That evening, before he went into the plane for the last time, Parrado drew the three Strauch cousins to one side and told them that if they ran short of food they should eat the bodies of his mother and sister. ‘Of course I’d rather you didn’t,’ he said, ‘but if it’s a matter of survival, then you must.’ The cousins said nothing, but the expression on their faces betrayed how moved they were by what Parrado had said to them.
