Plot Synopsis

Hosted by Dallas Campbell and Hannah Fry, CITY IN THE SKY is a three-part documentary series that goes behind the scenes of the airline industry with rare access to uncover its invisible global networks and complex logistics. From the coldest airport in the world (in Yakutsk, Russia), to one of the busiest (in Atlanta, Georgia), to the most dangerous (in the Himalayan town of Paro), the series takes viewers to remote, little known places such as the world's largest luggage storage facility and the storage tanks in Europe and southeast America that hold and transport millions of gallons of jet fuel through underground pipes. The series also gives viewers a new appreciation for the paper stub or digital ticket that unlocks a precisely choreographed journey that starts the moment they walk into an airport terminal. Signage, lighting and flooring are designed to keep travelers on a flowing path to their gates. Vast underground machines give baggage the ride of its life from check-in to pick-up. Even non-consumer-facing parts of the industry bring fascination: the world's largest cargo storage in China, for example, sees one-fifth of all global shipping come through its facility. PBS aired the U.S. premiere of CITY IN THE SKY on Wednesday, February 8, 2017 at 10pm (check local listings).
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PBS aired the season finale of CITY IN THE SKY on Wednesday, February 22, 2017 at 10pm (check local listings). The season ender, "Arrival," reveals what it takes to get passengers safely back to earth, which depends on complex global networks and some astonishing technology. Around the world, 100,000 flights a day make touchdown -- almost every one safely.