Hudson River Landing

[wavery]

If you haven't seen this, it's really cool. It is a great animation in real time with the real control room audio. Turn up your speakers....

[Recumbentman]

Thanks for sharing. it is pretty cool

[wavery]

Thanks for sharing. it is pretty cool

I was pretty shocked at how fast it all happened and how long it takes for the control tower to get was is going on, compared to the actual speed that things happen. It gave me a whole new respect for Air Traffic Controllers......and surely Pilots.

The other thing that I never thought about was that the pilot had to put that plane into a steep dive in order to pick up enough speed to achieve a controlled water landing. Just a little less speed and that plane would have hit the water at such a steep (belly flop) angle, that the plane would have come apart upon impact. He had to have enough speed to "get the nose up at the last second and "Skid" across the water........simply amazing.....Most engineers have always held to the belief that such a water landing is impossible on a heavy jet.

[chip]

Not so sure about the Air Traffic Controller...I heard the pilot say three times that he was, "...going into the Hudson."   The ATC was still talking runways.  I don't think he realized the plane was going down until if disappeared off his radar.

Maybe that's what he was supposed to do.  

Pilot gets most of the credit here-he knew where he was going, and made it happen.  The rest of the flight crew, and then the passengers are next for not panicking.

What really strikes me is the calmness of the ATC and the pilot, at least over the radio.  Maybe that's professionalism?

[wavery]

Not so sure about the Air Traffic Controller...I heard the pilot say three times that he was, "...going into the Hudson."   The ATC was still talking runways.  I don't think he realized the plane was going down until if disappeared off his radar.
Maybe that's what he was supposed to do.  

Pilot gets most of the credit here-he knew where he was going, and made it happen.  The rest of the flight crew, and then the passengers are next for not panicking.

What really strikes me is the calmness of the ATC and the pilot, at least over the radio.  Maybe that's professionalism?

This is true but there are 2 things to consider.
1. The pilot never declared, "We're going down". He wasn't very comunucative....didn't have time to be, nor was there any point. Although he did agree, at one point, to go to another airport.

His last words will live in infamy, "We're gonna be in the Hudson".......ya gotta love it..... :p

2. The ATC kept giving him options as he saw them. I think that was critical in the event that one option may have been better than ditching in the water. That is a well known death sentence.

I think the whole thing went down text-book+.

[flyfisherman]

Here's some more info on the co-pilot that just posted on my homepage ~


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29522880/?GT1=43001

[CajunCamper]

Captain Sully was born to be a pilot. They say he's the Tiger Woods of commercial pilots.

CajunCamper

[dthurk]

Captain Sully was born to be a pilot. They say he's the Tiger Woods of commercial pilots.
 
 CajunCamper

He certainly was that day.

[Old Goat]

Captain Sully is also an expert glider pilot and has been flying them for a lot of years. His experience of how to land a powerless aircraft surely came in to play with his perfect dead stick landing on the Hudson. He should be awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross....

[Daddie_Tom]

Next time I fly, I hope Sully and his crew are at the helm!! HEROES!