It's 1958, 54 people are flying over the Atlantic from Paris to Los Angeles. Most are families, the others are business men. The flight had been uneventful for the first 90 mins when the general low chat is broken by a judder, but it's not
turbulence. Over the Tannoy system the Captain begins speaking. 'Ladies and gentlemen the vibrations you may have just felt were due to the No.3 engine having problems, because of this we will be around 20 mins late landing. We are
sorry for any inconvenience'. A couple of the business men rub under their eyes and frown, but generally most people seem unbothered. Drinks and food are served, everyone forgets about the extra 20 minutes and the general hum of
chatter returns.
Another judder, 2h 35 into the flight. The Captain, again, comes over the radio. 'Ladies and gentlemen, it appears that engine No.1 has stopped working. This is not a problem but it does mean that we will now be around 45 minutes late
touching down in L.A'. A few people start realizing they will miss trains and more of the businessmen start frowning, but they understand there is nothing they can do. Most ask for a beer or a gin and tonic.
4h 21mins since the flight left Paris and they hit a weather front. Strong winds batter the plane, mostly sideways. Lightening and heavy rain become a problem. 20 minutes pass, a big shudder and a slight lose of engine note alerts most of
the adults. Concerned looks are exchanged between passengers. About a minute later the Captain states, 'We are sorry Ladies and gentlemen but due to to the adverse weather conditions we are having problems with engine No.4. There
is know need to be worried but we will be, at least, 2hrs late arriving at L.A. We are very sorry for any problems that may arise because of this'.
All of the businessmen are now pretty annoyed and the delay affects everyone. Then one of the children turns to his mother and says, 'Hopefully the last engine won't stop or otherwise we'll be up here all day!'.