05x25 - Airplane Hour

[bunniefuu]

Narrator: on this episode of
"mythbusters," the whole team is
flying high in an airplane

Special.
Aah!
Oh, I don't think I did so well.

Narrator: first, adam and
jamie fly by the seat of their
pants...

Yeah, shut up.
Narrator: ...in a
state-of-the-art simulator to

See if a novice pilot can be
talked down by air traffic
control.

Pull your nose up and give it
power.
Oh, my gosh.

It's coming in really fast.
Narrator: then, kari, tory,
and grant get gnarly with three

Skydiving movie myths from
action flick "point break."
Adios, amigo!

Oh, shucks!
Narrator: buster gets the
push to find out the free-fall

Time from 4,000 feet.
[ Laughs ]
oh, my god!

Narrator: grant discovers if
you can have a conversation in
midair.

[ Laughs ]
so excited.
Narrator: and tory lays his

Life on the line...
Oh, my god!
Narrator: ...in a high-speed

Chase at terminal velocity to
see if it's possible to catch
someone up in free fall.

Dude, that was incredible!
Narrator: who are the
mythbusters?

Adam savage...
That was awesome!
Narrator: ...and jamie hyneman.

Mush.
Narrator: between them, more
than 30 years of special-effects

Experience.
Arise, my son!
Narrator: joining them,

Grant imahara....
Warning! Warning!
Narrator: ...tory belleci...

It's getting dangerous now.
And that's how we like it.
Narrator: ...and kari byron.

That is messed up!
Narrator: they don't just
tell the myths.

Wow, I can feel the pressure.
Narrator: they put them to
the test.

Come on, come on.
We need to come up with
something!

What do we have?
I got nothing.
Some idea.

Parachutes!
Misconceptions about skydiving.
There are a bunch of

Hollywood movies that feature
skydiving.
Skydiving's good.

Skydiving, airplanes.
How about when the pilot's
incapacitated and they talk a

Passenger into landing the
plane?
Perfect.

That's really good.
An entire episode about
airplanes.

Narrator: ladies and
gentlemen, please buckle up for
an airplane special.

The mythbusters are no strangers

To aviation myths.

I want liftoff this time.

Narrator: they've made

Mincemeat of an airplane.

Yeah!

Narrator: they've fired

Chicken meat at an airplane.

And they've even used an

Airplane to make a bus take to

The sky.

[ Screaming ]

But now they're back with two

Brand-new flights of fantasy

Straight from the fan site.

And starting off, it's an

All-time classic.

In all your eclectic careers,
you've never gone out and gotten
a pilot's license?

Nope.
Thought about it.
Never did it.

Not even any ill*gal crop
dusting?
Mnh-mnh.

Neither have i, and, you
know, that makes you and I
perfect test-bed platforms for

This next myth.
You mean talked into landing?
Yes!

Let me set the scene for you.
You have chosen the kosher meal
and have eaten it just fine, but

The pilot and copilot have
accidentally been fed the salmon
mousse.

Stricken with food poisoning,
they can no longer fly the
plane, and the stewardess says,

"Is there anyone here who will
land this plane?"
And you get behind the seat, get

On the horn to air traffic
control, and they give you the
instructions to land that plane

Safely.
I don't think our insurance
company or the faa is gonna

Give us any kind of permission
to attempt to land a real plane.
Nope.

I think we're going to have to
do this one in a simulator of
some kind, and luckily the

Researchers have turned up the
crème de la crème of flight
simulators for us.

It's nasa's, and they use it to
train real pilots.
Okay.

And before we get talked down by
the air traffic controller, I
think we should try it

Au naturel -- you know, without
any help at all, and see how we
do.

Because if we can do that,
then there's no need for air
traffic control.

Exactly.

Narrator: so it's chocks

Away, and first up we meet the

Man with the machine,

Terry rager.

Hello.

Welcome aboard.

Narrator: and after a brief

Tour, what's immediately clear

Is this simulator ain't exactly

Your average game console.

Wow.

Those are the size of a small

House.

[ Laughs ]

That's amazing.

You're going to find it's

Pretty realistic once you get

Inside.

Narrator: with pneumatics to

Simulate every bump, more

Buttons than a wurlitzer organ,

And a state-of-the-art graphics

Display, this simulator is the

Real deal.

Ready?
Narrator: and first into the
hot seat is...

Jamie.
You go first.
Here is the plan.

We're going to try landing this
flight simulator on our own
without any assistance, because,

Well, if we can, there's no need
for a test.
They've concocted for each of us

A flight scenario that we'll
open when we're ready to fly,
that'll tell us the critical

Details about our flight.
Jamie's going to go first.
And who knows?

Maybe he's going to turn out to
be a great pilot.
I wouldn't be that surprised.

Okay, so I've left chicago.
I'm on my way to denver.
I'm in a large commercial

Airliner with 160 passengers.
I'm at 15,000 feet.
"Good luck.

It's up to you to land the
plane and save the lives of the
passengers without any help."

Okay, well, I guess I better get
to it.
Narrator: it's worth

Remembering, despite the aviator
moustache, jamie has absolutely
no experience piloting a plane.

And to make a tough task
tougher, terry has programmed a
night flight, so jamie will be,

Quite literally, flying in the
twilight zone.
I have a basic understanding

Of how airplanes work, which I
think should be helpful.
But the rest of it, this is all

Alien to me.
I'd say this is going to be a
little bit of a rough landing.

Narrator: captain jamie's not
altogether confident, and once
he takes the controls, he shares

His concerns with the cabin
crew.
Ladies and gentlemen, this is

Your captain speaking.
Put your tray tables and your
seats in the the full upright

Position.
Make sure you have all your seat
belts engaged.

And kiss your a*s goodbye.
Narrator: the simulator
c*ck, modeled on a generic

Passenger plane, has real
instrumentation and flight
controls, and state-of-the-art

Computers control the actuators
that respond physically to the
pilot's handling.

Let's just start to play with
the controls a little bit.
Narrator: and it's clear from

The get-go that jamie is
hopelessly out of his depth.
[ Alarms beeping ]

I need to find my speed.
Why can't I find my speed?
Narrator: with alarms,

Sirens, and verbal warnings
going off, jamie's struggling.
He's going too fast.

[ Alarm blaring ]
and with his roller-coaster
steering style, he's breaking

Every faa regulation in the
book.
He just rolled out of a


An air carrier would do.

Narrator: if he keeps this
up, he may tear the plane apart
before he has a chance to crash

Land.
Looks like we're headed
towards some kind of population

Center.
Let's see if we can go faster.
Narrator: jamie's unorthodox

Approach has found denver
airport, but he's not in great
shape.

He's just too high and too
fast.
It's not a good combination.

Narrator: the recommended
landing speed for a plane of
this size is about 140 knots,

But jamie is screaming in at
over 300.
]] maximum airspeed exceeded.

]] pull up.
eh, shut up.
Narrator: all in all, it's

Not going well, and even the
simulator is starting to panic.
]] don't think.

Why is it telling me not to
think?
]] don't think.

Narrator: on his final
approach, maverick jamie can't
help but try something straight

From "top g*n."
I'm going to buzz the tower.
[ Laughs ]

Whee!
Narrator: in all the
excitement, he's still coming in

At double the landing speed, and
that's not the only problem.
Despite looking everywhere, he

Can't find the button that
lowers the landing gear.
Without wheels, this really is

Going to be a rough landing.
Oh!
[ Laughs ]

[ Laughs ]
narrator: jamie hits the
deck, putting the terror into

Terra firma.
A crunching, shuddering skid
ends in disaster.

Lucky it's just a simulator.
[ Laughs ]
narrator: please exit only by

The front doors.
Unfortunately, I died, and
all of my passengers and crew

Died along with me.
He was too high, too fast
most of the time.

He was using gas at quite a
rate, and he never found the
landing gear lever.

So he was kind of really at odds
with the aircraft.
Narrator: so landing a

Passenger jet without experience
or help is nigh on impossible,
unless adam can prove otherwise.

The hours of flight time I
have in total in simulators and
real planes -- zero.

Narrator: it's airplane hour
on "mythbusters."
And next, a myth that's sure to

Get your adrenaline rushing.
Airplanes -- so, what have we
got?

We got a triple bill of
myths about what happens when
you fall out of them.

All right.
Let's hear them.
There's a skydiving scene in

The hit movie "point break,"
and amazingly, all three myths
come from the same scene.

Three myths in one scene?
That has got to be be a record.
So what are they?

Well, hold on to your hats,
grab your popcorn, 'cause it's
time to point the finger at

"Point break."

I know you want me so bad

It's like acid in your mouth,

But not this time.

Narrator: it's movie magic at

Its best.

In hollywood heist movie
"point break"...
Adios, amigo!

Narrator: ...patrick swayze
jumps out of an airplane, taking
with him the last remaining

Chute.
More than a little upset,
keanu reeves has no option but

To follow without a parachute.
Shucks!
Narrator: so now come the

Myths.
Myth one -- by streamlining his
body, reeves catches up with

Swayze in free fall, despite the
pull it now!

Nah, you pull it!
Narrator: myth two -- after
they meet in midair, they have a

Full-on shouting match.
And myth three -- the whole
scene lasts over 90 seconds,

Even though the plane's
original altitude was only 4,000
feet.

Will these myths come crashing
back to earth?
All right, so what's the

Plan?
I reckon we should just get
an airplane and go for it.

First off, I want to test if it
takes more than 90 seconds to
fall only 4,000 feet, like the

Movie.
Cool.
You know, while we're at it,

We should test to see if you can
actually have a conversation
while you're in free fall.

Yeah, we just jump out of a
plane and see if we can hear
each other.

Awesome.
And when we have the answer
to those two things, we'll come

Back to the shop, and then we
can figure out how to tackle
free-fall catch-up.

All right.
Let's take to the skies!
[ Imitates airplane ]

Narrator: so it's parachute
pandemonium as the team gets
ready to explore a trilogy of

Perilous "point break" myths.
And like all hollywood action
movies, they're starting with a

Bang.
We've come to skydance
skydiving in northern

California.
Not only have they got 20 years
of experience, but they've also

Got planes and they've got
parachutes.
So it's a perfect place for us

To put these "point break" myths
to the test.
Narrator: and first up, it's

The 4,000-foot drop test.
The first test we're going to
do -- there's a scene in

"Point break" where
patrick swayze jumps out of a
plane at 4,000 feet, and he

Free-falls for, like, two
minutes.
We're going to fly up to 4,000

Feet, kari's going to push out
the human simulaid, and we're
going to see how long it takes

For the dummy to hit the ground.
Normally, you would think,
"oh, this would be a perfect job

For buster."
He's not afraid of being caught
on fire, being exploded.

Lots of things happen to buster.
This is a little bit too
dangerous, I think, so, instead

Of buster, we're using our
simulaid.
Simulaids -- dime a dozen.

Buster -- he's one-of-a-kind.
Narrator: so, for test one,
it's the simulaid that's going

To take one for the team, and
kari, after a quick pit stop, is
going to be the one to push him

Out.
Patrick swayze jumps out of
his airplane at 4,000 feet and

Has about a minute and 52
seconds of free fall, so we're
gonna go up, push our simulaid

Out at 4,000 feet and see how
long it takes him to impact the
ground.

We're all ready to start this
test.
We're going to destroy a little

Bit of movie magic.
Narrator: complete with smoke
canister, the simulaid will

Be easy to track as it falls
from the sky.
And doing the tracking will be

Grant and tory.
It's like we're storm
chasers!

Whoo!
Narrator: but tory doesn't
realize how right he is.

When the guys arrive at the
landing site, the weather has
closed in.

They're circling.
Where?
They're right there.

They just went behind the
clouds.
See right there?

That's a bird, dude.
Narrator: the cloud cover
looks like it might scupper the

Test, meaning that kari may not
get the chance to scupper the
simulaid.

Unfortunately, we're having a
few problems right now with our
drop zone.

The cloud cover has come in, and
it's kind of blocking our
ability to toss the dummy out,

So we may have to abort.
Narrator: but then...
Miraculously, the clouds around

The drop zone are giving the
mythbusters a window of
opportunity.

We can totally see you guys.
Kari, what's your altitude?
We are at 4,000 feet, ready

To drop when you are.
All right, kari, we are all
ready to go.

Narrator: with the cloud
cover lifted and the correct
altitude reached, it's go time.

And as the simulaid is elegantly
shown the door, tory starts the
stopwatch to time his fall.

There he is!
Look at him go!
Narrator: remember, the

"Point break" scene lasted over
how long will the simulaid last?

Ohh!
Narrator: ouch.
[ Laughs ]

Oh, my god!
He got cut in half.
Oh, wow!

So that's what they look like
inside.
His back totally split, and

His guts are all over the field.
Narrator: split in half and
leaving a simulated swayze-size

Crater, that's one busted
simulaid.
But is the first of the

"Point break" myths also busted?
So, how long did it take?
31 Seconds. There's no way.

In the movie, he's minute and a
half, two minutes free fall.
He would die.

Both: ohh!
Yeah!
That was so cool.

He went way faster than I
thought he was gonna go, and he
hit so hard that he actually

Broke into two pieces.
His back split open, and now
there's guts all over the field.

In the movie, he's free-falling
for a minute and a half, maybe
more.

There's no way he would have
been able to free-fall that
long.

He would have died.
So this one's busted...
Just like our simulaid!

Narrator: it's strike one
against "point break."
So bring on myth number two,

Where the simulaid is out and
grant is in.
Doesn't really fill me with a

Great sense of joy to see what
could potentially happen if
something went horribly,

Horribly wrong.
[ Siren wails ]
narrator: thankfully, most

Times we fly, the hardest
decision to make is whether to
have fish or chicken.

But if the journey took a turn
for the worse, can a complete
novice really take the hot seat

And be talked in to land?
So far, jamie's tried the
landing without any external

Help...
Oh!
Narrator: ...and failed

Miserably.
But what about adam?
Okay, adam.

It's your turn.
Narrator: adam has an
identical flight plan to jamie,

But let's hope the outcome is
different.
The hours of flight time I

Have total in simulators and
real planes -- zero.
I'm imagining that the flying

Itself will be fun and not so
difficult, but that the landing
will be potentially disastrous.

Narrator: like jamie, adam is
hardly confident.
And once he takes the controls,

It's pretty clear why.
Oh, I'm actually flying.
Oh! Oh, wow!

[ Beeping ]
what? What?
I don't know what to do.

Oh, my god.
Narrator: the overwhelming
array of instruments and alarms

Are, well, overwhelming and
alarming.
[ Alarms blaring ]

]] terrain.
terrain. Okay.
That means I'm really close to

The terrain.
[ Laughs ]
narrator: adam has no idea

What his altitude is, and with
the airport some distance away,
he flirts with a hard and

Premature landing.
[ Alarm blaring ]
okay, I'm pulling up.

I'm pulling up.
All right, all right.
I'm pulling up.

I'm pulling up.
I am!
Narrator: with the passengers

Now using their sick bags,
adam's speed has dropped so low
he's stalled, and that leaves

Only one outcome.
Oh, geez!
Okay. Wait.

Oh, my! Aah!
Aah!
[ Laughing ]

Oh, I don't think I did so well.
I-i crashed.
I crashed in farmland about 10

Miles outside of denver.
I rest in the knowledge that
there's always a copilot...

[ Laughs ]
and that I'm not the likely
first choice to help land the

Plane in an emergency.
Narrator: what's clear
from both tests is that with no

Help, crash-landing a plane is
pretty much the only outcome.
But can an air traffic

Controller really cancel out the
carnage?
Oh, I don't think I did so

Well.
Narrator: the guys are
testing three skydiving myths

From the action movie
"point break."
And so far, the simulaid has

Shown that free-falling for a
minute and a half from an
altitude of 4,000 feet is

Busted.
With myth number one down for
the count, it's on to the next

Part of the trilogy.
Adios, amigo!
Oh, shucks!

Narrator: myth number two is
about what you can hear during
free fall.

You are crazy!
Narrator: is it really
possible to have a conversation,

Or is that another load of
hollywood hot air?
What the hell are you two

Doing?
We're doing "point break"
myths.

Okay.
I'm keanu reeves.
I'm patrick swayze.

Can't you tell?
Get back here.
Swayze needs his hair.

With our first experiment, we
pretty much busted the whole
"point break" skydiving scene.

I mean, you wouldn't have much
time to do anything from 4,000
feet.

So we're going to take that out
of the equation, we're going to
go up higher, and we're going to

Try to bust or confirm the myth
that you can hold a conversation
while you're free-falling.

Narrator: and having just
seen what happens when things go
wrong...

Ohh!
Narrator: ...grant is
understandably nervous.

I've been bungee jumping
before, and that was probably
one of the most terrifying

Moments of my life.
I have a feeling this will
probably be a new high in

Terrifying moments in my life.
Narrator: of course, because
skydiving is so terrifying,

Grant will be making a tandem
jump, securely attached to an
instructor.

And while grant's expression
says it all, kari and tory,
along with skydiving specialist

Dan, are figuring out the plan.
So we're going to give you
something to say.

You're going to get up close to
grant, tell him that.
Then when he lands, we're going

To see if he heard what you
said.
We've actually been really

Agonizing over what to have you
say to grant, 'cause we didn't
want anything obvious like, "we

Didn't pack your chute" or
something he could guess at.
So this is what we came up with.

"Grant, if you pull my finger,
you will hear a tuba."

"Grant, if you pull my

Finger, you will hear a tuba."

Narrator: hmm, interesting.
What are we, like 10?
[ Laughs ]

Are you ready?
Narrator: but I'm sure that
tubas are the last thing

Crossing grant's mind before his
first-ever skydive.
Then again...

[ As arnold schwarzenegger ]
get to the chopper! Come on!
Narrator: with a reassuring

Send off from his fellow
mythbusters...
Ain't no turning back now,

Little buddy!
Can I have your truck?
What'd they say?

Narrator: ...grant takes off
to test the second "point break"
myth.

All the things that we do, if
something goes wrong, you may
get hurt, you may get a broken

Bone.
But this one, if something goes
wrong, you're pretty much dead.

That weighs heavy on the
person's mind.
Narrator: and the mind that's

Getting heavy belongs to grant.
I'm sorry to say I'm a
little nervous.

Just a little.
Narrator: but it's too late
to back out now.

Oh, the door's open!
Okay!
Narrator: and it's a short

Countdown to find out if you can
hold a conversation during a
skydive free fall.

Ready, set, arch, arch, arch!
Narrator: and grant's out.
Attached to his buddy, he

Plummets toward the earth.
Almost immediately, skydiver dan
approaches with a message from

Tory and kari.
With the wind at a deafening
volume, dan shouts the tuba

Phrase as loud as he can and
repeats it over and over until
grant's parachute is pulled.

Whoo!
Whoo!
Narrator: once he slows down,

You can hear his screams from
miles away.
Do you hear him screaming?

Is that grant?
I thought that was some kind of
weird bird.

[ Laughs ]
narrator: but it seemed to be
a different matter entirely

During free fall.
Grant, land like you know
what you're doing!

Whoo!
[ Laughs ]
stand up.

All right.
Yeah!
Nice!

Nice landing.
You did it!
I'm alive! I'm alive!

Narrator: grant may be alive,
but was the midair conversation
music to his ears, or was grant

Brassed off that he couldn't
hear a thing?
Did you hear what he said?

I couldn't hear anything.
All you hear is --
[ imitates wind rushing ]

Are you at all curious what
the phrase was?
Absolutely. What was it?

"If you pull my finger, you
will hear a tuba."
[ Laughs ]

She came up with that one.
Narrator: so, no tuba lessons
for grant today, and it sounds

Like "point break" skydiving
myth number two needs a
sound check.

[ Laughs ]
I was so -- so excited.
Okay.

[ Shouting indistinctly ]
that was amazing.
I mean, we're up there, and the

Wind is rushing past me.
And then dan came in.
He was right in my face, and

He's saying, "blah, blah, blah,
blah, blah."
But I could not hear anything.

All I could hear was --
[ imitates wind rushing ]
can you have a conversation in

Free fall?
Absolutely not.
Narrator: flying a plane

Requires hundreds of hours of
training.
And on this airplane hour of

"Mythbusters," it's clear to see
that every single minute of that
time is well spent...

Because adam and jamie have just
shown that newbie pilots don't
exactly pass with flying colors.

[ Laughing ]
oh, I don't think I did so
well.

Now it's time to see if we
can be talked down by an air
traffic controller.

So terry is going to be that
person, and he's going to try
and talk us down using only the

Information that an air traffic
controller would have access to
as well as feedback from us via

The radio.
We'll see what happens.

While you were busy buzzing
the tower, I was turning up some
pretty interesting facts about

This myth.
Which was?
Well, it's never happened.

What's never happened?
No passenger has ever been
talked into landing by air

Traffic control on a commercial
airliner.
There's simply never been a case

Where both the pilot and the
copilot have been removed
from the equation.

Well, I guess this is another
case of things happening in the
movies that don't happen in

Real life.
That's not going to stop
us from going for it, though.

Jamie's just about to go in and
get talked into landing, and get
this.

Even though he's been flying
since he was 16, terry has never
talked anyone into landing.

It is not part of any pilot's
training.
So this is a first for everybody

Involved.
Narrator: jamie once more
mans the hot seat.

To make conditions different
from test one, terry has added a
significant tailwind and some

Turbulence to boot.
So now it's down to him and
jamie.

And first up is a little c*ck
the screen straight ahead

That has the blue and the brown
on it, that is your primary
flight display.

Narrator: terry carefully
explains to jamie exactly what
all the buttons and numbers

Mean.
That says landing gear.
I was looking for that earlier.

Okay.
Narrator: and with that
nailed, it's time to put the

Myth to the test.
Roger.
I'm at 230°.

Airspeed is 216 knots.
That's good.
You're in good shape.

Narrator: with the expert
instruction, jamie started well,
but traveling at around 300

Miles an hour, things can
quickly go wrong.
I'm at 5,760.

Pull your nose up and give it
power.
Give power.

Climb back up to 7,000 feet.
Roger.
Narrator: remember, terry

Can't see any of the instruments
in jamie's simulator or the
graphic flight path, and the

Stress of flying blind, coupled
with that near-miss, is starting
to show.

Okay, what's your pitch
attitude?
Where's the square in

Relationship to any of those
marks?
I'm at 5 degrees. Over.

Very good.
Narrator: finally terry gets
an eyeball on the incoming jet,

And they begin the all-important
landing sequence.
Okay.

I can see you from the tower
now.
Do you copy?

Roger.
Okay.
What's the r.e.f. Speed again?

R.e.f. 133.
Okay, does it look like
you're going to make the runway?

I'm not directly in line with
it.
Try to get to it if you can.

Everything's in your hands now,
and I can't see anymore.
Roger.

Narrator: at the last minute,
despite terry's best efforts,
it's all down to jamie.

I touched down.
Narrator: and he nails it.
Okay, pull that lever right

Next to your right knee.
Narrator: the plane might be
on the ground, but it's still

Moving at over 150 knots, so it
ain't over yet.
Steer with your pedals if you

Have to.
Let us know when you're stopped.
I'm stopped.

Congratulations, jamie.
You made it.
Narrator: remarkable.

Jamie's ended up dead center on
the runway.
Plane, passengers, and crew are

All completely fine.
Landing the plane without any
help?

Hard.
Landing the plane with somebody
talking you through it?

Not bad at all.
I think the key thing to
remember about this getting

Talked into landing is the
talking part is really
important.

I mean, without that, all this
is a bunch of gibberish.
I don't think that there's any

Doubt that somebody could be
talked down.
Maybe it hasn't actually

Happened except for in the
movies, but we just did it in a
simulator.

This is designed to simulate the
real deal, and it wasn't that
hard.

Narrator: but the decision on
whether this myth is a birdie or
a bogey will have to wait until

Adam takes a turn.
Next is the free jumping.
Watch him as he drops like a

Bird.
Narrator: ever since people
invented planes, they've wanted

To throw themselves out of them.
Parachute jumping is not a
sport but a science.

Narrator: some would say it's
a science, but as kari, tory,
and grant have found out,

It's also shrouded in mythology.
Not looking too good for
"point break."

The whole idea that you can
jump out of a plane at 4,000
feet and it will take over 90

Seconds till you hit the ground,
it's totally busted.
We dropped the simulaid.

It took 31 second before he hit.
Yeah, and trying to have a
conversation in free fall --

Totally impossible.
That one's busted, too.
Okay, so the myths are zero

For 2, but we still have to test
free-fall catch-up.
That's the one where

Patrick swayze jumps out of the
plane with the only parachute,
gets into skydiving position,

And then keanu reeves freaks
out, 15 seconds later jumps out
with no parachute, but gets in a

Streamlined position and catches
up to patrick in 45 seconds.
There is a lot involved in

This one.
There's human surface area,
wind resistance, terminal

Velocity.
I definitely want to go to the
skydive facility and test this

Full-scale.
But before that, I want to do a
few small-scale tests just to

Nail the science.
All right, hurry up with your
small-scale tests because I want

To go skydiving.
Yeah!
Narrator: it's the biggest

Test of the "point break"
trilogy of myths.
And to kick it off, grant

Hastily carves up the patented
"mythbusters" small-scale test.
Now, before we take this

Experiment full-scale, I want to
do a small-scale experiment
first to demonstrate that

Objects with the same mass but
different shapes will have
different terminal velocities.

That's because of the difference
in wind resistance.
Now, to test this, I've built a

Small wind tunnel.
It consists of this plastic tube
and this source of air.

I have a ball valve here that I
can adjust how much air goes
into the wind tunnel.

And at the top, I'll measure
what the velocity of the wind
is, and that will correspond to

That object's terminal
velocity.
If I can get it to stop in here,

That speed will be what I'm
looking for.
Narrator: terminal velocity

Is the maximum speed that
something can fall through the
air.

It's when the force of gravity
is matched by the force of wind
resistance, preventing that

Object from falling any faster.
But can subtle changes to its
shape affect how fast that

Object falls?
So what I'm going to do is
cut out two human shapes

Corresponding to our two human
skydivers, one in the
arms-and-legs-out position for

Maximum wind resistance and one
in the straight position for
minimum wind resistance.

Put them both in the wind tunnel
and see what the difference is.
Narrator: by ensuring that

The two metal cutouts have
identical mass, any difference
in their terminal velocity is

Down to their shape and not
their weight.
[ As keanu reeves ] pull the

Cord, bodhi!
Narrator: but for grant, it's
all getting a bit too much.

We're gonna be meat waffles,
man.
Did you finish the wind

Tunnel?
You ready to test?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Narrator: first up, it's the
spread-eagle cutout who enters
the tube.

Okay, what did you get?
We're looking at a pretty
stable average of about 1,450 in

Feet per minute.
Okay.
Narrator: next up, will the

Streamlined cutout go any
faster?
I got about 2,000 feet per

Minute.
Oh, fantastic.
Narrator: so, it's proof of

Concept -- with better
streamlining, metal cutouts at
least can fall through the air

Much faster.
So what does that mean for the
final "point break" myth?

The myth is looking pretty
good.
In fact, johnny utah jumps out

Of the plane with a smaller
surface area, he might be able
to catch up to bodhi,

Maintaining that
bigger-surface-area position.
The next step is to take this

Into a real-life scenario.
We're going to go to a wind
tunnel and try it on ourselves.

Narrator: no sooner said than
done.
Ifly san francisco is one of the

Most advanced terminal-velocity
wind tunnels in the world.
Four massive fans with a total

Of 1,000 horsepower can move
per minute.

And it's the perfect place to go
up a gear on this monster
movie-myth.

Okay, so we're here to see
how changes in wind resistance
affect terminal velocity.

So, what's the plan?
I say we just get in there
and try different body positions

And have some that are more
wind-resistant and some that are
less and see how we behave.

Narrator: so, that's the
plan.
And once they're dressed to

k*ll...
We're gonna go to some hot
nightclub in san francisco.

Narrator: ...it's time to
point the finger at
"point break."

Want to make sure it's
working, ready to go.
Narrator: the machine kicks

Into life.
[ Laughs ]
narrator: and when the fans

Reach a speed of 120 miles per
hour...
120!

Narrator: ...tory's going to
jump in.
I expect I'm going to walk in

There and I'm probably going to
get tossed around like a rag
doll.

Whoo!
Narrator: once tory stops
screaming, he spreads his body

Out just like the way swayze
does in the movie.
And, dude, he floats in midair.

But when kari steps in, she
keeps her body vertical and
streamlined like keanu so she

Doesn't leave the ground.
We saw with kari and tory
both at the same velocity, the

Same wind coming up on both of
them, kari was in a very
crouched, enclosed position

Where she had very little
surface area facing the wind,
whereas tory was floating on

Air.
I think this is a great
demonstration of how your

Surface area affects your
terminal velocity.
Narrator: and with tory out

Of the picture, kari does the
ultimate demo.
Even with the speed cranked up

To 150 miles per hour,
streamlined, she's grounded.
Spread-eagled, she flies.

That was one of the most fun
things I've ever done.
It was crazy.

You felt like you were flying.
Narrator: actually, kari,
flying comes later,

As tory puts his lips on the
line for the death-defying
full-scale test.

Oh!
Dude, how much fun was that?
Besides being the perfect

Example of surface area to
terminal velocity.
You know what?

That lends some credence to
this myth.
The next thing?

Skydiving!
[ British accent ] I'm about
to get into this flight

Simulator, right?
But it's not like the simulator.
It's like real life.

The pilot has died.
For some reason, I'm the one
they turn to to land the plane.

I get on the horn and say,
"hello? Hello?
Air traffic control, talk me

How to fly this beast and land
these people safely, man."
And he says yes.

That's my task.
On the primary flight
display...

Narrator: as with jamie's
test, terry is effectively
flying blind.

He has to use all of his years
of experience to give adam every
detail he could need.

When I tell you to put
the nose down, you push forward.
When I tell you to bring the

Nose up, you pull back.
Okay.
Narrator: after a brief

c*ck tour, terry starts to
talk adam in.
What's your altitude reading

Now?
14,720 And rising slightly.
Okay.

Put the nose of the airplane,
the square, on 2½ degrees.
Okay.

Narrator: this time, there's
a strong head wind, and that's
making the plane bump around a

Fair bit.
But terry and adam keep their
cool.

This is much easier when I
have someone guiding me through
it.

Terry was a fantastic teacher
over the headset.
I want you to start your

Descent.
Okay.
He gave me lots of good guidance

About my attitude and my
altitude and my heading.
You know, he was paying

Attention to enough of this
stuff that I felt comfortable
and I started noticing things.

I started seeing my airspeed
slowing down, I'd speed it up.
Okay. Pull the nose up.

He got me into the zone, and
I was able to land the plane!
[ Laughs ]

This was so much fun.
[ Laughs ]
hey, I didn't run off the

Runway.
Okay.
A fire truck will be there in a

Second to help you out.
When a civilian like me lands
a plane like this if it's ever

Happened, I'm sure the fire
trucks are on their way out, if
only to bring champagne.

Whoo! I did it!
Narrator: just like jamie,
it's mission accomplished, so

It's hats off to terry.
You are a great teacher.
Narrator: his expertise

Helped avoid calamity.
But as he's about to explain,
there's an even easier way to

Land a plane.
So, terry, we did this the
old fashioned way.

You talked me down.
I operated all the controls.
I told you what I was doing.

A lot of back and forth.
It worked quite well, but is
that how you would really do it

Today?
Not really.
Today's aircraft are so

Sophisticated, there's so much
automation, it'd be as easy
as setting up a couple of

Switches and then just turning
knobs to land.
Basically, you turn on the

Auto pilot.
You select a speed.
You control your heading and

Your altitude with these knobs.
And then, eventually, when
you're ready to land, selecting

The approach.
Wow, so that's it?
You just kind of sit there and

Watch it happen.
Yes.
The systems today are made to be

Virtually fail-safe.
Narrator: the auto pilot of
modern planes can not only fly,

They can land, too.
So that means that a passenger
being talked in to land is just

Never going to happen.
So, how are we going to call
this one?

Well, you and I both failed
miserably when it came to
landing a plane on our own with

No help.
But terry was successfully
able to talk each of us into a

Safe landing.
We can't call it confirmed
because it's never actually

Happened.
Nor would it ever have to
happen these days.

If that situation ever arose
now, modern planes are so
advanced they could virtually

Land themselves.
So we call it plausible.
I agree. Plausible it is.

Narrator: the team has been
flying high testing skydiving
myths from the action movie

"Point break."
But it's not been going well.
Ohh!

Narrator: so far the movie is
zero for 2, which just leaves
the biggest and most dangerous

Test to come, myth number three.
Adios, amigo!
Narrator: the grand finale is

The free-fall catch-up myth.
Is it really possible to give
someone a 15-second head

Start...
Oh, shucks!
Narrator: ... And still catch

Them up in free fall because of
your streamlined body position?
You are crazy!

Narrator: in the wind-tunnel
proof of concept, the myth
looked promising.

But the guys won't know for sure
until they take it to the max
and jump out of a plane.

So it's back to skydance
skydiving, where tory is just
about to risk it all to get his

Wings.
Tory is doing this last jump
tandem, and we have a skydiver

That's going to be chasing after
him to see if he can catch up.
I'm a little worried about this

One because logistically it's a
little more complicated than
just throwing a dummy out of a

Plane.
Narrator: logistically more
difficult, but essentially the

Same.
Do we really need to test
this myth?

Narrator: uh, afraid we do,
tory.

Amazing as it sounds, the man

Who has shown the red rag to a

Bull...

This is starting to feel like

A bad idea.

Narrator: ...been dragged

Behind a horse...

Aah!

Narrator: ...and fallen from

A building...

[ Cheers and applause ]

Narrator: ...has got

Reservations.

It's like, you know, when
everybody else is doing it,
you're like, [laughs] "that

Looks fun."
But then, you know, when you're
about to get up in the plane and

Do it...
[ Sighs ]
...a lot of things go through

Your mind.
Like death.
Narrator: relax, tory,

'Cause you'll have kari to hold
your hand on the way up...
Just not on the way down.

Okay, you guys.
This is the big one.
It's the free-fall catch-up.

So you jump out, get a 15-second
head start.
And somebody else jumps out and

Tries to catch up to you.
I'll be timing the whole
thing.

Once you jump, I start the
timer, wait 15 seconds, then I'm
going to signal your catch-up

Diver and let him go on after
you.
[ Laughs ]

All right, let's do it.
Narrator: it's a dangerous
test, so let's get the plan

Straight.
When the plane reaches an
altitude of 15,000 feet, tory

And his tandem buddy will jump
out.
They'll assume the spread-eagle

Position and will be falling at
an incredible 120 miles per
hour.


Skydiver will emerge, and by
this point tory is already 3,000

Feet away.
By falling in an aerodynamic
b*llet-like pose, will he fall

Fast enough to catch up with
tory?
It's a complicated plan, so tory

Takes a moment to get focused.
I just got to remember to
breathe, not [bleep] my pants,

Not throw up, not pass out, not
scream like a little girl.
Ohh!

Oh, yeah, and open the
parachute.
Number six.

That's an important one.
[ Sighs ]
narrator: as the free-fall

Catch-up express taxis, what
does grant, the veteran of one
skydive, think is going to

Happen?
I'm taking your tools!
So we found that just by

Changing your body shape, by
making yourself more
streamlined, you can pick up a

Significant amount of speed.
Now, whether that's going to be
enough for someone to catch up

To another person over a
don't know.

Narrator: so grant's
convinced that this myth's a
flight of fantasy, but back up

In the plane, it's all too real
for tory.
Oh, my god!

Is it too late to change my
mind?
Too late now.

You're going out the door.
Narrator: there's no turning
back.

It's time to make like
patrick swayze and say "adios,
amigo."

The plane hit 15,000 feet.
Tory is reminding himself to
breathe, and his eyes are

Bugging out.
The tandem skydiver pushes him
to the edge, right outside the

Door.
He jumps.
Narrator: tory and his buddy

Assume the spread-eagle
position.
And the small control chute

Ensures their terminal velocity
is 120 miles per hour, matching
swayze's speed in the movie.

10...
I count 15 seconds so that I
signal the catch-up skydiver to

Jump out after them.
...15!
He just soared down as fast as a

b*llet, and then everything just
kind of went white.
Narrator: at the moment

Catch-up skydiver nick bails,
tory was already 3,000 feet
away.

But by assuming the b*llet
position, nick hits an
incredible top speed of 250

Miles per hour --
more than twice the speed of
tory, and very, very dangerous.

Incredibly, after only 20
seconds and just as tory is
about to deploy their chute,

Nick not only catches up, but he
actually overtakes them.
It's a mind-blowing result.

Dude, that was incredible!
That was insane!
Narrator: totally back down

To earth, dude, and the screams
of excitement just don't stop.
Nice!

Oh!
Dude!
Aah!

That was insane!
So did the guy catch up to
you or what?

Yeah.
We jumped out.


And right as we pulled our
chute, he was, like, right next
to us.

You're kidding.
Narrator: he ain't kidding,
grant.

Even with tory's 15-second
head start, nick, the chase
skydiver, covered nearly 7,500

Feet in only 20 seconds,
catching up with tory just in
time.

Yeah! Yeah!
Right before we pulled our
chute, I looked over, and the

Guy had caught up.
We pulled our chute, he kept
going.

So we confirmed this one.
And I didn't wet my pants!
So, it turns out, given

Enough altitude, you actually
can jump and catch up to someone
who has a 15-second head start.

I personally didn't think that
you could actually get up that
amount of speed in that amount

Of time, but looks like I was
wrong.
Narrator: the first two tests

Might've looked a little shaky,
but it's a big thumbs-up for
"point break" myth number three.

And courtesy of a great action
movie, it's been an
adrenaline-filled time.

All that's left is for the team
to wrap it up.
All right.

So let's have a summary for
today.


Plausible, or confirmed?
That one's busted.
All right.

Free-fall conversation?
Busted.

Yeah, I got the answer to

This one -- totally busted.

No way you can hear anything

While you're in free fall.

And then, finally, can you

Catch up to someone?

You can absolutely catch up

To somebody.

With a 15-second head start.

That's incredible.

Oh, good job!

[ Laughs ]

It was a long day.

Get a good walk off into the

Sunset.

All right. Let's go.

Are you excited?

It was your first skydive.

Oh, my gosh.

That was a great day.

How you going to top that

One?

I don't know.

Do you realize that "talked

In to landing" is an idea I got

From a fan who sat next to me on

The plane?

I get great ideas from

Fans all the time.

So many, in fact, that we are

Doing another "mythbusters"

Viewer special.

So, if you've got an idea

That doesn't totally suck,

Log on to

Discovery.com/mythbusters.

And if we like it, it just

May make it on the air.