Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III, is certified as a glider pilot,

[2Design]

The pilot of this one, Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III, is certified as a glider pilot, according to Federal Aviation Administration records.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/16/nyregion/16pilot.html?hp

Incredible, to have a guy who is certified as a glider pilot doing the ditching - just absolutely great - highlight of his career as far as skill to do this so greatly

[babylonsister]

1. What blew my mind: some passengers said

this plane hitting the water was like going over speed bumps. :wow:

This guy is good!

[2Design]

3. Exactly - he landed this as soft as one could in water

at probably a high rate of speed - this was beyond magnificent - of course without all the ferry and rescue boats it would not have made a difference but to land without breaking apart and people had time to get out and off the plane - that is so amazing - I have cried - with the absolute amazement of the how so many lives were saved by the incredible abilities of these guys

[Elidor]

11. Stall speed of the A320 is 113 knots

Or approximately 130 mph, if I did the math right.

[SharonAnn]

20. So many lives saved by these incredible UNION employees.

[MADem]

2. He's not just certified, he's a certified gliding INSTRUCTOR

He doesn't just do it, he teaches it. Talk about luck.

He's also highly experienced--almost three decades in the cockpit.

[2Design]

4. he really knew his stuff and understood aerodynamics very

well and was in the right place at the right time to help save all these people - and instructor that is amazing

[dysfunctional press]

5. he can retire and go on the lecture circuit for awhile...

maybe even pump out a book or two.

[veritasvg]

9. Yeah...

...and even THAT isn't all. The phone number on his resume is Dublin/San Ramon, which is about ten minutes from me. I'm taking lessons for my Private over at Livermore and my present instructor is also a glider owner and a glider pilot. Aviation is a small community and I just have a feeling that not only does my instructor know this guy but possibly knows him well.

What's happened here was an application of glider landing techniques. Most CFIs will teach their students to use flaps by rote, ten degrees to start then twenty then thirty whether you need them or not. Mine doesn't and would prefer that I learn better speed control on the downwind than by leaning on the flaps as a crutch. I bitched about it initially but I'm sure not complaining anymore.

My brother almost has his Instrument rating and thinks this is nuts but from some of the reports I've heard about this guy's technique and control, I'm ready to learn gliders after I get my Private just because I know it would make me safer.

I'm sure he's one hell of a pilot.

[colorado thinker]

16. Three decades?

Well, he's obviously too old to be a pilot. He needs to retire and make room for someone else! What is he thinking? :sarcasm:

Remind me to fly U.S. Air next time . . . experience counts.


(And yes, I'm old and no, I'm not particularly bitter)

[MADem]

17. He's got 29 years in the cockpit. I'd feel comfortable with him up front, myself!

I'll bet his crew learned a few things, too.

[veritasvg]

18. I'm Currently Training For My Private...

...and my instructor is a 71 year old retired physicist.

Experience matters. It matters a lot.

[brentspeak]

22. Experience is vital, of course. But there have been times it's been overrated...

Captain Jacob Veldhuyzen van Zanten, KLM Royal Dutch Airline's star pilot and flight instructor. "Mr. KLM", as he was known, was the one most responsible for http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenerife_disaster">aviation's worst disaster ever.

[MADem]

23. That crash changed a lot of "sloppy procedure" and communications issues.

The Hudson River guy was likely still flying F-4s for the USAF when that mess occurred.

[Occam Bandage]

6. What he accomplished is awe-inspiring. He does his profession proud. nt

[tabatha]

7. Here is his wife.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uo2ubK32C3k&feature=channel_page

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

8. So was Captain Robert Pearson of Air Canada

who deadsticked a 767 onto an abandoned airfield some years ago. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gimli_Glider

A useful skill, I'd say.

[drm604]

15. Here's a great article on that incident.

The Gimli Glider

[Muttocracy]

10. he also runs a safety consulting company or something - perfect skills for the situation! nt

[MasonJar]

12. We are talking about some lucky passengers, having a pilot like that

in charge. WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! He and the co=pilot were the last off the plane after sweeping the entire length of the plane twice to be sure no one was still on board. And this is a plane filling with water according to one survivor on Rachel Maddow.

[MasonJar]

13. We are talking about some lucky passengers, having a pilot like that

in charge. WOW!!!!!!!!!!!! He and the co=pilot were the last off the plane after sweeping the entire length of the plane twice to be sure no one was still on board. And this is a plane filling with water according to one survivor on Rachel Maddow.

[cloudbase]

14. L/D on an A320

isn't too good. He did a great job, though.


Edit: Real pilots fly gliders. Those engines are only there to keep the pilots cool. Don't believe me? Watch those guys start sweating when the engine stops.

[veritasvg]

19. (snicker)

Roger that, my friend.

[Historic NY]

21. Imagine the pucker factor of the Azores flight Aug. 24, 2001

http://natgeochannel.co.uk/programmes/air-crash-investigation/azores-2001

The plane ran out of fuel in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

http://www.iasa.com.au/folders/images/airtransat/Fuelloss2.html