All seemed well on the flight from to Auckland as it cruised high above the seas off Jakarta on the moonless night of June 24, 1982. But then came the announcement, the nightmare of every airline passenger.'This is your Captain speaking,' said pilot Eric Moody. 'We have a small problem and all four engines have stopped. We are all doing our damnedest to get them working again. I trust you are not in too much distress.'Surely one of the most remarkable examples of a stiff upper lip in British aviation history, it belied the fear and confusion on the flight deck where 42-year-old Captain Moody and his crew had no idea why their engines had failed. All they knew was that their hulking jumbo jet was now effectively a giant glider heading fast towards the ground and that every decision they took would mean the difference between saving all — or at least some — of those on board and disaster.
Load More
Load More