My father was F/I in the WWII WASP program, and told of a Texan (Harvard) that went astray. A WASP graduate was tasked to fly a ship from Texas back to NAA Inglewood CA (now KLAX) for a refit. She ended up in Mexico, out of petrol, and out of daylight. Set it down on the Sonoran desert gear up. She was sent back to navigation school.
Anyway Dad and a work crew took a spare prop and some hoist gear along, and recovered the ship. There was plenty of dry lake bed to fly it out.