Challenger: The Final Flight

Engineers, officials and the crew members' families provide their perspective on the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and its aftermath.

Challenger: The Final Flight (2020) is a American documentary miniseries created by Steven Leckart and Glen Zipper for Netflix. Across four 44-minute episodes, it assembles first-person testimony from engineers, NASA officials, correspondents and the families of the crew to revisit the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and the years that followed. Rather than chasing a single villain, the series builds its engine from the accumulating accounts of people who were inside the program, the reporters who covered its failures, and the relatives who lived with the loss, so each episode unfolds as a patient reconstruction of decisions, warnings and aftermath. June Scobee Rodgers, widow of commander Francis Dick Scobee, and astronaut Richard O. Covey anchor the emotional core, while Allan McDonald, the solid rocket booster director, brings the engineering perspective that makes the investigation concrete. The result is a sober, contemplative documentary with a somber, grief-tinged register, set in the 1980s United States space program and Cape Canaveral. Its tone is measured and thoughtful rather than sensational, which will appeal to viewers of Chernobyl and Apollo 13 looking for serious true events drama with human stakes and an unhurried, investigative approach.

Viewers broadly found the documentary a moving and thought-provoking account of the Challenger disaster and the institutional failures behind it.

• Chernobyl (2019)documentary docuseries revisiting a national tragedy through insider testimony and investigation
• Blackfishinvestigative true events format examining institutional failure in a disaster
• Apollo 13space disaster told through engineering and institutional accountability
• The Kingdom of Fatal Shutdownserious documentary tone with first-person accounts of a national tragedy

Created by

Steven Leckart, Glen Zipper

Release Date

2020-09-16

Episode runtime

44 min

Rating

7.8 / 10 (150)

What is Challenger: The Final Flight about?

Engineers, officials and crew families recount the 1986 Space Shuttle Challenger disaster and its aftermath.

What is Challenger: The Final Flight like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Challenger: The Final Flight as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.

Is Challenger: The Final Flight violent?

No — Ember's analysis finds no violence in Challenger: The Final Flight.

What did critics think of Challenger: The Final Flight?

Viewers broadly found the documentary a moving and thought-provoking account of the Challenger disaster and the institutional failures behind it.

Which shows are like Challenger: The Final Flight?

Shows with a similar feel include Chernobyl (2019), Blackfish, Apollo 13, and The Kingdom of Fatal Shutdown.

How long is Challenger: The Final Flight?

Challenger: The Final Flight: 1 season, 4 episodes.

Is Challenger: The Final Flight still running?

No, Challenger: The Final Flight has ended.

Where can I watch Challenger: The Final Flight?

In United States, Challenger: The Final Flight streams on Netflix, Netflix Standard with Ads.