If the fuel line to the port engine had been severed also, where would they have landed? Victoria Station? The Natural History Museum? Kew Gardens? The Great West Road?
Quite an achievement to have flown the whole BPK SID from 27L, east of LAM and then to Victoria Station - all on no engines
but if the mayday had occured earlier in the flight, would they have come back to LHR???
Yup
Maybe a bit quicker, taken in N London as well.
I genuinely think there is a real lack of appreciation by very many of the political and practical consequences of a plane on approach to LHR crashing on a populated area.
Doubt there is, but if the overflight risk is deemed unacceptable, then LHR closes. And many other airports worldwide as you say. Suspect it won't happen...
Do NB the aircraft that most closely came to taking out serious London population did not know it had a problem. So the crew's decision to overfly is not really the issue...