Mar. 29, 1963 - Lightning tore a hole tonight in the nose of a jet airliner bound for New York with 110 passengers, including 22 American Methodist ministers returning from a tour of the Holy Land, but the plane landed safely. Among the passengers were movie actor Warren Beatty (pictured) and MGM president Robert O’Brien. The plane was a Trans World Airlines Boeing 707. After the lightning ripped a 27-by-8-inch hole in the plane’s nose over the west of England, the pilot dumped 10,000 gallons of fuel and landed at London airport. The plane flew on to New York after repairs in London. The accident happened only eight minutes after it left the London airport. Beatty, interviewed at the airport, said, “I saw a flash of light and heard a crash. But the calmness of the captain really did impress me.” Beatty said he had been in London for film talks.
