PROFESSIONAL musicians feared cancelled flights could have put their careers in jeopardy.
Emma and Matthew Denton had been building up to a major performance in the USA for more than a year but came close to missing it after two flights were grounded due to safety fears.
The couple form half of the Carducci Quartet. Mum-of-two Emma, who went to school at Newent and Wycliffe College in Stonehouse, now lives in Cam and they often teach at Dean Close School in Cheltenham.
The quartet's popularity means they jet all over the globe – Matthew with his violin in an overhead locker, and Emma with her £180,000 cello, which she doesn't own outright and is not insured when it's not in her immediate possession, in an extra seat she pays for.
"Our partners in the quartet have flown with British Airways (BA) before and never had a problem and we went for them as the flight was at the right time," she said. "But it was a nightmare from start to finish."
They were due to leave London Heathrow on Friday, May 3 on a flight to Washington Dulles airport to make their debut at the Kennedy Centre at 2pm on Saturday, May 4.
A wing problem grounded the first flight and they were forced to wait until the next day because of a technical problem with the second flight. They were eventually booked on a United Airlines flight to Washington which would get them to the concert in the nick of time.
"The debut that we had been building up to all year seemed to be slipping away," she said. "We were realising that, even if we got there, we would be in no fit state to perform."
They changed into their concert gear on board and missed their rehearsal.
"Walking out on stage for the concert in front of a full house, we had mixed emotions," said Emma.
"Rather than feeling exhilarated and soaking up the amazing atmosphere, we were both overcome by the realisation of how close we had come to missing the concert and how catastrophic it would have been to our careers."
A BA spokesman apologised to the couple and said they're entitled to 600 euro each in compensation. She said: "We're sorry that the couple had such a worrying time."
