[Andy]

Any landing you walk away from is a good one. Check out this animation showing the Hudson River landing:

 

[uknessie]

still a miracle........

 

[dsjr70]

Out of curiousity does anyone know the airspeed when it hit the water?

 

[Steve471]

That just blows me away calm, cool, and collected right up to impact.

 

[Clubford00]

I thought i heard it was just above stall which for that aircraft is about 110-115Knotts.
So im guessing he wanted to be moving as slowly as possible when he hit so therefore just under stall.

 

[Andy]

Like everyone else, when I realize that the animation is something that really happened, it just blows me away. Yes, calm heads did prevail.

I was watching CNBC when it happened and it was surreal seeing a commercial jetliner floating on the Hudson and seeing people calmly exiting the plane and standing on the wings over frigid water. Just the fact that not a single mortality took place, NOT ONE, is nothing short of miraculous. Just think what was going through the minds of those near the Hudson River as well as the Broadcasters narrating this "almost" tragedy. After all, the last time a commercial airline got this close to New York City, the results not only were tragic, they changed the the USA forever.

There's a lesson to be learned here and it can be compared to riding. When something unexpected happens, keep your cool and if possible, focus on your surroundings and prepare without hesitation. Know your limitations, but have the ability to execute maneuvers under the worst of conditions.

While Captain Sully will be the first to tell you how much experience was necessary to pull this off, it's the same for bikes. That's why I'm an advocate for the Motorcycle Safety Foundation's Riding Classes. They teach you skills you hope you will never need to use and encourage you to practice them. And if you're ever faced with having to make an immediate decision, you will have the experience to pull it off, even if it entails the most difficult evasive, aggressive or braking maneuvers. Again, calm heads will prevail.

 

[Clubford00]

When i was taking my flying lessons one thing that was part of the training was this:
I was flying what we call "the bag" meaning you are flying with actually a hood on so all you can see is the instruments. After take off i put the bag on and proceded (with the instructor) to fly to 3500 ft and after about 25 min of IFR flying my instructor reached over and shut the plane off and told me to emediately take the bag off and land right now! In a matter of a few seconds i had to locate where i was and either find an airport or suitable alternative. Wow talk about an eye opener. Luckily i passed the test. After relaying my intentions and after dropping to about 1100ft, i was instructed to restart and fly off. Phew!
whether you are in an airplane, a racecar, or a motorcycle, not only should you practice the easy stuff, you need to practice the unexpected as well. This pilot was amazing in his calmness and knowledge of his abilities and his aircraft. Athough i have my bike license and have ridden for many years, i will be taking a refresher course when i get my new ride.
As in all things practice practice practice.

 

[Steve471]

One thing I learned from my time in the Navy was exactly that clubford, nothing beats repetition of a task in a stress free environment to aid in the ability to carry out the same task in the heat of the moment. We used to do fire drills on the airplane til you were sick of them and sometimes with blackout goggles on to simulate nighttime or smoke out conditions. Then one day it was no longer a drill but a real fire and everyone executed their jobs to perfection without hesitation or nerves it just became second nature. Our pilots practiced ditch drills, crash landings, loss of engine, loss of power, bailouts, this tarining along with the men and women that carry out their daily duties is what makes our military the best in the world.

 

[Andy]

The glide ratio of an Airbus is about 17:1 and the turns required and downwind landing would require pitch adjustments to keep a safe speed, resulting in an unusual deck angle and viewpoint for the pilot to judge touchdown.

That's an interesting perspective about the unusual deck angle required for this type of landing. Not being a pilot myself, just the thought of the pilots not being able to see the water had to test every skill of both the Pilot and the Co-Pilot. The animation in the video in sync with the tower shows us how quickly the decisions were made. It appears there was a zero margin of error. The images of the passengers standing on the wing on frigid waters still amazes me that everyone survived this landing.

There is no substitute for experience and strong judgmental skills.

This past week I was on two commercial airliners and for the first time in recent memory, I watched with interest as the Pilots and Crew boarded one of the flights that originated in Ft. Lauderdale. Seeing a seasoned, older Pilot was assuring. Prior to the Hudson River Landing, I may have preferred a younger Pilot with quick reaction times over a Pilot who is getting up there in years.

To compare this to riding motorcycles, the next time you're riding around and see a "youngster" on a sports bike or an older rider with many years of riding experience on a tour bike, just think about which one you'd rather have riding behind you.

To take this thought in a slightly different direction, I think it would be nice if the MSF provided stickers or decals to those that successfully passed the Experienced Rider Course. This way, when riding with a group, you'll be able to see at a glance, which riders have taken one day to attend the class and practice their riding skills. While I can't speak for others, when I'm riding in a group, I find myself keeping an eye on the mirror to make sure the rider behind me is keeping a safe distance so that if a quick stop is required, he/she will have the proper buffer zone between us.

 

[Clubford00]

That is true flint what he did was shove the throttle in and said now land as if you were dead stick.