Veteran stunt flyer Paul Mantz was killed during the shooting of the climactic sequence of this ingenious variation on the Hollywood plot about the plane that crashes in the middle of nowhere.

In a high-class acting battle, Richard Attenborough's navigator descended from RAF officer to near-alcoholic, wins the narrowest of points verdicts over James Stewart's stubborn, veteran pilot.

An outrageous piece of casting against character comes off in Dan Duryea's mincing, bespectacled Standish; and Ian Bannen, too, finds plenty to get his teeth into as a Scots engineer with a rasping wit.

A good, entertaining film that packs quite a grip and offers a nail-biting last reel.