Basil, sorry to be so late to the party. But your
Recollect a Hastings captain remarking to his co-pilot how difficult it was to judge height above a glassy sea just before there was a bang and the two inner props were bent. They survived.
reminded me that I was on that squadron at that time. You might be interested in a bit more of the story.
Because of the wing dihedral, the Hastings' two inner engines were, I think, four inches lower than the outers. So four inches was the margin of error - and indeed the two inners did stop, with bent props.
Now, the Hasty-bird did not go well on two (didn't go all that well on three, come to that). But at the time they were North of Cyprus, not far from Kyrenia, and didn't have the fuel to get round the island to Akrotiri. Anyway, they were based at Nicosia. But the problem was, how to get over the mountains along the panhandle. They managed it.... just.
The captain was required to present himself for a no-coffee interview, which was closely followed by hearty congratulations for getting one of HM's valuable Hasty-birds back more or less in one piece.
airsound