November 24th 2023.
John Travolta had a close call when he was caught up in a mid-air disaster in November 1992 while flying his family from Florida to Maine for the Thanksgiving holidays. All the electrical systems in the Gulfstream II aircraft, including the navigation instruments, cut out during the approach to Washington, D.C.
The actor remembered: "I actually experienced a total electrical failure, not in a Vampire but in a corporate jet over Washington, D.C." With his family on board, he felt he was "going to die". He had no instruments and no electric, but he was thrown a lifeline when he spotted the Washington Monument from the air and was able to find his way visually to a nearby airport.
"As if by a miracle, we descended as per the rules to a lower altitude," he said. "I saw that Washington, D.C. monument and identified that Washington National Airport was right next to it and I made a landing."
Travolta's experience with the inflight disaster resonated with him when he read Frederick Forsyth's 1978 novella The Shepherd, and he decided to bring it to the big screen in a film starring Ben Radcliffe. He played another pilot who is able to guide Radcliffe's character to safety.
"When I read [Forsyth’s] book, it resonated even more because of this experience I had personally had," he explained. "So I’m reading this book saying ‘I’ve lived with this’. And of course, I was young enough then that I could have played this part [of Freddie]. But I had to wait 30 years to play the Shepherd… I preferred myself in the Shepherd. Because I felt like I was the old man that had that experience and could bring someone down safely. So it was much more authentic. I’ve been in various emergencies over the years and it was very easy for me to be that [guide] for someone.”
Thanks to his quick thinking, John Travolta was able to land the plane safely and avoid a potential disaster. He was able to use his own experience to bring the story of The Shepherd to life, and in doing so, was able to help other people in a similar situation.
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