Word: runways
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...protectorate since 1887, the islands had always governed themselves, and the British had never even sent an administrator to their capital at Male. Britain's only responsibilities, in fact, were the conduct of Maldivian foreign affairs (nonexistent) and defense (unnecessary). Its only interest was the R.A.F. runway on the island of Gan, which it will retain as a steppingstone to Southeast Asia...
Captain Joseph P. Smith of the U.S. 38th Tactical Reconnaissance Squadron gunned his RF-101 Voodoo jet down the base runway at Ramstein, West Germany. His destination, according to a flight plan filed half an hour earlier with French air control, was France's Rhône Valley. His announced purpose: training for NATO defense. At 4:54 p.m., as he was making his second pass at 2,000 ft. over the Rhône town of Pierrelatte, Captain Smith was greeted wingtip to wingtip by an old French Vautour interceptor. He made two more passes over Pierrelatte...
...ground, hundreds had seen the explosion and fire that shook the plane as it climbed off the runway. Rancher Deloss Wilder, who had put his newlywed daughter and son-in-law aboard for a Hawaiian honeymoon, watched the takeoff in horror. "Fire broke out," he said. "Things started falling off-the engine, the wing tip. The plane was still on fire when it disappeared through the pass. I thought it had gone down. It was a terrible thing. The wing just kept getting shorter." Miraculously, neither the engine nor the wing section struck anyone on the ground. The engine landed...
Resisting the temptation to turn immediately back to San Francisco International, Kimes decided to head instead for Travis Air Force Base, some 40 miles to the southwest, which had a longer runway (11,000 ft. v. 9,700 ft. at San Francisco International). As gently as possible, he put the plane into a right turn and headed inland over Golden Gate Bridge. For the first time since takeoff ("I waited until I was fairly sure we could stay in the air"), Kimes spoke to his passengers over the plane's intercom system. Said he: "We have a minor problem...
...final approach, Kimes saw a whirlwind at the end of the runway, right in his glide path and carrying enough turbulence to threaten the crippled jet. With a final burst of power he maneuvered around it, got back on course, and landed smoothly. As the plane rolled to a stop, gasoline seeping from cracks under the right wing, the passengers burst into applause, then scrambled out through emergency escape chutes. Twenty-five minutes had elapsed since takeoff...