Originally Posted by
Pilot DAR
In certain very restrictive conditions, yes, one or two engines might be shut down to conserve fuel in cruise flight. I expect that this would only be in an established cruise configuration, at altitude (allowing lots of room for a restart).
Actually, in the P-3 engines were normally shut down on station over the water, not in cruise. With one engine shut down minimum altitudes on station were normal, i.e. 300 feet AGL at night, 200 feet during the day. With two engines shut down the NATOPS minimum altitude was 1000 feet AGL.
A British Airways B-744 famously crossed the Atlantic LAX-LHR with an engine shutdown with pax onboard in 2005. They actually ended up in MAN due to fuel management issues. The FAA was not pleased, however.
In some four-engine (and three-engine) planes an engine out without fire or damage does not require an immediate landing.
I can see where the approach controller would want to know if the B-17 had to land immediately or if it could be sequenced with other traffic. As I noted previously, there may well be some missing transmissions in the LiveATC clips since the feeds were scanning more than one frequency. It does appear that the B-17 was given priority handling with the ARFF crew standing by.