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Plane crashes into Hudson River
Updated: 01/16/2009 06:55 AM
By: Web Staff

NEW YORK, N.Y. -- “The pilot said ‘guys you better brace for impact,’” said USAir passenger Jeff Kolodjay.

It was a hard landing in the Hudson for 150 passengers and the crew of five. The plane had taken off from LaGuardia airport at 3:26 in the afternoon, 45 minutes late, on its way to Charlotte, North Carolina. About three minutes later the pilot reportedly radioed air traffic controllers that he'd had a "double bird strike," that the plane had hit a flock of birds, disabling both engines. He said he needed to return to LaGuardia.

“The engine blew. We thought we were going to circle around and maybe land on the other runway at LaGuardia or JFK but we didn't have time and we just went down,” said Kolodjay.

The pilot apparently considered making his emergency landing at nearby Teterboro Airport in New Jersey. But instead he brought the crippled jet down in the Hudson at around 48th Street near the U.S.S. Intrepid. Somehow he managed to keep the plane in one piece and prevent any serious injuries aboard.

Plane crashes into Hudson River
With both engines out, a cool-headed pilot maneuvered his crowded jetliner over New York City and landed it in the Hudson River.
     

“Give all the credit to the flight crew. They made the quick decision, the right decision and they put the aircraft in the water in such a way that there were no injuries or no catastrophic damage to the aircraft,” said Alan Yurman, with the National Transportation Safety Board.

“The pilot did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river and then making sure that every got out. I spoke with the pilot who walked the plane twice to make sure everybody got out,” said New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.

That pilot was identified as Captain Chesley Sullenberger, 58, of Danville, California. He’s a former Air Force fighter pilot with 40 years flying experience and by chance a former safety instructor for pilots.

The passengers and crew who were rescued from the water were taken to New York and New Jersey.

“It was freezing, it was very cold but fortunately we got through it,” said one passenger.