Another story. I can date it exactly, it was Sunday 31 October 1999. End of the schools half-term holiday, and thus end of the summer season. Among other things it was the very last day of operation of the Caledonian (and thus BA group overall) Tristar. We (as the Ms W of the era was a teacher, one of the downsides of which was although kidless you have to take the same holidays as The Brats) had gone to Portugal for a week, and were also returning from Faro to Gatwick that afternoon, on a Sabre 737-800. Departures at Faro was packed, kids everywhere. Out on the ramp, there is a Caledonian Tristar, alas AOG, with a couple of engineers around. On the board it had been a lunchtime departure; when we entered it was "await information", and when we departed, spot on time, still the same. Likewise when we got to Gatwick it was still on the board there as well, just up as "Delayed".
Next morning, back to work at the office. After lunch, in comes the Chairman, looking fatigued. "Boy, what an ending to our week in Portugal. Plane broke down at the airport, took them 12 hours to fix it, parts had to come over from Gatwick. Sat there in departures all along with the kids, it was terrible ...".
Thank God we never bumped into them !! I never said a word.
I often wondered if the handling agent had run down their Tristar consumables, as these were probably their last regular flights of the type. And did the certificate of the aircraft run out on 31 October ? It was well into the early hours of 1 November when they rolled in.