 What would have happened if Charley had not been on the ship?
If I were ten years older, it would have been an honor, being picked for the first long jump in the first starship ever. We got lined up between Earth and Mars, you'll remember, and James pushed the button marked 'Jump'. Two months later your time, one second later by us. There was never anything wrong with the Whale till right at the end and even then I doubt if it was the ship itself that fouled things up. We were able to show them our sun, in their telescopes. "Two, they brew a near-beer that's a lot nearer than the canned stuff we had aboard the Whale .
 The crew would likely have made it home alive
 He would not have been able to correct the navigation error  The crew would have had to find a different way to manipulate chance  The mission would have ended in the same way  The crew would likely have made it home alive