Smithsonian TV Guide — Friday TV Listings & Schedule

Browse the full Smithsonian TV guide for Friday, 28 August 2026. 24 programmes listed , including 6 tonight. US listings updated daily — scroll down to tonight's highlights or use the day tabs above to browse the weekly schedule.

Early Morning

00:00 1h

Air Warriors

S2 · E3 · Black Hawk True

Black Hawk

The Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk became the U.S. Army's go-to helicopter for delivering troops to and from the battlefront in 1979 after years of development.

01:00 1h

Air Warriors

S11 · E10 · AH-1 Cobra True

AH-1 Cobra

Narrators Beau Weaver and Bob Naughton explain how the need for a helicopter that could defend itself led to the creation of the AH-1 Cobra.

02:00 1h

Air Warriors

S2 · E2 · Prowler/ Growler True

Prowler/ Growler

The Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler and its newer counterpart, the EA-18G Growler, have the ability to fly alongside fighter planes and jam enemy radars.

03:00 1h

Air Warriors

S4 · E2 · B-52 True

B-52

Boeing's hulking B-52 has been the bomber of choice for the U.S. Air Force since the mid-1950s because of its outstanding range and payload capability.

04:00 1h

Air Warriors

S3 · E2 · Chinook True

Chinook

The Chinook CH-47 has been the Army's favorite helicopter for heavy cargo hauling since the Vietnam War, and continual design improvements have kept it so.

05:00 1h

Air Warriors

S11 · E6 · B-1 Lancer True

B-1 Lancer

Narrators Beau Weaver and Bob Naughton talk about how the Cold War bomber B-1 Lancer evolved into one of America's most effective military aircrafts.

Morning

06:00 1h

Air Warriors

S9 · E2 · Top Ten Cold War True

Top Ten Cold War

In the Cold War battle between the U.S. and Soviet Union, some of the world's most formidable weapons were used, such as power lifters and nuclear bombers.

07:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E51 · Iowa Travel

Iowa

An aerial tour of John Wayne's home state reveals farmhouses, barns, towering silos, rows of crops for miles and a county known for its covered bridges.

08:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E32 · Montana Travel

Montana

The fertile prairies and rugged mountains of the Treasure State are home to the fastest land mammals in North America, and it has seen many historic events.

09:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E34 · Minnesota Travel

Minnesota

Along with its fabled "10,000 Lakes," the North Star State contains the headwaters of North America's longest river and its largest shopping mall.

10:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E29 · Oklahoma Travel

Oklahoma

An aerial tour of the former Indian Territory includes views of the homes of Will Rogers, Brad Pitt and Geronimo, buffalo herds and Native American settlements.

11:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E33 · Ohio Travel

Ohio

The Buckeye State has served as a haven for Revolutionary War veterans and runaway slaves and the home of a bicycle shop that gave birth to something bigger.

Daytime

12:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E49 · Illinois Travel

Illinois

An aerial tour of the state in which Abraham Lincoln became a man includes the stories of the 1871 Great Fire of Chicago and the 20th-century Great Migration.

13:00 1h

Aerial America

S1 · E14 · Washington Travel

Washington

The Evergreen State has a rugged, rainy west coast and a dry, flat eastern sector, and it has high-tech firms as well as North America's oldest history.

14:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S14 · E10 · Death in the Arctic Documentary

Death in the Arctic

A Boeing 737 crashes while approaching the runway in bad weather at a remote Inuit village in the Northwest Territories, and three people survive.

15:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S6 · E3 · Science of Disaster: Who's Flying the Plane? True

Science of Disaster: Who's Flying the Plane?

The interface between the flight crew and the airplane's onboard avionics can go wrong in a variety of ways, including instrument failure and pilot error.

16:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Death from Above True

Death from Above

A community experiences terror after witnessing a horrifying mid-air tragedy and flaming debris rains down on them.

17:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S16 · E10 · Afghan Nightmare Documentary

Afghan Nightmare

On April 29, 2013, National Airlines Flight 102 crashed just moments after taking off from Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, killing all seven people on board.

Evening

18:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S14 · E9 · No Clear Options Documentary

No Clear Options

In Ireland in 2011, a commuter airplane flying from Belfast to Cork makes two failed attempts to land in dense fog at Cork and crashes on its third try.

19:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

Pitch Problems True

Pitch Problems

Investigators when they learn Alaska Airline Flight 261, American Eagle Flight 4184 and United Airlines Flight 585 went down due to pitch problems.

20:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S22 · E10 · Loss of a Legend Documentary

Loss of a Legend

When basketball legend Kobe Bryant is killed in a helicopter crash in Los Angeles, investigators look for clues amid a global outpouring of grief.

21:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S25 · E8 · Firebomber Down Documentary

Firebomber Down

Experts analyze and discuss a massive C-130 firebomber that crashes dramatically while battling an epic devastating Australian wildfire.

22:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S7 · E8 · Frozen in Flight True

Frozen in Flight

As an ATR 72 flew a holding pattern over Chicago in freezing rain, ice that had built up on its wings prevented its controls from working, causing a crash.

23:00 1h

Mayday: Air Disaster

S13 · E5 · Queens Catastrophe Documentary

Queens Catastrophe

In November 2001, an Airbus A300 falls into a New York City neighborhood, and the FBI and the NTSB must determine whether the crash was caused by terrorists.