Sully's landing

[GravityHater]

He Flew The Airplane, which is a whole lot better than many other accident pilots can claim.

 

[JumpersAway]

1. Does Mayday Mayday Mayday not qualify?
2. "We're gonna be in the Hudson"
3. In hindsight, it didn't matter. Maybe he had the foresight to know that?
4. He called for the checklist for "loss of thrust in both engines".

Your arguments are like Michael Moore's.

C'mon man!

You shouldn't let facts get in the way of someone's La-La-Land Fantasy story like that......

And please correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think this magical "Ditch Switch" ads the extra adhesive needed to hold the belly skin on. That thing had a hole in it bigger than that of the Edmund Fitzgerald.........

 

[AutoBus]

I'm not saying I would have done it better (although ten bucks says I would have called for a checklist...any checklist) but I am saying that what he did didn't come anywhere near the heroism of the hydraulic failure SUX captain (Al Haynes?) who really used all his resources.

Sully said, "I got it", "Standby", "No", and a couple of other phrases that didn't communicate jack to the controller who was trying to help him. He turned left, coasted until he hit without running a single checklist, mostly because he had done the stupid white-haired captain thing and grabbed the controls at the first sign of a problem. Since his FO was pretty sharp, do you think he did good, or bad by grabbing the controls AND TALKING ON THE RADIO at the same time? "Hero" sure. Try that in the sim and see how heroic your debrief is.

I wasn't all that sure about this whole thing until I watched the animation with the subtitles, then I scratched my head and wondered why nobody asked the hard questions. Maybe because there was no way out, so it didn't matter in the end if he used proper CRM and the aircraft manuals to get himself out of a tight spot.

But ask yourself this...what if there was a procedure in a checklist that he could have run that would have restarted an engine (ok, I know they didn't need to restart, they were just at idle), then does his "I got it" and radio talk look any different?

I've noticed that unlike the Al Haynes incident, nobody is going over the CRM of the tapes to applaud old "Shucks, I know I'm a hero, I always planned on this day" Sully.

Instead, the biggest praise you got for him is what you need to pass a private pilot checkride...don't turn 180 when you lose all power. So Sully is a hero for passing his private?

"I got it", gotta love it.

I suspect his co-pilot was busy reading the ECAM directions, not much to do other than "off/on" with the engine switches, but still, what if there was?

Sully is ex Air Force? right?

 

[Dan Roman]

I'm not saying I would have done it better (although ten bucks says I would have called for a checklist...any checklist) but I am saying that what he did didn't come anywhere near the heroism of the hydraulic failure SUX captain (Al Haynes?) who really used all his resources.

Sully said, "I got it", "Standby", "No", and a couple of other phrases that didn't communicate jack to the controller who was trying to help him. He turned left, coasted until he hit without running a single checklist, mostly because he had done the stupid white-haired captain thing and grabbed the controls at the first sign of a problem. Since his FO was pretty sharp, do you think he did good, or bad by grabbing the controls AND TALKING ON THE RADIO at the same time? "Hero" sure. Try that in the sim and see how heroic your debrief is.

I wasn't all that sure about this whole thing until I watched the animation with the subtitles, then I scratched my head and wondered why nobody asked the hard questions. Maybe because there was no way out, so it didn't matter in the end if he used proper CRM and the aircraft manuals to get himself out of a tight spot.

But ask yourself this...what if there was a procedure in a checklist that he could have run that would have restarted an engine (ok, I know they didn't need to restart, they were just at idle), then does his "I got it" and radio talk look any different?

I've noticed that unlike the Al Haynes incident, nobody is going over the CRM of the tapes to applaud old "Shucks, I know I'm a hero, I always planned on this day" Sully.

Instead, the biggest praise you got for him is what you need to pass a private pilot checkride...don't turn 180 when you lose all power. So Sully is a hero for passing his private?

"I got it", gotta love it.

I suspect his co-pilot was busy reading the ECAM directions, not much to do other than "off/on" with the engine switches, but still, what if there was?

Kind of an odd response. He in fact did call for a checklist (2 minutes into the tape). While I agree what Al Haynes did was way more dificult, just because what Al Haynes did was outstanding, it doesn't mean Sully wasn't. You are missing the primary difference between the two and it indicates a lack of perception on your part. Al Haynes had a long time to prepare (and to his credit, had to exhibit outstanding airmanship for a long time too), Sully was dealt an entire different set of cards. He was at a few thousand feet with no time to do anything but make sure his crippled airliner landed safely within a couple minutes. Al Haynes did a fantastic job of managing his situation and Sully did too. It's stupid to think you have to put one down, they were both great.

 

[Dan Roman]

And for you guys that seem to have a bruised ego problem with Sully taking control of the airplane from Skiles. Apparently Skiles doesn't. Sully was the Captain and he did what he had to do with just a few seconds to make the decision. He would have looked pretty foolish if he just told Skiles "you fly it".
The Captain is ultimately responsible for everything that happens. Given the circumstances, he was spot on to say "I got it". I'm very impressed with how everyone rose to the occasion and worked together with no warning and just a couple minutes to react to a horrendous situation.

 

[ttuite]

...lucky in my book.

But I guess we don't chat about the new clothes the emperor has just put on.

"I got it!"

Your ignorance in how an airbus works is showing. Grow up! Just as impressive as how Skiles and Sully handled this emergency is how they handled the aftermath. For a few weeks airline pilots were someone special again. Of course you can do it all and you know it all so you would never need any positive PR.

 

[Bad-Andy]

And as for the flying and talking on the radios thing -- that is not an error or pride or whatever else you want to call it. That is Airbus Standard procedure. Straight from FCOM 3, when the PF calls for "ECAM Actions" (or a Paper Procedure from the QRH), he automatically takes the flying and radio duties. The PNF is then free to run the Procedure/Checklist/Whatever without interruption. So, Sully taking over the radio had nothing to do with being macho, old, whitehaired, etc. He was simply following the standard procedures that nearly every (if not every) Airbus operator uses...

Just to straighten out another of your misconceptions...

 

[bubbers44]

My airline in training has the pilot flying also work the radio to let the other run the checklist. The FO just got off IOE so letting him land an unfamiliar plane to see if 155 pax will survive with a low time in AC pilot would make no sense. Ego's should not be considered in an emergency situation.

 

[shearedshaft]

I dunno, I think Radar's on the right track. I keep picturing Sully up on stage, saying:

"Good eveeeeening everyone! Glad to be here!

While we wait for the Viagra to kick in so you can get back to slurping my 'little hero', I wanted to give a shout out to somebody who helped me get here; who gave me my mad skillz to do what I do best...

So props need to go out to...you know who you are...MY TREMENDOUS EXPERIENCE!

Give it up now!

I know I use a lot of 'I' when I talk about how amazing I can be, but it all started with 'I got it', and y'all know the rest.

Well hey, looks like the little hero is a big hero now, so I'll let my mad fanz getback to work! Peace out!"

 

[reido737]

radarlove and shearedshaft are ****************************** Bags!!!

 

[i fly boxes]

Ok. All hail the hero.

"I got it". Why, exactly, did he get it? Just a quick question and you can go back to your bowing and scraping.

Ok lets go with your scenario then
Birds hit the plane, about 4 seconds lapse
skiles - "i have the radios, perform QRH for Double engine failure"
Sully grabs qrh,
skiles declares an emergency and tries to fly the plane back towards the airport
sully fumbles with the qrh because the ground is quickly approaching (this is not a simulator session), manages to get the apu started but there is not enough time to do anything else because of the amount of time it took to get the appropriate check list and never alerts the F/A or passengers because of the time needed to do the checklist - meanwhile, skies has been trying to reach an airport but doesnt, (not knocking skiles he is probably a great pilot), the airbus starts yelling "retard" and you know the rest.

Just a scenario but i think you get the picture

I think i would take "i got it" any day. It absolutely amazes me that anyone could knock sulley for anything about that day. It also disturbs me. Its almost like you are jealous because he has a little bit of fame now. Why dont you start ripping Al Haynes while you are at it, i am sure he did something non standard during UAL 232. Checklists are important and should be used every single flight, but checklists don't drive q 400's into the ground, they don't over fly major international airports, and they dont make crucial decisions for you when they are needed the most.

 

[Fast43]

The thing is though,

Sully decided to abuse his new found fame and stick his nose in where he shouldn't have.

He testified for usapa in Federal Court in an effort to throw each and every ex-AWA pilot under the bus. He had no involvement in any usapa activities prior to this, he did not have any part in any of the merger/contract activities. He had no business showing up in court as "witness". Just because he lands in the Hudson does not make his opinion any better than anyone elses. But he thought so. The Jury on the other hand did not, as Sully was soundly discredited. (I was there and saw this occur) Even the Judge warned usapa of the perils of putting up an irrelevent witness.

I had alot of respect for the man prior to his trip to the Courthouse.



Instead of dwelling on the "ditching push button" maybe someone will ask sully about what "TOGA" means and when you use it.



F

 

[bubbers44]

Toga doesn't do anything if the engines aren't able to develop more thrust. I don't understand the anger some people show here against Sully. Now you are making it a union matter. I know the west and east pilots are battling but don't bring it up on this thread. I believe Sully was PSA before USAIR aquired them.

 

[Dan Roman]

Right you are. I'm no fan of USAPA myself, but that has nothing to do with the fact he did a great job in the ditching. I don't see him as some publicity hound at all. It's not his fault America is always looking for a new celebrity. Jeez, look at some of the crap we make famous in this country, Paris Hilton, Kardashians, that couple with all the kids that are divorcing, etc. Those people are temples of self absorption and have made it their life's work to get attention without accomplishing anything. At least Sully is getting positive recognition for our profession and has earned his spot in the limelight.
Obviously there are a few that are jealous, but it's nice to see the overwhelming majority here appreciate what he did and are not going down the petty little backbiting path.

 

[PHXFLYR]

Sully did a great job in brining his crippled plane down safely with no one getting hurt. But with that said ,you gotta wonder if he would have been such a "huckster for a buck-ster " with his 15 mins of fame if, God-forbid the ditching would have resulted in fatalities. One thing is for certain,though.
"Chug-a-lug " Doug and the "Balloon and Confetti " crowd at corporate love him. Witness his new cubicle and fancy title.

PHXFLYR