A US Airways A320 airliner carrying over 100 passengers has made a water landing shortly after takeoff from La Guardia airport.
According to press reports, flight 1549 from La Guardia to Charlotte suffered birdstrikes to both engines shortly after takeoff, forcing the pilots to ditch the aircraft in the Hudson River. At the time of writing, no casualties are being reported, with passengers being rescued from the aircraft’s wings by boat.
More information can be obtained from CNN, BBC News, or your preferred news agency.
If you ever needed proof that listening to the pre-flight safety announcements was more important than reading your newspaper or listening to your MP3 player…?
UPDATE (admin): Google Map of the fligth path: CLICK, Â it’s flight data: CLICK
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ALL SURVIVED! The crew did an AWESOME job. Shows quality of plane too!
What heroes the crew are! Must also be the first bunch of jet passengers ever to board at an airport and disembark at a quay. Anyone remember to tether the airbus?
The pilot has almost 40 years flight experience. As the plane was filling with waterhe made 2 sweeps of the cabin to make sure everyome was out.
So next time the airlines complain that they need to get rid of those older “overpaid” pilots and hire younger less experienced pilots because they are cheaper…
I live in NY and work in downtown Manhattan. In this century, I’ve wittnessed two epic events in 9/11, and now this event. One tragic, the other breathtaking, and each has shown us the courage and strength of the people of this great city, and the people of this great country.
Thank you, Mr. Sulllenberger, for giving us a reprieve from the current blithe of the world, and for saving both yourself and the lives of all those people.
Boeing needs to take note of the sturdiness of Airbus aircraft. Never have I seen so many incidents where people’s lives were saved because of a superior design, say what you will about the pilot. All other jets I can think of in this class would have broken up on impact with the water but here many casualties were averted. Airbus has proven a safety record that was once thought impossible. I can think off hand KLAX and now the Hudson river. I have a new found respect for Airbus and I hope they further advance their safety platform (the A320 is proving to be an outstanding design)…
Unless one is an aeronautical engineer and is privy to the structural drawings, it’s speculation at best whether the Airbus’ design is superior to Boeing’s design. In addition, one would have to work or actively be a participant in aviation accident investigation reports to make a fair determination of any aircraft’s suitability to perform under extreme conditions.
One or two examples don’t indicate a definitive trend and it’s wild speculation at best to move any aircraft into top position based upon a few news-worthy events.
The captain is to be commended on his bravery in ensuring that everyone was safely out of the aircraft before he departed.
I read this morning that even the president called him to thank him for saving the passengers.
Even though the Captain did a GREAT job by reports I feel we must include the entire flight crew in doing a GREAT job because without teamwork nothing could have happened the way it did. This should also include the entire boat fleet in the Hudson river and all the emergency workers. For a lot of us living in the USA this has been a great esteem booster considering all the crapola going on in the economy and those crooks in the industry looking for a handout and lets not forget the biggest crook that Bernie Madhoff Ponzi that belongs in jail and not on house arrest. For weeks this is all the news we heard. FINALLY some GOOD NEWS in the media.