This article is more than 10 years old

This article is more than 10 years old

A passenger jet is to be deliberately crash-landed as part of a scientific experiment on Channel 4 that the broadcaster hopes will be one of its biggest hits of next year.

Two pilots will parachute from the 300-seat airliner after setting it on autopilot to crash at high speed into the desert. The plane will be loaded with cameras and sensors recording the impact of the crash, which Channel 4 said would provide invaluable information about how planes react in potentially fatal accidents.

The time and location of the crash are being kept under wraps by the broadcaster, which will air the documentary, Plane Crash, next year.

In a separate programme, Channel 4 will recreate a typical row of 1940s terraced houses before blowing them up with bombs identical to those used by the German airforce during the war, including a V2 rocket.

It said the series Blitz Street would examine the "profound psychological phenomenon" of the Blitz spirit.

The head of Channel 4, Julian Bellamy, said Plane Crash would be "one of the most ambitious and audacious TV events of 2010".

"It is an extraordinary idea and only Channel 4 would be brave enough to do it," he said today. "Not even aircraft manufacturers have crashed something this big."

The programme-makers said footage and data from the plane would provide an "unprecedented insight" into what happens when a plane crashes, enabling experts to study how areas such as seatbelt design, seat arrangement and overhead baggage can have an impact on passenger safety.

"As well as making spectacular television, we hope Plane Crash will be one of the most useful experiments ever in the history of aviation," said producer Geoff Deehan, of independent production company Dragonfly.

"It will give us unprecedented answers to the big question: how can we make air crashes more survivable?"

The plane will be piloted by two former US navy pilots, who will set its autopilot to crash-land before ejecting from the airliner. In case of system failure, it will also be remote controlled from a helicopter and from another control unit on the ground.

The idea for the programme grew out of the crash of a British Airways Boeing 777 at Heathrow airport in January last year. It baffled aeronautical engineers because the structure of the plane did not react the way scientific modelling had predicted.

Channel 4 refused to reveal when or where the plane would crash, or even which continent it would be on. However, it will not be in the UK.

"We are working with the local environment agencies to ensure a proper clean-up and to make sure we don't leave anything behind," said Channel 4's head of specialist factual, Ralph Lee.

"It's going to be designed as a survivable crash. There is no point in atomising the plane – we wouldn't learn anything from it."

Asked about those viewers who will watch for purely voyeuristic reasons, Lee said: "If people tune in for the wrong reasons and learn something from it, then I am quite comfortable with that. Informing and entertaining are not separate categories."

The costs of the documentary, which will air on Channel 4 by the middle of next year, are being shared by its international co-producers, National Geographic Channel and the German television channel ProSieben. Lee said the budget was "not outrageous".

Blitz Street will be presented by Tony Robinson. "70 years on it explores the profound psychological phenomenon that was the 'Blitz spirit' via the recreation of a typical row of 1940s terraced houses," said Channel 4.

"The houses are subjected to a range of high explosives and incendiaries, similar to those used by the Luftwaffe, to give a new perspective on this period of British history."

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