Interestingly, I was discussing this incident with 3 extremely experienced ex-ba 744 captains on Tuesday. All agreed upon the course of action they would have taken - a diversion to New York.
Indeed. The three-engine ferry is a maintenance procedure, to be undertaken only after the failed engine has been inspected and secured by maintenance personnel, performed by an appropriately trained crew, and with NO passengers or non-essential personnel aboard. This, I believe, is the FAA’s view.
Carrying dead engines over twelve hour sectors is a bean-counter’s procedure.