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ED209
Joined: 17 Oct 2006
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 Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2009 3:15 pm Post subject: Airbus crashes in New York river |
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A lucky escape by all.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7832191.stm
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A US airliner on a domestic flight with at least 152 people aboard has crashed into the Hudson River in New York City but with no loss of life.
All 148 passengers and the crew of at least four were rescued from the sinking plane, the US Federal Aviation Administration confirmed.
The US Airways Airbus A320 crashed just after taking off from LaGuardia Airport heading for Charlotte, North Carolina.
Officials believe the plane may have collided with a flock of birds.
"There is no indication that the incident is security-related," a homeland security official told the BBC.
Rescue boats plucked passengers, who could be seen wearing life jackets, from the wings of the plane.
The BBC's Greg Wood, in New York, says that the plane was drifting rapidly down the Hudson as the rescue was carried out.
US Airways said it was confirming passenger and crew names from Flight 1549 and would issue them as soon as possible. It also gave an emergency number for people who believe they may have had relatives on the flight: 1-800-679-8215.
Three minutes
Flight 1549 departed LaGuardia at 1503 local time (2003 GMT), after a delay of 18 minutes, the airline said.
It is believed the plane had been in the air for three minutes after take-off when it crashed, said a spokeswoman for the US Federal Aviation Authority, Laura Brown.
Kevin Johns, a former aircraft engineer in the US military, told the BBC he had seen the plane shortly before it crashed into the water.
"When I saw it so low I thought right away of 9/11," he said.
"I saw the flames and I knew it was in trouble and that's why I called 911 right away to let them know it was in trouble. I thought it was trying to head for Newark or something."
Another, unnamed man who witnessed the crash told the BBC that the crash had seemed like a scene from a film.
"It looked crazy, it looked like a movie, it looked like a movie, it was incredible," he said.
"It made a pretty big splash when it landed on the water."
One passenger from the aircraft told CNN: "A couple of minutes after taking off we heard a loud bang, the plane shook a bit and immediately we could smell smoke and fire."
Bird strike theory
The FAA said eyewitnesses had reported that the plane "may have flown into a flock of birds".
"Right now we don't have any indication this was anything other than an accident," Ms Brown said.
Joe Mazzone, a retired Delta Air Lines pilot, told the Associated Press it was not unusual for birds to strike planes and when planes get ready to take off, if there are birds in the area, the tower will alert the crew.
"They literally just choke out the engine and it quits," Mr Mazzone said. |
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caniff
Joined: 03 Feb 2004
Location: All over the map
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| Posted: Thu Jan 15, 2009 3:20 pm Post subject: |
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I would think the screams of passengers as a plane is going down must be one of the worst sounds in the world.
Good thing everyone lucked out. Something to tell the grandkids, anyway. |
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sojourner1
Joined: 17 Apr 2007
Location: Where meggi swim and 2 wheeled tractors go sput put chug alugg pug pug
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| Posted: Fri Jan 16, 2009 5:34 am Post subject: |
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How many times have I had vivid dreams about being on an airplane having mechanical problems? Too many to count.
Good thing they all lived as this usually doesn't happen. I remember the last accident everyone got to survive. Things are better today as it seems there are much fewer accidents and fatalities. |
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Gatsby
Joined: 09 Feb 2007
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| Posted: Sat Jan 17, 2009 4:06 am Post subject: |
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From the accounts I read, there were no screams.
And the New Yorkers that I saw interviewed who had been on the plane backed that up, and seemed to take it fairly calmly.
But, yes, it makes you wonder how you would respond. I hope that if I were in such a situation I would have the presence of mind to help others calmly but quickly.
The captain certainly kept his head. There is an interesting story about him in the New York Times:
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January 17, 2009
In a Split Second, a Pilot Becomes a Hero Years in the Making
By RAY RIVERA
Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger III had just performed a remarkable feat of flying. Some were calling it a miracle. But there he stood, calmly, inside the glass waiting room at the New York Waterway terminal on Pier 79, speaking to police officials. His fine gray hair was unruffled, and his navy blue pilot�s uniform had barely a wrinkle.
�His tie wasn�t even loosened,� said Edward Skyler, a deputy mayor of New York City, who stood nearby.
Michael A. L. Balboni, the state�s deputy secretary for public safety, worked his way through the room to introduce himself. He shook the pilot�s hand, looked him in the eye and thanked him for a job done brilliantly: the precise, soft, lifesaving landing of a 50-ton jetliner in the Hudson River.
�He said to me, in the most unaffected, humble way, he says, �That�s what we�re trained to do,� � Mr. Balboni said. �No boasting, no emotion, no nothing.� |
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/17/nyregion/17pilot.html?hp=&pagewanted=all
He is a good man. |
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