Jose Padilla’s play “Take off” explores the causes of the 1977 Los Rodeos disaster, in which two Boeing 747s collided on the runway at Tenerife airport, killing 583 people. The production opens at Nave 10 Matadero in Madrid and asks how accidents happen—and what can be learned from the systems and decisions behind them.
The play’s renewed relevance came into focus after the Urda rail disaster. Actress Carlota Gaviño said the company considered how to approach the performance in the immediate aftermath, but decided not to try to address the victims’ pain directly. Instead, the production keeps a deliberate distance from the tragedy, which Gaviño described as necessary when dealing with such a painful subject.
“Take off” combines documentary research with comedy and elements of a thriller. Four actors—Gaviño, Almudena Puyo, Kevin de la Rosa and Lucía Trentini—play real figures including pilots, passengers, air traffic controllers and journalists. The scenes move between factual accounts and dramatized moments, using irony and humor without depicting the crash in graphic detail.
The disaster began when flights bound for Gran Canaria’s Gando airport were diverted to Tenerife after a bomb exploded in a terminal flower shop. With the airport overwhelmed, technical problems, human decisions and adverse weather contributed to the collision between a KLM aircraft preparing for takeoff and a Pan Am plane taxiing on the runway.
Padilla’s research drew on psychologist James Reason’s 1990 model of accidents in complex systems. The model describes disasters as the result of several safety barriers failing at once, rather than a single mistake or individual responsibility. The play reflects that idea in its chapter structure, with each section representing one layer in the chain of events.
The production also considers changes introduced in civil aviation after Los Rodeos. These included encouraging copilots to challenge captains, wider use of ground radar, improvements to guidance in poor visibility, standardized English communications and the removal of the word “takeoff” from radio exchanges to reduce the risk of misunderstanding.
Padilla and Gaviño argue that examining the systems behind accidents matters more than focusing only on blame after the event. The play connects that question to the pressure for speed and economic efficiency, and asks how society can better care for the complex systems on which everyday life depends.
Sources: El País Cultura.