Was Breaking Bad’s Airplane Crash Inspired By A Real Event?

Did a real event inspire the airplane crash from Breaking Bad? Taking place in the second season of the show, two airplanes collided above Walter White’s (Bryan Cranston) house and resulted in debris, like a pink bear, landing in his property. The crash was foreshadowed through season 2 – in the first, fourth, and tenth episodes – before being shown in the season finale. And, there are some similarities between what happens in Breaking Bad and a real-life disaster.

In Breaking Bad, the plane crash saw the 737 commercial airliner, known as Wayfarer 515, collide with a chartered plane over Albuquerque, New Mexico, and killed all 167 passengers. In addition to the flashforwards, the episodes that they appeared in spelled out the traumatic event and read “Seven Thirty-Seven Down Over ABQ” when combined together. It was determined that the crash happened as a result of air traffic controller error. The man then held responsible was the father of Jane Margolis (Krysten Ritter), who recently passed away after Walter didn’t help save her from choking on her own vomit.

Walter White’s association with Jane’s death makes him partially to blame for the crash shown in Breaking Bad, and it turns out he isn’t the only Walter White to be responsible for a plane crash. On August 31, 1986, two planes clipped each other in what has since been named the Cerritos Midair Collision. While one of the pilots was partially blamed for the crash, so too was the air traffic controller – who was named Walter R. White. For more details like these you may have missed, check out the latest Screen Rant video.

At this point, it has not been confirmed that Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan knew of this event and used it as inspiration for the show’s plane crash. Instead, it has been interpreted that this crash is meant to visualize all of the pain and grief that Walt has already caused. In that way, the plane crash is effective and still managed to surprise many during season 2 despite the multiple pieces of foreshadowing that the season entailed.

Since we don’t know for sure whether or not the real event inspired Breaking Bad‘s crash, fans will have to make up their own minds on the matter. There are so many similarities between the events, though, with the biggest obviously being the real-life air traffic controller being named Walter White. That said, whether this is a big coincidence or intentional, it doesn’t change the impactfulness of the event. If Breaking Bad‘s plane crash wasn’t inspired by this event, then it is one giant coincidence.

About The Author

Cooper Hood
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Cooper Hood is a news and feature writer for Screen Rant. He joined Screen Rant in late 2016 following a year-long stint with MCU Exchange, which came after first developing an MCU blog of his own. He graduated college in 2016 with a Bachelor’s degree in Media & Public Communication, with a minor in Media Production. Cooper’s love for movies began by watching Toy Story and Lion King on repeat as a child, but it wasn’t until The Avengers that he took an invested interest in movies and the filmmaking process, leading him to discover the world of film journalism. Every year Cooper looks forward to seeing the latest blockbusters from the likes of Marvel, DC, and Star Wars, but also loves the rush to catch up on Oscar films near the end of the year. When he isn’t writing about or watching new releases, Cooper is a fantasy football obsessive and looking to expand his Blu-Ray collection – because physical media is still king! Follow Cooper on Twitter @MovieCooper.

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