Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land (1983)

On the maiden flight of the first hypersonic commercial plane which can make the flight from New York City to London in four hours, a minor disaster occurs resulting in the plane actually ... See full summary »

Director:

Jerry Jameson

Writers:

Robert Malcolm Young (screenplay by), Peter R. Brooke (story by)

Stars:

Lee Majors, Hal Linden, Lauren Hutton

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Lee Majors	...	Captain Cody Briggs
Hal Linden	...	Josh Gilliam
Lauren Hutton	...	Erica Hansen
Ray Milland	...	Q. T. Thornwell
Gail Strickland	...	Nancy Gilliam
George DiCenzo	...	Bowdish (as George Di Cenzo)
Tess Harper	...	Janet Briggs
Terry Kiser	...	Freddie Barrett
Heather McAdam	...	Laurie Hansen (as Heather Mc Adam)
Michael Sacks	...	Pete
Gary Bayer	...	Martin
Pat Corley	...	Joe Pedowski
Robert Webber	...	Felix
Jocelyn Brando	...	Mrs. Harvey
Diane Stilwell	...	Betty

Storyline

On the maiden flight of the first hypersonic commercial plane which can make the flight from New York City to London in four hours, a minor disaster occurs resulting in the plane actually leaving the Earth's atmosphere and orbiting around the globe. A lack of heat-resistant tiling prevents the plane from simply re-entering the atmosphere. With oxygen (and therefore time) running out, the crew of the plane and the crew on the ground must figure out a way to return the plane and its passengers to safety.

---

Plot Keywords:

passenger | oxygen | orbit | nasa | disaster | 

---

Taglines:

The first hypersonic flight turns into a terrifying nightmare...in space. [Australia Theatrical]

---

Genres:

Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Although it is not affiliated with Universal's highly successful Airport franchise, this film is sometimes referred to as Airport 1985.

---

Goofs

The casket Josh is using is described as being hermetically sealed, yet while he is getting situated, the casket is plainly a non-sealing gasket, which is evidenced by the lack of a gasket between the body and the lid. In addition, when he is shining his flashlight around the interior, he is not shining his light at the space between the lid and the body, yet Cody reports there are no light leaks.

---

Quotes

Laura: Honeymooning in Australia - And I've never even been to the San Diego zoo!

User Reviews

MST3K-caliber awful

In fact I think this was a KTMA episode. But one scene that stands out in my mind indelibly is the one where Hal Linden's character is spirited off Starflight by sticking him in the coffin that was transporting the Australian ambassador to the US back home for burial or some such, and the body is stiff as a board (or a mannequin) after being removed from the casket and floats around the cargo hold wearing the pointiest shoes I've ever seen . Somehow I don't think a casket is airtight enough to survive the rigors of spaceflight!

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 February 1983 (USA)

Also Known As:

Starflight One

Filming Locations:

Laird International Studio - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orgolini-Nelson Productions, Orion Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

115 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1