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What is the Netflix movie 'Society of the Snow' based on? Uncovering the true events of this rousing tale
Directed by J.A. Bayona, 'Society of the Snow', a film based on true events is currently streaming on Netflix.
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The Uruguayan rugby team's 1972 plane crash inspired the new Netflix film Society of the Snow
Netflix has begun streaming for The Society of the Snow for streaming. The thriller, directed by Spanish film director J. A. Bayona, recounts the incredible survival story following a plane crash in the Andes Mountains.
The same-titled book by Pablo Vierci, a journalist from Uruguay, served as the basis for the film. Along with one of the survivors, Dr. Roberto Canessa, he co-wrote the book "I Had to Survive: How a Plane Crash in the Andes Inspired My Calling to Save Lives" about the tragedy. This is the actual account of what happened!
Is the Society of the Snow based on true events?
Yes, the true events surrounding the 1972 disaster of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, which was en route from Montevideo, Uruguay, to Santiago, Chile, in the Andes mountains, served as the inspiration for the Netflix film Society of the Snow.
Just 32 people survived, most of them were friends and relatives of the Old Christians Club amateur rugby team, and they had to take drastic steps to keep alive. They were eventually rescued after being stranded for 72 days, but only 16 individuals made it out of the hazardous circumstances—which included freezing temperatures, avalanches, and malnutrition.
How did the plane crash?
The aircraft of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 crashed because it was unable to ascend to a height of 26,000 feet in order to pass over the Andes Mountain range. To navigate over a mountain pass at a lower altitude, the pilots decided to take a U-shaped route.
The pilots descended too soon, heading directly into the Andes and finally colliding with the mountain, even though they had received clearance from air traffic control.
Twelve of the 45 passengers on board perished in the crash right away. There were 27 people who were still living after five more people died on the first night and one more woman died about a week later. To keep snow from getting inside the enclosure, the survivors constructed a wall made of suitcases over the mouth of the fuselage, transforming it into a shelter.
A few travelers experimented with consuming leather from ripped baggage parts. They chose to do the unimaginable and eat the meat off the dead bodies when their hunger could no longer be quenched.
After the crash, things started to become worse after ten days. The word that the search had been canceled and that they were all believed to be dead reached the survivors when they were able to retrieve a little transistor radio from the aircraft.
On October 29, two avalanches slammed the fuselage in quick succession, burying it in snow and killing eight more people, sealing the survivors within for three days.
The passengers made the decision to look for assistance after emerging from under the snow. The next few weeks were devoted to exercising, awaiting better weather, and making the essential gear, such a sleeping bag made out of sewn-together pillows.
Thirteen of the passengers remained inside the fuselage while Canessa and two other people exited on the sixty-first day. The pilot informed the survivors that they were in the western Andes, close to Chile, before he passed away. The three men therefore believed they could climb the mountain and reach civilization.
Rescue
Following a terrifying ten days of journey, the men came upon a campsite across a river and managed to catch the eye of Sergio Catalan. Catalan informed authorities the following day that people still needed to be rescued.
Due to inclement weather, only six of the fourteen passengers could be airlifted from the crash site when the military arrived on December 22. The following day, the remaining ones were rescued.
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