[cbmare]

The pilot lives near the SF Bay Area. I'm sure his family, while extremely proud of him and glad he's alive, would love it if the media would leave them alone.

I just think that this event is incredible. Every single solitary person is safe. I'm proud of the ferry pilots for getting there as soon as possible and not waiting for some sort of governmental approval.

The pilot is also a licensed hang glider so I'm sure some of that training came in handy.

When do you think the made for TV movie will be?

[Arthwen1985]

What plane crash are you talking about? (Don't have cable)

[mandalinn82]

A plane lost both engines on takeoff coming out of LaGuardia...they think it was a double bird strike. Anyway, the pilot turned the plane around (WITH NO POWER, BECAUSE HE HAD NO ENGINES) and glided the plane down to a landing in the Hudson River that was so smooth that the plane remained completely intact. No damage to the body of the plane. The passengers were evacuated to the wings of the plane, and quickly picked up by passenger/commuter ferries that cross the Hudson. The worst injury was a broken leg.

The pilot basically had to land EXACTLY perfectly...not a single smidge of wobble room...for this to happen. On water. With no power. Oh, and he had almost no elevation when the engines blew, so he had to do all of this with about 3 minutes warning.

Witnesses said that the landing looked "totally perfect, aside from the splash". Just an amazing feat of airmanship. Not to mention that if he hadn't directed the plane into the river, it would have hit populated areas, possibly in Manhattan or in New Jersey.

[ANOther]

Fantastic. Yaaaaay. Outtasight.

A thought: Other than once changing planes @ JFK on the way back from Europe, I've never been to New York so wouldn't know much about how many skyscrapers there are near midtown Manhattan (which judging from the maps looks to be where the plane touched down); but if somebody was on the 42nd floor of a skyscraper, looked out the window and saw a jet coming down the Hudson at practically their eye level, wouldn't the first thought that pops into their head be OMG, 09.11!?

[mandalinn82]

Um, yes. Multiple interviews with witnesses confirmed that that was the first thought in their heads. But thankfully this was a MUCH better outcome.

[cbmare]

Yes. 9 11. It had to be an incredible feeling being on the water and seeing this big silver bird approaching. That would definitely be a case for speeding up and forget the wake. GET OUT OF THE WAY!

Manda, you did a great job describing it.

Arth, you can read all about it on the web. It's all over the place.

Here's one.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28683246/?GT1=43001

[baileycleo]

You make me laugh! (just cuz I thought the same exact thing on the Movie of the week). I DO agree with you tho, that pilot really pulled it off in a deadly situation!! I'm very happy it went so well!! The people on that river should be very proud of of themselves for acting so quickly!!

[tamaralynn]

I'm sure it'll be on Mayday within the next few months.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mayday_(TV_series)

[Ookpik]

For sure. I love Mayday, it is one of my favorite shows...however, I objected to it being shown where I work (an airport!), where they used to have Discovery Channel on around the clock, nobody but airport management were able to change the channel. Imagine being afraid of flying, and seeing a show about plane crashes minutes before you were to get on a plane!

[cbmare]

I'm one of those intrepid flyers. I don't need to see plane crash movies before I fly.

My mom got upset with me when I went back to visit her. She had a plane disaster movie on the night before I was supposed to fly. I wouldn't watch it. She knew how I felt about flying. My sister set her straight.

George Kennedy used to be in all the plane disaster movies back in the 70s. I made Linc, my now late husband, promise me that he'd walk off the plane with me if we ever boarded one and George was on that same flight.

I've never watched May Day.

[JulieJ08]

Originally Posted by Ookpik

For sure. I love Mayday, it is one of my favorite shows...however, I objected to it being shown where I work (an airport!), where they used to have Discovery Channel on around the clock, nobody but airport management were able to change the channel. Imagine being afraid of flying, and seeing a show about plane crashes minutes before you were to get on a plane!

That is just nuts!

[Ookpik]

Originally Posted by JulieJ08

That is just nuts!

Oh, I agree! Co-workers have spoken to management on behalf of passengers, but now they've finally changed the channel, after many months. I know if I had to face something I was apprehensive (sp?) about, such as surgery, for example, I wouldn't want to watch "When Surgeries Go Wrong!", or something like that, before.