This fall, Smithsonian Channel delves deep into the guts and bolts of the world’s most innovative, multi-million dollar machines to spotlight the everyday hardhat heroes who oversee their operations in the new original series, Impossible Repairs (6×60’). Hosted by filmmaker, adventurer, and survivalist Mike Davidson, this six-part series spans the globe to give audiences exclusive access into the heart of the machines that shape our economy and way of life. Along the way, audiences will be introduced to an elite team of mechanics, engineers and technicians who oversee the inner workings of these mechanical monsters on land, at sea and in the sky. Smithsonian Channel’s Impossible Repairs will debut day-and-date in Canada and the U.S. on Sunday, September 19 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. Smithsonian Channel in Canada is also available on Amazon Prime Video and Apple TV+ with Impossible Repairs airing simultaneously on this platform on September 19th at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
Impossible Repairs transports audiences on an adrenaline-fueled journey across the globe with host Mike Davidson at the helm. The cameras follow Mike as he embeds with crews and goes on various adventures, including travelling 260 feet below the streets of Toronto, Canada for a never-before-seen look at its new multi-million-dollar water waste treatment plant; swimming in shark-infested Caribbean waters for a closer look at SeaStation fish pens; and flying a gargantuan Air Crane helicopter to help harvest timber from the hard-to-reach forests of British Columbia, Canada’s Vancouver Island. In each episode, audiences will discover the engineering secrets and problem-solving tactics used to ensure these essential machines run safely and on schedule.
Impossible Repairs Episode Descriptions:
Episode 1 – “Heli-Logging”
September 19 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson climbs aboard the Erickson S-64 Air Crane helicopter—one of the biggest, most durable, and versatile helicopters in the world. This workhorse of the sky — named Lucille — takes Mike 160 miles north of Seattle, Washington to harvest timber from one of the world’s most rugged and hard-to-reach forests in the heart of British Columbia’s Vancouver Island. The mission is to pull millions of pounds of timber out of the woods and onto logging trucks arriving in just five days. Alongside the helicopter’s specialized crew, Mike gains unprecedented access to this incredible heli-logging operation.
Episode 2 – “The Potash Express”
September 26 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson rides through Lithuania on heavy-hauling trains packed to the brim with multi-million dollar loads of potash fertilizer. The export of fertilizer is a major driver of Lithuania’s economy and employs thousands of people, so keeping the constant flow of potash moving on the rails is vital. Mike’s train is headed for the port in Klaipeda, where nearly 300 million dollars’ worth of potash comes every month. Mike is integrated with the train crews as he rides locomotives with LTG Cargo, Lithuania’s national rail service. Across Lithuania, Mike explores track repairs and deals with unexpected problems along the way, as crews try to keep Klaipeda’s crucial supply lines moving.
Episode 3 – “Euro Train Heroes”
October 3 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson is riding the rails on a mission to haul hefty cargo across Switzerland to the Netherlands. It’s a freight run going through four countries, and the Alps, with critical repairs and tight timelines challenging the crews at every turn. The machine at the center of it all is the Siemens Vectron Electric Locomotive. SBB Cargo International’s mission is to get this cargo to Rotterdam safely, on-schedule and without incident on a route that can throw challenges at every turn. Mike embeds himself with the locomotive drivers, maintenance crews and engineers who make it all possible.
Episode 4 – “Panama Canal Railway”
October 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson heads to the jungles of Panama to ride the 24/7 Panama Canal Railway that crosses from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean. Starting on the Pacific side, Mike follows the action of cargo being loaded for a big-time delivery, but when trouble starts with one of the engines, they must find a solution… and fast! Mike heads over to the Panama Canal Railway’s maintenance depot where a replacement loco is put into position so they can get the millions of dollars in cargo on the move. In this heart-pounding episode, Mike gets an insider’s perspective into the Panama Canal Railway’s operations; from jungle clearing to engine repairs, and a cargo operation that just never stops, it’s an action-packed adventure from coast to coast.
Episode 5 – “Deep Sea Fish Delivery”
October 17 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson ventures into the vastness of both the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, to see what it takes to keep the world’s largest open ocean fish farm operating. Where traditional aquaculture farms would be ripped to shreds in a matter of days, cutting-edge technology, tough machines, and tireless crews keep the systems running; they can’t let their guard down against the elements, or the ocean will tear the operation apart. We follow Mike as he is pummeled by ocean currents under the watchful eye of sharks hoping to get a taste of errant cobia in the fish farms. Mike is there to immerse himself in the action as a major fish transfer gets underway, just as a huge storm threatens to shut it all down.
Episode 6 – “Big City Tunnel Boring”
October 24 at 8 p.m. ET/PT
Mike Davidson is going under one of the biggest freshwater lakes in the world, Lake Ontario, as a multi-million-dollar tunnel boring project gets underway in Toronto, Canada. Officially known as the Ashbridges Bay Treatment Plant Outfall, this incredible undertaking involves the design and construction of a tunnel running deep under Lake Ontario that will transport treated water and disperse it back into the lake two miles offshore. Mike will travel more than 260 feet below the Earth’s surface to witness the mammoth tunnel boring machine, cutting through rock beneath the lakebed to make a passageway that is approximately three times the length of the Golden Gate Bridge.
