40 Years Ago Today; American Airlines Flight 191

[DFW]

19. I remember it well, too

I had friends visiting from Germany, and they were terrified that their return flight would be on a DC-10 (it wasn't).

I've had some "saved by fate" experiences like some of the others recounted here. Once, I blew off a trip to Brussels to accompany my wife and daughters (then aged 13 and 11) and two of their friends to an amusement park in Holland because it was a German holiday, and my wife felt swamped having agreed to take care of all four girls that day. At the time my flight would have returned me to the Düsseldorf airport, a careless repair crew set off a fire that spread deadly dioxin gas right through the terminal, right where I would have been, and at just the same time. Seventeen dead, dozens injured, and the airport terminal so contaminated, the whole thing had o be torn down.

Because I agreed to take an unscheduled day off from work and help my wife out, I was rewarded with escaping injury or death. Who said there's no karma payback?