, I'm the one, and when your plane went down, all the reps got a page
and I just shot up my hand cause I know you and said I wanted to
come and be the first face you’d see.
I'm glad you're here.
The Union's gonna release a statement on your behalf.
Condolences to the families who lost their loved ones,
gratitude to the brave men and women of the flight crew.
That's-you don't have to worry about that.
And I know you and Deana have been divorced for a while now,
but maybe she and your son Will gonna-
Yes, Knuckles...
How old is he now?
Too old. Fifteen.
– Fiteen? Wow. – Yeah.
When we flew out for Delta, you were not even married.
We're dinosaurs, Whip.
Do you want me to reach out to Deana?
And see if... she and Will want to come down or...?
No, I don't want.
I’ll call her.
Well, speaking of which, I got your phone.
And the whole bunch of your personnal effect from the plane.
Your clothes are toast.
Uh, do you...
Do you need me to... to get you some stuff?
Nah, 'bout okay.
Charlie, I'm uh...
Damn, I'm glad you came.
Okay, too. I'm happy to be here.
Well, I'm... I'll let you get some rest and...
but I'll come back, I mean, you will see plenty of me.
Sure you will.
The plane was fucked, Charlie.
It was doomed.
I know.
The way you landed that plane was nothing short of a miracle.
You know that.
Alright, Captain.
– Good night. – Good night.
I'm on the list, baby girl. Mr. Mays...
Harling.
If this is gonna turn into a sponge bath, I’ll come back later.
Sir...
It's alright, honey. I'm on the list. Harling Mays.
Some say they Harling knew me.
Honey, could you hustle us a couple of daiquiris, and a cocktail weenie?
On second thought just bring the booze, I brought my own weenie.
Ah, well she's offended and she should be.
I’m a pig. And I hate me.
That’s what we have in common Nurse Ratched. We both hate me.
Harling Mays.
Whip, what the fuck my man?
They’re sayin’, “Sweet Jesus, what a stud that pilot is.”
You’re a hero, man.
You will never pay for another drink as long as you live.
There is all kind o' those crazy news people out here,
it's a fucking circus, man.
Come on, check this shit out, man, it's all for you.
Look at this shit.
Classic hero worship shit.
You're a rock star, man. Oh, check out this video.
This's outside your condo. It's a zoo.
It crowded with reporters.
Let's see, check this out.
So you do know Captain Whitaker,
- you were friends? – Com'on.
Oh yeah.
Yes, he's my brother.
– That's me.
And that‘s Mark Mellon, you know that douchey talking haircut from
local Atlanta channel 12? I said a few words,
you know most of ‘em straight talk.
Oh!
You okay, Captain Whitaker?
The meds they’re giving me, they're messing me up, I’m all...
shaky and dried out, I can’t sleep good.
Yeah. What the hell kind of meds they give you?
Alprazolam.
That's generic Xanax. Hydroconon, that's generic Vicodin. It's shit.
Prolly Canadian. We don't want this shit.
We want the premium stuff, blue label. Not this fucking well shit.
I mean, where's the... where’s the dihydromorphinone?
Or at least some fucking Palladone, for Christ sake,
is this amateur architect doctor in here you just saved some 100 people-
Harling!
You bring my smokes?
Yes I did, I got your fucking message, and yes I got your fucking smokes.
Right here... Here's a fresh carton.
You smoke your nuts off, champion.
Hell if I was you, I'd fire a brat here in this goddamn room.
Here. I got you a pint of vodka, I got you some Red Bull,
you know what I'm saying, I know my customer.
Take the vodka with you.
What? Take the vodka, what d'you-
I'm not drinking anymore, take it with you.
Are you ins... I'll just tuck-
– Take the fucking vodka with you.
– Okay.
Listen mate, you got to come to get me tomorrow.
Okay?
I want you to go by my condo...
pick me up some clothes, and uh, my phone charger.
Look in my refridgerator, and pick up a package that says "veal" on it.
– It's marked. Veal.
– Veal.
In the freezer's, marked veal.
Done and done. What time you want me here?
– I call you. – Okay. You give me mayday,
and you’re outta here in 7 minutes. Oh!
Oh, almost forgot, I got you some stroke mags,
I've been in a hospital before, I know what you need,
I got Juggs, Hot MILFS in heat, Assmasters,
you just stroke it all day, you're a hero.
If I was here, I'd just lay here pullin'on that thing all day long,
you know what I'm saying, there's a smile... yessir.
Devious minds think alike.
Don't go.
I'll be quiet, it is...
nice to... just sit and smoke with somebody.
Were you on that plane?
Yeah, why?
You?
You must have been sittin' at the back.
Yeah... by the back.
Tobacco's but an Indian weed,
Grows green in the morn, cut down at eve
It shows our decay, we are but clay.
Ah, I love the smell of nicotine in the mornin'!
It smells like victory!
Can't buy more.
I should quit.
My cancer might get cancer.
In the plane crash?
You are...
Holy shit, man! You're the fucking pilot!
Huh, what happened out there?
Okay. Yeah, I-hmm...
Tough deal, man, but you, uh...
You walked away. You limped away.
Yeah, I'm lucky. Goin’ home tomorrow.
Home...
Home for me is the basement...
They keep cancer treatment in the basement.
What kind of cancer you have?
Fibro-mixzoid sarcoma. Soft tissue sarcoma.
Very rare. God chose me.
You believe in Him?
Fuck yeah bitch, you’re a stupid fucker if you don’t believe in God.
Once you realize all the random events in your life are God,
you will live a much easier life.
You spend all your time trying to control all these things that happen to us.
Bullshit.
The plane you’re flying goes down? Out of your control.
God gives you cancer. I got no control over that.
Did God give me cancer? You bet your ass God gave me cancer.
You know, you think God would have given me cancer if I had asked for it?
Well I don't think so, cause I begged him to take it away, and guess what?
No control over that either.
What are you doing here, honey?
You're beautiful, you know that?
Do I scare you?
People either are drawn to me, or they pretend that they can’t see me.
It’s a trip...
They think that because I'm getting close to the other side,
I got some sort of power or wisdom.
Like I got all the answers.
I don't know, maybe I do.
Death gives you perspective.
It all makes sense somehow.
And I just can’t get over how beautiful you are!
I can see your arm.
You're an addict?
Yeah.
What's your name?
Nicole.
What d'you do in the world, Nicole?
Not much.
I was a photographer and then I was a masseuse,
and now I... I sometimes wash hair at a salon.
Oh yeah? Where is it?
I will come by, I’m really easy, you just wash my head.
You think you’re gonna die?
Don’t you just love her?
I don't know her.
Bullshit. I do.
Random Act of God?
I don’t think so.
You survive a plane crash and meet a beautiful woman in a stairwell...
Fuck you, man.
Probably looking for me.
My family just flew in from Utah.
You know it’s bad when they start flying in.
It is a trip.
With every morning special now.
I am greateful for that.
I wish I could bottle this feelin' that I have...
about how beautiful every last breath of life is.
Yeah, I get one more just for the road?
Here. Take the pack.
Thank you.
I’ll pass these out in the cancer ward.
Nicole...
you’re gonna be okay.
Chemo brain...
It makes you pretty foggy.
Oh, yeah?
They call it chemo brain.
My mom, she used to slur her words and get all chatty.
Your mom had cancer?
Breast cancer, she was only 54.
Is that why you think you gonna die?
Heroin addicts who're usin' needles, they tend to die.
Especially women for some reason, I have read in a pamphlet.
A woman from AA, she just came to see me while I was in rea.
That guy was a trip, uh?
– Yeah.
He made it feel like, I dunno...
like you and me were the last people left on this planet.
And together we'll... save the world.
Where d'you live, Nicole?
Why, you wanna come to visit me? It's luxurious.
I live in Bankhead, near the bus station.
I'll come to visit you.
You're sweet.
I will.
What’s your address?
I live at the Georgian Terraces... on Taylor street.
Okay.
You say you're a masseuse. What kind of masseuse?
I've been every kind of masseuse there is.
Good luck, Nicole.
I couldn't find any suitcases. I put all your shit in garbage bags.
No, thanks.
You’re stayin’ with me down on University, right?
Hey it’s nice... A lotta young people... Good vibe.
No, I’m gonna go to the farm.
The farm?
I can’t stay at my condo.
I thought you sold your Dad's place.
Not yet.
I’m not sure I wanna stay at the farm.
You’re not. You're gonna drive me to the airport so I can pick-up my car.
Veal?
Really?
Captain Whitaker, this is Jim Court, I’m with CNN. We'd like to-
This is NBC affiliate in Athens. We're looking to-
In the wake of the deadly crash of SouthJet Flight 2-2-7,
we have more questions than answers as to what exactly happened that day,
and like many, we are around looking for answers.
Looking here at the home of pilot, captain Whip Whitaker.
Still have no signs of him coming to his condo....
This is Bart Malles still on the hunt and looking down for answers.
You’ve reached the Whitaker Crop Dusting Company, flying lessons and plane rides.
Please leave a message and it will be returned. Thank you.
Hey, cowboy. Charlie again.
Look, I'm back in town and... I stopped by at the hospital tonight,
but, uh... they said you'd gone home, so you must be feeling pretty good.
Uh... Listen, I went, uh... at your condo
and the manager said you had not returned, so...
you maybe with relatives, which I understand,
but I know you have a doctor's appointment early in the morning for your eye,
and I was just hoping that you could meet us for breakfast,
'bout ten o'clock at St Regis, there is an executive buffet there,
And we'll be covering some pretty important stuff, so...
it'd be nice to have you there.
Alright. Be good.
Oh, there he is. Hey Whip, hey buddy. Man, you loog good!
I feel-Thanks for coming, I'm glad you got my message.
How is your eye? – Good. Goog, good.
Here's Hugh Lang, he's an attorney from Chicago.
– Pleasure to meet you, Captain. – My pleasure.
– Sit down. You wanna coffee? – Uh, yes I do.
Could we have some fresh coffee?
We were just talking about your copilot’s wife.
She told a newspaper that “God landed that plane”.
Yeah? God?
Well, I too believe God landed the plane,
same way I believe God should hit the buffet, the turkey sausage is excellent.
No, I’m fine with coffee, thank you.
So Len Caldwell really wanted to get here this morning,
Len's the president of the pilots’ union,
he wanted to be here to meet with us, and you,
but they needed him at the crash site.
So as you know, when a plane goes down,
the NTSB sends a “go team” to the crash site immediately.
They find the flight data recorders?
– They did, it's perfectly intact. - Oh, great, then that solves everything.
So. Why do we need a lawyer from Chicago?
Well... Hugh specializes in criminal negligence.
– Criminal negligence? – Hmm-hmm.
Death demands responsibility.
Six dead on that plane, someone has to pay.
Yeah, but that's a plane that fell apart at...
think it fell apart at 30 thousand feet.
And the airline will try to prove equipment failure.
Which is gonna make the manufacturer responsible, the manufacturer in turn
is gonna try and prove poor maintenance of the equipment by the airline.
Or pilot error.
I flew the plane inverted, that means upside down, Hugh.
You get the picture? A hundred people upside down, 500 feet off the ground.
You have any idea what that's like?
I do. I, uh... heard the black box recordings last night.
Oh you heard. So you're a pilot?
No, no.
Then you know what the fuck you're talking about, do you?
Hugh's on our team, Whip.
– Is he? – Yeah, he is,
– He didn' act like he gonna – obviously...
– have to imagine me questions – well, he is, yeah but...
– like a fucking pilot, – Listen to me,
– and that he knows something. – it's the NTSB's ball game.
They run the investigation, and they will ultimately rule on the cause.
And that's why we need him. – Well, they...
interview the entire flight crew, they...
interview the passengers, they... hold public hearings.
Hey, let's cut to the chase, what... just tell me what I need to know, Charlie.
The NTSB 'go-team' also collects blood, hair, and skin samples
from the entire flight crew for the purposes of a toxicological report.
Okay... When do they want to do that?
They've already done that. In the hospital.
That's the first thing they do.
You don't remember having your blood drawn the night of the crash?
– No. – No?
They get the results of these... these tests?
Yeah, they do.
Anything else for you, gentlemen?
Yeah, uh... you have warm cinnamon bums over there.
Could you give me one of those, please. In fact give me only two bums.
– Yes sir, comin'up. – Thank you, sweetie.
Now...
An initial report shows that...
you had alcohol in your system... uh, at a level of .2 4.
Now... in the good old U.S.,
a very one of the most lenient drunk driving countries in the world,
you go to jail for driving with anything above .0 8.
And by driving, I mean a car.
Thank you. Well...
so that was... don't mean anything,
a couple of beers the night before the flight,
would that make the tail of the plane explode?
– Couple of beers? – Yeah, couple of beers.
You know, I need a lawyer, Charlie.
– Hugh is your lawyer. – I need a bigger lawyer.
I need a layer that understands that someone put me on a broken plane,
without me up there, there would be a 102 funerals, not six.
We're not talking about funeral right now, Captain.
– Well then, what are we talking about?
– We're talking about prison time.
– What? – Lawsuits.
Somebody has to pay.
– What, I write a check?
I'ts not gonna be me, I promise you that.
As long as they're writing checks, tell them they write one for me too.
Because someone put me in a broken plane. I'd love a check, Charlie.
This toxicology report states that you were drunk.
And high on cocaine.
Felony's punishable by up to 12 years in prison.
And if it is proven that your intoxication was the cause of the death
of four passengers, now we're gonna look at four counts of manslaughter.
That could be life in prison.
Now can I please do my job your behalf...
and kill this tox report?
He's gonna get it done, Whip.
He'll get it done, it's what his whole life's about,
trust me, trust him.
You don't have to worry, you'll walk away from this-
I am not worried, Charlie.
I promise you that I'm not worried.
No one could have landed that plane like I did.
No one.
– Thanks for coming. - Yeah.
Excuse me.
– Excuse me. – Yeah?
Yeah, let me have a... orange juice, large orange juice.
Just orange juice?
Yeah, uh...
No. Uh...
Double Stoli.
Neat.
.. to me anyway, of a real American hero. Is that your reading of it?
Absolutely. However, remember every situation is different.
And the actions of the pilots of SouthJet 2-2-7
will be heavily scrutinized.
Are you suggesting that there may be more to this that leans behind?
They're all answers. We don't have all of the answers, we have a lot of questions.
We're gonna have to wait until some of those answers come in before...
The next morning...
They're not gonna shot me...
Aah, Taylor street.
Get out.
The guy in Unit 1 just told me you stayed here last night!
What about my rent? You owe me money, bitch.
– Don't touch me, Fran. – Listen, I'm gonna...
– Fuck, you will listen to me... – Fran, get off me Frankie, you're...
.. the fuck are you doin'? Fuck off, man.
Keep your fucking hands off her!
Are you okay?
Sorry, is this... is this all the rest of your stuff?
Uh, yeah.
She still owe me 1100 dollars.
Plus damages... – Get out!
What, you wanna sue her?
Spend a 1000 bucks, or you wanna make a cash deal with me? Make up your mind.
Make up your mind!
I take 700 cash.
You're a hairy little creep, aren't you?
Baseball bat bullshit.
700 my ass. Here's 400 cash.
Now be a good boy.
Grab that box, put it in her car.
Uh... but my car don’t run.
It didn't start this morning, I'm taking all this with me.
– Your car doesn't run? – Hmm-hmm.
Well, what you're gonna do?
Well I...
I don't know what I was gonna do.
What's your name?
Whip.
What?
That's funny?
Thank you.
Captain Whip.
You Okay?
– Yeah. And you? – Yeah.
– You wan' a drink? – No, thanks.
Sure it's alright that I stay here?
– Yes, it's alright that you stay here.
I want you to stay.
That knee hurtin' you?
Yes is it. Yes, sweetie.
Thank you, Doctor.
– It’s throbbing within... – Yeah.
Cos it's having a hard time getting back to your heart.
That's good though.
You gonna shoot me?
Or can I come inside?
Yeah, come on inside, I shoot you inside.
Listen, I... I thought we'd take a ride, there's some I need to show you.
I'm good.
There it is.
You can see... on initial impact, the left wing hit the ground.
I think if it would have sheared off completely,
everybody would have walked away from this plane.
Wing snapped off and it jaw opened the...
engine cowling into the... rear fuselage.
Yeah.
If you were sitting in the last six or seven rows it was...
like being hit by a train.
Who are they?
The John the Baptist Pentecoastal Mission.
They helped pull survivors out of the wreckage.
Now they come out here every day.
And that is Ellen Block.
She is the head of the NTSB investigation.
She's the one that's gonna be asking you the tough questions.
I night the night before the flight. I drank that morning too,
I used cocaine to help straighten myself up.
I know. It's in the toxicology report.
And it's not the reason why this happened.
No, it's not.
Listen.
Clearly there was a mechanical issue with the plane.
– Clearly. – Yeah. But what you and I know...
This was an "Act of God".
And I'm gonna fight to get the NTSB to add "Act of God"
as one of the probable causes.
Who’s God would do this?
Here’s the deal. Avington Carr, is the owner of the airline,
He's on our side. He's got big friends in Washington too.
He wants to have a sit down with us tomorrow morning at ten o'clock.
– Really? – Yeah.
You can't drink, Captain.
You're under the microscope right now. You can't be seen buy a liquor.
That means no bars... no drugs.
– I understand. I won't drink, I promise you.
– Look, we can get you help... – I don't need help-
I won't drink, I promise you.
I can stop. On my own.
– Okay. – Okay.
– So ten O'clock- – Ten O'clock, I got it.
Avington Car.
I never wanted that fucking airline.
Neither did my brother. It was my father that wanted it.
I like baseball.
– Oh, I like baseball. – Everyone likes to watch baseball.
Everybody enjoys to like baseball.
– The whole country likes baseball.
– Cut the crap.
So... what's the deal, Lenny?
Is your union gonna survive this one?
More importantly, how big a check you think I’m gonna have to write?
Well, you had six fatalities on board your aircraft.
No no, it's four, Lenny. The two crew members don't count.
I don't mean they don't count.
They don't get settlements like the passengers.
Yeah, that’s a workman’s comp claim, part of the union contract.
They do dangerous job, they know it.
You’re the lawyer for the pilots’ union?
No sir, this is Hugh Lang, he's the attorney we brought on
to handle the criminal side of Captain Whitaker’s situation.
Yes, and what is Mr. Whitaker's situation?
NTSB is up my ass with a flashlight, we had to give them access to everything.
Everbody's curious about Captain Whitaker.
Well I flew with him in the Navy and he is a great pilot.
Huh.
Is he a drunk?
He's a heavy drinker. But maybe I should bring in him?
In a minute.
Alright, so let’s get down to it, Lenny.
What does the union plan to do about this blood test saying
Whitaker was high on booze and coke?
This guy’s a real peach.
I'm gonna kill the toxicology report.
The testing was done incompetently.
The toxicology equipment they used was last calibrated in June of 2009.
It's already 18 months past code.
Their log that should clearly state who labeled the blood vials and when,
is very incomplete, and they used a preservative in the blood
that has been known to cause fermentation,
and in some cases register higher in an alcohol test.
Now, I have done all this, I've only been here a few days. So...
I wouldn't worry about it too much, I can handle this.
I like this guy, Lenny.
Makes me wanna go out sniff a few lines and fly a jet.
Mr. Carr,
we’re gonna fight to push all the fault on the manufacturer, Jackson Ridgefield.
And you think they’re gonna just open their check book and buy us all lunch?
Good fucking luck.
What’s my exposure Jim?
Well, the awards to the families could kill the airline.
Fuck the airline.
The insurance companies can have the goddamm airline.
I just don’t want them come sniffing in my other pockets.
Speaking for the pilots’ union, sir, we don’t want to see your airline go away.
We enjoy the contract you have with us.
We gonna protect Captain Whitaker, and in turn we gonna protect your airline.
Does... Whitaker know he's goin' to jail?
My client isn't goin' to jail, Mr. Carr.
Oh, he's goin' to jail. He belongs in jail.
Bet your ass he's goin' to jail, the only question is...
is he gonna die in jail?
You are wrong, Mr. Carr.
Last time I checked, six counts of manslaughter, it's life in prison.
Life in prison...
What we in Georgia call “all day long”.
I hear you're some kind o' pilot.
Theeere she is, there she is.
Back to the meet? Had a nice meeting?
I know, it's okay, uh?
It's okay...
Yup, that's it.
Me?
That's it.
Am I-No. Yeah, no.
You wanna run the boy, you wanna be a quarterback, let me see you run it back!
So say "Dowdow", say "Kwakwa"!
– Good morning. – Hello.
You were in really bad shape last night.
Yeah, true... just tired.
Drank a little bit too much.
A bit?
What, you won't count the fucking beers?
I threw ‘em out.
They're in the garbage, vodka too.
Is that okay with you?
More than okay.
I’ve been watching the sky change as the sun rises.
Beautiful.
I went out there, I took some great shots.
It's just so beautiful here.
You grew up here?
No, Dad did.
It's my grandfather's farm.
Was.
Dad was a pilot, he was a... 332nd airbone. He was a...
Tuskee, he built that landing strip out there.
Crop dustin'. EPA shut him down, he... traded the crop duster for...
that old Cesna sittin' out there in the barn.
He flew that damn thing all over the place.
He died... I got divorced, and...
been trying to sell the place ever since.
What about your mom?
Dead.
You? What about your Dad?
Well, I'm pretty sure he... lives in Colorado.
Yeah?
No relationship?
It was my mom that raised me.
She was incredible.
She held it together for so long, I couldn’t tell how sick she was.
We spent those last seven months together like we were teenagers.
We traded stories about boys and... whatever.
Oh, she loved me.
My name's Trevor.
You saved my mom.
– It's great to see you, Whip.
– It's good to see you too.
The service was so nice.
I mean, all those people who wanted to say goodbye.
And Trina looked so beautiful in there. Don't you think you?
I mean, like she was gonna... wake up and smile!
I didn’t go in, Margaret. I... I just couldn’t.
Trevor...
Find daddy, baby. He's over there with Mr. Benton.
You really should come to the counseling group.
The Union has great people for us to talk to.
I can't. Really I...
I will.
– Yeah. Well... – Margaret.
– You take care, okay, Whip?
– Okay.
Listen, Margaret, I have a...
You know, I'm in the middle of this, uh...
investigation. The NTSB is investigating the crash.
Yeah, I'm gonna talk to ‘em next week.
Yeah. Well, I-I- I'm a little nervous because...
I was out the night before the crash, the diner-
Yeah. With Katerina.
Right. And I had two glasses of wine, and they're probably gonna ask you
about my condition that morning, or
whether you thought I had anything to drink.
What?
I've known you eleven years, Whip.
Right.
You want to tell me that you and Trina went to diner and you had two glasses of wine,
sounds like a nice restaurant, now which one was it?
You have to say that it was an ordinary day, Margaret.
I mean, it was an ordinary day. You know me, I was in shape to fly.
You have a problem saying that?
It's a lie, Whip... It's a lie.
Trina told me you two hadn't been to sleep.
Well, the... my lack of sleep had nothing to do
with that plane falling apart, Margaret.
I'm just trying to get these things straight, now you think any other pilot
could have landed that plane and saved more lives?
I didn't say that, Whip,
– Alright, then... – I can't imagine another pilot...
Imagine your son Trevor in this church looking at you in that box,
or my son visiting me in prison, and for the next forty years-
Please, Whip, enough. Enough, Whip.
Don't you think we've all had enough?
I need this, Margaret.
What d'you want me to say?
I just...
It was an ordinary day.
The storm... after we took off...
was very severe.
But as far as the flight crew is concerned, it was a...
a perfectly ordinary day.
You okay?
Uh yeah, yeah.
So?
Well, I got through the first day, they didn-t fire me,
so... – Then?
And they need someone to work the night shift, and they asked me,
it’s time and a half so...
I got a vest...
and a... well, name tag, I got you something.
– Yeah? – Yeah.
Thank you.
– It is a P-51 mustang.
– I know it's a P-51.
– Your daddy fly one of these?
– Yes, he did.
It cause for celebration.
Oh well, I promised Sheila that I'd go to this AA meeting now.
She's my sponsor, the one that's been helping me,
can we celebrate tomorrow night?
Yeah.
Yeah sure, why not?
You know, you can come with me... to the meeting.
It's an open meeting, meaning that anyone can come.
Even you!
So the cops got a flashlight on me behind the dumpster, I'm...
I'm wearing nothing but my girlfriend’s panties,
I got vomitin' on the front of my chest,
and I say to him: "Uh... I might have had two beers."
So that's why I get the nickname: "Two-Beer Barry".
I'm getting the, uh... the stink eye from Ed over here,
have I gone off format?
My name is Barry and I'm an alcoholic.
Hi Barry.
Are there any other alcoholics present?
I always love a meeting where we all have to identify the tab,
because it forces me to be honest about who I really am.
And I never told the truth out there, obviously I lied about everything.
I was told in these rooms that I was never sober if I kept lying,
but that's what I was best at.
If I knew anything in this world, it was how to lie,
especially about my drinking. But...
whatever, I would lie about the name of my dog,
I'd lie about the color of my own hair right to your face.
My whole life just became... a series of lies, strung together by me,
I gotta go.
Sure.
Oh yeah, Sheila, she can give me a ride, does she?
I'm Sheila.
I’ve been speaking to some people who are very close to the NTSB investigation,
and they are confident they will soon be able to determine exactly
what brought this plane down.
I'm sure they will, sir.
Well, Ken and Vicki Evans, thank you very much.
Thank you sir. God bless you.
How you feeling, Ken?
I'm happy to be alive.
Blessed... to be alive.
I'm Captain Whitaker, I was... flying the-
I know who you are.
Excuse me. Can you give us some privacy, please?
Thank you.
So, uh...
How long have you been out of the...
– Out of the coma? – Yeah.
Two days.
Well, uh, look, I don't wanna... disrupt your whole day,
God knows you've been... swamped by interviews, and...
You looked brillant on the CNN, by the way.
Both my legs are crushed. My pelvis is snapped.
I'll probably never walk again. Al least not without a walker or braces.
I'll certainly never fly again.
I'm very sorry, Ken.
That plane was doomed the moment you sat in that cockpit.
You reeked like gin or somethin’.
I called Vicki from the plane before we took off.
That’s when the rain kicked up.
Well, I don’t know how much you remember, but...
that plane...
it started falling apart, Ken.
I remember everything until the crash.
I know what went wrong.
What are you trying to say, Ken? What do we talk?
I do not know, Captain Whitaker. What are we talking about?
I'm just trying to get a sense from you...
about what you thought caused the crash.
Was it the fact that you got on the plane still drunk from the night before?
The NTSB is coming back tomorrow to finish taking a deposition from me...
about the events on that flight.
Do you think you... be alive if I wasn't flying that plane?
No.
We'd all be dead.
But you gonna argue with me that your physical state was tip-top?
Wait.
Sit...
Please.
I never shared my opinion about your physical state...
the morning of the flight.
I never said a word.
That crash was pre-ordained.
I prayed on it, Captain.
Vicky and I both prayed on it.
There's only one judge, sir.
Praise Jesus!
And he's got a higher plan for you.
This event... although it's tragic in his loss of life...
it's also a celebration of life.
Nothing happens in the kingdom of the Lord by mistake, sir.
Praise Jesus!
Captain...
Will you pray with us?
Jesus, our Savior, we thank you for blessing Captain Whitaker.
For guiding his hand on that fateful morning.
– Bye. – It's on the right.
– Thanks for the ride. – Okay.
Oh hey, look.
Great, ain't it?
It's kind of beautiful.
It is beautiful, I know, like you.
– Does it work? – Yes it works.
I learned how to fly on this baby.
Me and my friend Holling, we... we flew to Jamaica.
– Jamaica, in this?
– Yeah, in this.
We went on a overnight fishing trip about
two hours south to here, and next thing you know,
Bethel, Jamaica.
– You're insane. – Yes, I am.
It was beautiful, just like a... postcard,
you know, one of those gipsy postcards with...
white sand, beautiful... sky, blue sea.
It's the most beautiful thing I ever saw.
Was the water warm?
Yes, that was very warm.
That’s my kind of place.
Let's go.
Sure, why not.
Yeah, let's go tomorrow.
Oh, you're serious?
I'm very serious. We go in the morning. You know, let's just get out of here.
To start over. – Wait, we can't-
Yes we can, it will be beautiful,
these light bright sand beaches, it's-
– I'm worried about you. – It's paradise.
Don't worry about me, I'm fine, thank you.
– Whip, you're not, you're really not. – Yes I am...
I am. – You need help.
You need rehab, Whip.
Is it-I mean, so you go to two AA meetings and I need...?
Okay.
Hey look, I won't-Jesus Christ, don't worry about me, okay?
You just worry about yourself, don't worry about me.
– We're the same, you and me. – No, we're not the same,
– Yeah we are. – we are not the same,
I don't suck dick to get high, okay?
Don't give me that "your mother died..." – I never...
– and your father... – I never in my life...
Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit.
Is that why you shot dope?
– That's not fair.
That's why you get high?
There’s a whole lot of people out there whose mother died,
they don't fucking drink.
– You're sick.
Yeah, well I'll die and brace it, shit!
– I choose to drink. – You do?
– Yes I do. – You choose it, well
I don't see a whole lot of choice going on here.
I choose to drink, and I blame myself. I'm happy to.
And you know why? Because I choose to drink.
I got an... ex-wife and a son I never talk to.
And you know why? Because I choose to drink!
Nicole.
Hey. Listen.
Alright, look...
I was loaded when... the plane crashed.
With this investigation, I don't know what's gonna happen,
I could go to jail for the rest of my life.
I gotta get outta here.
And I want you to come with me.
Whip.
I'm afraid that I'm going to use again, d'you understand?
Then come with me.
Just come with me. I need help. I do.
I'd like it if you got help.
I'll get help, we go straight to Jamaica, we go to right to the local hospital.
I'll do it.
For you, I'll do anyting. Anything you want.
I don't want to use again.
I can't. I... won’t make it back, Whip.
I won't force you to stay.
If you don't like it, if I'm not sober or whatever,
then you leave, I promise you you can leave.
We can leave before noon. I’m a great pilot.
So many beautiful things you get to see.
I just want you to come with me.
Everything okay, sweetie?
You’ve reached the Whitaker Crop Dusting Company.
Please leave a message and it will be returned.
Hey Whip, if you're there, pick up.
It's Charlie, I've got some good news.
Aah, there's our man!
Hey!
Captain Whitaker.
Let me be the first to say congratulations.
It's a good day. We've won.
Yeah, this is what we call in my profession a "walk-over".
Yeah, they sheduled the hearing, it's ten days away,
I can be tough, but you just got to be sharp,
stay focused, answer the questions correctly.
That's right, then we're good.
Right, I successfully had an “Act of God”
added to the NTSB's list of probable causes,
we've shifted suspicion away from you.
It's no longer a question of your condition, but the condition of the plane.
That's what I've been trying to tell everybody.
Broken plane.
That's right.
About the... the toxocologiy report?
Oh, I killed that.
There is no physical proof that you were intoxicated on that plane,
and no eyewitnesses.
Why we're here? We're good!?
Uh... Because there is a... a small problem.
Because of the turbulence, there was no drink service on the flight.
But they did find two empty vodka bottles in the galley trash.
And... uh...
And there's no physical evidence on the bottles,
no DNA, no fingerprints to link them to anyone, but
they were uncapped and empty.
And the only people who would have had access to those bottles
would be the flight crew.
Now Margaret Evans and Camelia Satou,
they all had clean tox reports. So that only leaves you,
– and, uh... – Trina Marquez.
Right, Trina Marquez.
Okay.
Okay, I see where we're going here.
That's funny tough, you know, that they only found two bottles.
– Why's that?
– I drank three.
One's missing.
You know, when I first met you,
I couldn't believe what a drunk arrogant scumbag you were.
– Oh really? – Yeah.
Oh, thank you, you-
But I did the research, Captain Whitaker.
I heard the expert analyzes
and I got to tell you, I’m in awe of what you did.
The FAA and the NTSB took ten pilots, placed them in simulators,
recreated the events that led to this plane falling out of the sky.
Do you know how many of them were able to safely land the planes?
Not one.
Every pilot crashed the aircraft.
Killed everybody on board.
You're the only one who could do it.
Great.
I'm going home.
– Hey.
Captain Whitaker, I'm telling you right now, – Whip, Whip, you can't...
– you walk away, you're going to prison. – Listen man.
I'm trying to save your fucking life.
What fucking life?
Uh? Don’t kill yourself on my account, Hugh!
Captain Whitaker, this NTSB hearing is a federal agency hearing.
Do you understand that?
– Yes, I understand that.
Okay, well we can't play around with these people.
Now we walk in there like this, with this...
we're done.
Everything we've done goes right out the window.
I have no more moves, alright? It's all on you right now.
Ok, Charlie, just get him to the church on time.
Get him to the church on time.
Yeah Charlie, just keep him nice and sober, so he can save your fucking union.
Uh? And that fucking airline. Fuck you Charlie, fuck you.
It's him.
Yeah. I's him already.
How're you doin'?
What are you doing here?
It's good to see you too, Deana. May I come in?
I just thought I'd come by and...
see how you and Will were doing. Will?
Knuckles?
I'd like-you know, we haven’t talked in a while,
so with this whole thing happenin' I just thought I'd come by and we'd... talk.
You know that I prefer that you call us.
Right, right, to call you, but I mean...
Not like anybody around here calls me...
the last three years only to ask for some money.
Have you been drinking?
Well, that didn't take long, did it?
Hey... 17 seconds... Yeah, exactly 17 seconds.
– Ladies and gentlemen, it took exactly – Fucking hell, could you just leave!
17 seconds before my ex-wife Deana Coleman asked me if I was drinking,
what the hell. – Just leave!
A world record. Leave the house that I pay for.
Is that you want me to do? – Oh. I'll call the police.
Call the police.
– I'm telling you- – Will!
Whitaker Jr! How're you doing, son?
Man of the house. Thanks for calling me back.
I'm telling you to leave.
Are you?
You're the man of the house now.
You upset my mother. You gotta go.
Well, I’m your father, tough guy.
You're a drunk.
I'm a drunk? You don't know who the fuck I am.
I sure don't! Won't you tell me!
Who the fuck are you, uh? Who are you?
Get the fuck out.
Stop it! Stop it!
– I love you son. – Get the fuck out!
– Get out now!
I know where I'm not wanted.
Captain Whitaker, a lot of people are working to keep you out of the media,
are you hiding something?
Leave my family some room, please.
This is not the appropriate time. At the appropriate time, I will, uh...
tell my story, and uh...
now is the time for grieving.
And uh...
taking care of the injured. Thank you.
.. questions remain about the flight, but they won't be answered today,
as Captain Whitaker politely asked that we give his familly some peace.
A reasonable request from a quiet heroic man, who’s been through-
Hey Charlie.
Look, it's just that I just couldn't find a safe place, uh,
Amanda was kind enough to let me in, and-
– Yeah. – Thank you.
Are you sure I can't get you something...
No. We're trough.
But thank you. Thank you very much.
Now what the hell is wrong with you?
Really...
Hugh just called me, apparently you went to your ex-wife's house,
drunk as a skunk, the news crew showed up,
and then the police escort you out!
It’s okay, though. I’ve been watching, it’s okay.
Oh yeah, no, Hugh checked all the media outlet that covered,
you come off-you come off fine, so I guess we're good.
Good, ok, here's the deal. I-
No Whip, Whip, there's no deal. Sorry, look at you.
I got no idea what you’re gonna do or say, ever. You’re all over the place.
I was the one guy in your court. The one guy.
I was your defender and your apologist, but no more!
Charlie, I can do this.
You're about to be questioned by a Federal agency about
piloting an airliner drunk, an airliner that crashed, and you continue to drink!
And stumble around. What kind of crazy ya have to be to do that?
I'm afraid of you. – Ok alright, let me stay with you.
Let me stay with you, they're staking out all my houses anyway,
I'll stay with you, until...
you know un- until the hearing.
I won't leave the house.
I won't.
– You cannot drink in my house.
– I won't, I won't, I won't.
Whip, you can't have a drink.
I won't.
– Officer Edmonds. – Yes sir.
Whip, this is officer Edmonds, he'll be staying here tonight.
Any problems, he’ll handle it.
Captain Whitaker. You...
you look great. I mean that.
Thank you. Thank you very much. I feel good.
Charlie tells you haven't had a drink in eight days.
Nine days. Two hours, 26 minutes, but who's counting?
Okay. Right here.
So yeah, we want to make this as easy as possible...
on you, I hope this is okay.
Maybe just relax, and get some rest,
order up a steak, get a movie.
I made a copy of the entire... investigation, my file on you.
I was trying to anticipate what kinds of questions they might ask you under oath,
and I wrote some non-damaging responses, so...
It's all in there. You know, it's photos, and... interviews,
there's some testimony in there.
Called Ellen Block, told her you're here, you're all tucked in.
She got the knife out for me?
Well, look. She's not happy that I killed the tox report, but
this isn't a trial. So she's very limited in the kinds of questions she can ask you.
You know. You're gonna be fine.
Yeah. The hearing's at ten, so uh... just downstairs, so
we'll figure we can meet here at nine for breakfast in our room,
and, uh...
take it from there.
Alright, captain Whitaker. See you in the morning.
Thank you, and thank you... for letting me stay in your house,
you have a beautiful home, beautiful family, and-
You did great. I'm happy.
I needed it. I needed it.
– It's alright. – I'm happy we did it.
– Alright, – Okay.
– see you in the morning. – Yes.
Looks like fine...
Hello?
– How's our man?
– Not a peep.
Maybe he overslept.
Didn't let any girls in there last night, did you?
No sir.
Not a soul, no one came in or out outside of... room service.
You have a key?
Hey Whip.
Hey buddy? Whip!
Shit.
Where the fucking fuck is he? Oh Jeez.
Where is he? Where is he, where is he?
I don't know.
Did he fucking walk away? Son of a bitch!
Hugh. Hugh.
Whip!
– Get a med. – Yak, damnit!
– Oh no, is he dead? – I don't know.
– Is he dead? – I don't know!
Yeah, I'm dead, yeah!
Do you want me to get an ambulance?
No, no no.
Look, uh...
Let's just get the bed.
– Come on. Come on. – It's alright, that's alright.
That's it, Charlie. Ok, that's it, we're fucked, man.
Your guy is just fucked, your guy is just fucked, Charlie!
Alright. You just get on the front door, make sure nobody comes in.
Put that on your head, you...
can't go, man. – Get there, hey!
What time is it?
– We got 45 minutes, okay?
Well, how much grace you think we got?
Grace? Ellen Block? We're gonna get some fucking grace?
Well, we probably got an hour before we really gotta get him downstairs.
Okay great, but let's just get a wheelchair, and wheel his ass into the hearing.
Call Harling Mays, man.
Call Harling, he's got a wheelchair?
He got cocaine, isn' it?
Cocaine?
Hey bro.
Harling Mays. I'm on the list.
Well.
What's the deal, buddy?
You look like you're hurt, for certain.
– Thanks for com- – Do not touch the merch, motherfucker!
Take one step back, please.
C-Lo, I need you outside guarding the door please, thank you very much.
– It's alright. – Yeah.
Alright gentlemen.
I need that table cleared, placed in front of Whip, with the chair behind it.
Now please!
I need a glass of water, I need a credit card, I need a hundred dollar bill.
– I got a 20.
– She'll do.
Whip, being unable to come!?
And I need a coco puff.
A what?
Just take the tinyest little bit of tobacco out of the top of a cigarette, please.
Damn. Amateur, man.
We're almost home, okay baby.
We're gonna do....
two small whiffs first...
One on each side.
Just a little primer, to get it started.
"Coco Puff".
Good boy, atta boy, head back.
Swallow. Water. Water, now! Chief, you.
Little coco puff, buddy.
Who's the banana man?
– You. – Who's the banana man, alright.
Now focus up, big dog.
– There's a train coming to you.
– Yeah.
Keep it down, big dog.
Banana boat's coming. Where's banana boat?
– Banana boat is here.
– Alright.
Nothing keeps you down dog.
Nothing keeps that big dog down.
Guy, you're up.
– Oh, uh-
– I don't, uhm...
That won't do any help, thank you.
– Shit, I'm taking that with you.
Thank you, brother.
– Shit, I'm back. – Aha baby.
– I love you. – I love you.
Alright. Which of one you gentlemen is flowing in this enterprise?
Alright.
It's 500 bucks, I got... you know, I got like 80 bucks on me.
I just need...
How much you got? – I got it, I got it.
Alright. – Here.
– Just... – What the...
– You pay him. – Pay him?
Thank you. Okay.
There's a gram in here.
You take it, you've paid for it, he's gonna need it later.
My work here is finished.
See you all on the dark side of the moon.
♪Feeling alright...
♪I'm not feeling that good myself...
♪Feeling alright...
♪I'm not feeling that good myself...
I'll go ahead and tell ‘em we're here.
You’re gonna make it.
Remember, if they ask about your drinking,
it’s totally acceptable to say, “I don’t recall.”
Hey, don't tell me how to lie about my drinking, okay?
I’m gonna lie about my drinking, I've been lying about my drinking my whole life.
Those are difficult images to watch.
For the record, I'm Ellen Block, Hearing Officer for this hearing.
Captain Whitaker, good morning.
Morning. Morning.
What that video captures is that the aircraft was in a relatively stable glide
just prior to the moment of impact.
However, according to the data we retreived from the cockpit flight data recorders,
at exactly 9:34, after flying 27 minutes without incident,
the transponder recorded a loss in altitude in excess of 4800 feet per minute
in what is considered a “full pitch nose down” attitude.
Then, at 9:42, according to the data recorders,
a decision was made to invert the aircraft.
The NTSB has created animated simulation that I would like to play at this point.
- We gonna roll it, okay?
– What do you mean, roll it?
We gotta do something to stop this dive.
Margaret. What's your son's name?
Trevor.
- Say "I love you, Trevor".
– What?
- Black box. Say "I love you Trevor".
– "I love you Trevor".
You be a good boy. Mommy loves you.
Okay, here we go. I've got control.
Oh good Lord. Jesus!
- Flaps out. – Flaps out!
- Speed brakes. – Speed brakes!
Margaret. Power!
- Gear up. – Gear up!
Oh, Lord Jesus, we're inverted!
Good flying lesson... We’re leve... ...maintain alt... like this.
Atlan... 2-2-7... we are inverted, I... we are... verted.
Southj... 2... 7... did you say inverted?
That audio is tragic and compelling.
I chose to play that part of the cockpit recording
to highlight a key moment onboard flight 2-2-7,
wherein you say “We’re gonna roll it, here we go, I’ve got control.”
You made a very conscious decision to invert the aircraft,
to roll the plane upside down. Is that correct?
I'm not sure if it was conscious, but uh...
it was more like instinct.
What led to that decision?
I don't recall.
Let me quote from an investigative summary
”From 9:34 until 9:42 the events on the aircraft are”,
again I quote, “bold and remarkable”.
“By inverting the plane, Captain Whitaker arrested the descent,
and allowed the aircraft to level off,
enabling him to glide the aircraft away from any populated areas,
and allowing him to execute a forced landing in an open field.
I heard a loud metallic bang.
We pitched nose down.
No control.
Yeah. First Officer Evans testimony confirms the same.
I want to show you something.
Nothing's happening, uh...
Its remote control isn't working, apologies, I can do this manually.
This is the jackscrew on the tail assembly that articulates
the horizontal stabilizer... also known as the elevator.
As you can see, the threads on this screw are almost entirely gone.
This part was suggested as a maintenance replacement in January of 2011.
It was never replaced.
It had an additional 1200 hours of flight on it. It finally failed.
Our investigators have concluded that the jackscrew snapped
and the elevator was frozen in a fixed position,
locking the elevator in a down position which forced the plane into a dive.
The loss of the elevator was, and I quote our report,
“a catastrophic event, from which recovery was improbable
and stable flight, impossible.”
Mr. Whitaker...
I want to talk about the days leading and the hours leading up to the accident.
But before I do, I want to remind you that you are under oath,
and that any testimony you'll give here today will be considered admissable
in any subsequent hearings or criminal proceedings.
Do you understand what that means?
Captain Whitaker, for the record I need you to verbalize your answer.
Uh, I'm sorry. Yes, I understand.
On the three days leading up to the accident: Tuesday, October 11th,
Wednesday, October 12th or Thursday, October 13th,
did you consume any alcohol or other intoxicating elements?
No, I did not.
On the morning of the accident, Friday, October 14th,
did you consume any alcohol, or ingest any chemicals or drugs
that may have impaired your ability to perform your job?
No, I did not.
Mr. Whitaker, do you now or have you ever had a problem
with alcohol dependency, alcoholism or drug addiction?
No.
Okay, Mr. Whitaker, we’re about done.
Due to the severe turbulence in the early part of the flight, you asked
the flight crew to suspend the beverage service on the plane, is that correct?
Yes, That's correct, I suspended the drink service on the plane.
Are you aware that our investigators found two single-service vodka bottles
in the galley trash bin?
Yeah, I'm aware of that.
There were five crew members on board
that who would have had access to the beverage trolley.
Less than an hour after the accident,
blood was taken from each of these crew members, yourself,
first officer Evans, flight attendant Margaret Thomason...
and posthumously from Camelia Satou, and Katerina Marquez.
A toxicology analysis was performed and...
three of these tests came back negative,
one was disqualified for technical reasons, and one...
tested positive for alcohol. It registered a .17 blood alcohol level.
Are you aware of that?
Yeah. I'm aware of it now.
Miss Marquez was not only a colleague, but you knew her outside of work,
is that correct?
Outside of work...
No, not really.
Did you know Miss Marquez had a drinking problem?
No, I did not.
Did you ever see her drink to excess?
No, I did not.
Were you aware that she was twice treated for alcohol addiction,
the last time was 16 months ago and paid for by SouthJet Airlines?
No, I did not.
Is it your opinion... that Katerina Marquez... drank on that flight?
Could you repeat the question?
Is it your opinion that Katerina Marquez drank on that flight?
I’m sorry. My what?
Your opinion, Captain.
Since her toxicology report is the only toxicology report
that is admissable in this hearing, and she in fact tested positive for alcohol,
is it your opinion that Katerina Marquez
drank those 2 bottles of vodka on the plane?
I’m sorry Mr. Whitaker, I couldn’t hear you. What did you say?
I said, "God, help me."
Yes, well. However, is it your opinion-
It's my opinion...
Trina did not...
drink that Vodka.
Excuse me, Mr. Whitaker?
She saved the boy’s life, that's-
Could you speak louder, Captain Whitaker?
Trina Marquez did not drink the vodka.
Because I drank the vodka.
Objection!
Please be seated sir. This-
Sir.
– I drank the vodka bottles-
– Did you hear what I said, I object!
Please be seated sir, this is not a court room.
Well, I object anyway!
I drank the vodka bottles on the plane.
Captain Whitaker. On the three nights before the accident, October 11-
October 11, October 12 and 13th and 14th, I was intoxicated.
I drank all of those days, I drank...
in excess.
– On the morning of the accident- – I was drunk.
I'm drunk now.
I'm drunk right now...
Miss Block...
because I'm alcoholic.
That was it.
I was finished.
I was done.
It was as if I had reached my life long limit... for lies.
I could not tell one more lie.
And maybe I'm a sucker.
Because if I had told just one more lie,
I could have walked away from all that mess...
kept my wings, kept my false sense of pride...
and most importantly, I could have avoided being locked up in here with all of you,
nice folks for the last 13 months.
But I'm here.
And I'll be here for at least the...
next four or five years. And that's fair.
I betrayed the public trust. I did.
That’s what the judge explained to me. I had betrayed the public trust.
The FAA, they took away my pilot's license.
And that's fair.
My chances of ever flying again are slim to none.
And I accept that.
I got a lot of time to think about it, the all of it.
Doing some writing.
I wrote letters to each of the families that had lost loved ones.
Some of ‘em were able to hear my apology...
some of ‘em never will.
I also apologized to...
all the people that tried to help me... along the way, but I...
couldn't or wouldn't listen.
People like my wife...
My ex-wife...
My son.
And again like I said, you know, some of them will...
never forgive me, some of them won't...
But at least I'm sober.
I thank God for that, I’m grateful for that.
And this is gonna sound really stupid
coming from a man who’s locked up in prison...
but for the first time in my life...
I’m free.
Whitaker. You got a visitor.
– You have 40 minutes. – Okay.
Look at you, boy.
How you doing?
– Good. – You look good.
Com'on, sit down.
This is a surprise. Did you get that gift I sent you?
– Yeah. – Yeah?
– Yeah, I got it. – You like it?
– Yeah. – Good...
– How's your mom? – Fine. She's alright.
My College counselor wanted me to come in... interview you.
Me?
Yeah. I'm writing essays for College applications.
Good.
I need your help.
So you got it.
And then... this essay. The essay that I have to write...
it's called... “the most fascinating person... that I’ve never met.”
So...
Who are you?
That's a good question.