The Miracle on the Hudson from a NEW perspective!

Today it is exactly 12 years since the "Miracle on the Hudson", US Airways flight 1549 encountered the most famous birdstrike of all time which led to two, catastrophic, engine failures and a successful ditching on the Hudson River outside New York, USA.
The incredible work by captain Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffery Skiles as well as the heroic work of their cabin crew and first responders led to the successful outcome. But were there mistakes made along the way? In this video I will be telling the story of flight 1549 based on the final report. I will also give you a pilots perspective on what went on in the cockpit during that winter afternoon in 2009.

00:00 Introduction
00:49 Patreon Homage
01:18 Overview
03:51 Info on Jeff Skiles
05:25 Takeoff
06:25 Birdstrike
08:10 Crew initial handling
11:14 Decision Making
16:30 Cabin Crew
19:35 Ditching imminent
22:47 Ditching
25:28 Conclusion
28:38 Full uninterrupted flight simulation
34:22 End-game

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Below you will find the links to videos and sources used in this episode. Enjoy checking them out!
Mediawatchersoz: Surveillance footage of Cactus 1549 landing in the Hudson

Manhattan Image: @jacobybrandon
Passenger on wing image: @Steven Day/AP
Waterway boat image: @Steven Day/AP

ATC Audio: @ AppleDualG5

CCTV Footage: @ MediaWatcherOz

[imaner]

Initially I thought, oh this one again, how many takes on this have there been. Then I sat glued to the whole thing. Fantastic work, great perspective. Awesome job.

[SaltExarch]

One of my favorite anecdotes from this incident is that Captain Sullenberger brought a library book on-board this flight in his personal belongings. Naturally, he left his belongings on-board when he helped evacuate the plane, and by the time the book was recovered, it was both overdue and heavily water-damaged. He called up the library where he borrowed it from and apologized for it not only being a late return, but also for him returning it damaged. The library, understandably, waived all late/damaged return fees. The book was titled "Just Culture: Balancing Safety and Accountability"

[kevinbarry]

The joke, among those of us from New York, is that he preferred to land in the water rather than go to New Jersey. Which makes complete sense

[christosphillips]

I am sitting here watching with 33 years of airline flying experience and 20, 000 hrs jet, and still cannot believe these guys really pulled this off. The aircraft was in a turn and in climb when the birds showed up, making it impossible for the pilots to see them coming and avoid the flock. What impressed me the most was how calm the captain's tone of voice was on the radio. A great example for all of us, young and old, in my case, old!.

[cogitoergospud]

Love his short declarative statements. “Unable”. “We’re gonna be in the Hudson.” He didn’t use a single unnecessary word.

[airyowo]

The recreation in the flight simulator really puts into perspective just how quickly everything happened. It’s hard to truly understand when someone is just giving a verbal recount of the incident. Just a few minutes between the bird strike and landing in the river, but the pilots were able to quickly understand the situation and take steps to land as safely as possible. It’s incredible. This story never fails to amaze me!

[SuccessBreaks]

I was in seat 18F on this flight. You described what happened very well. In addition, I would add that the passengers responded in an exemplar fashion: little panic, helping one another, and managing the exit amazingly smoothly.

[charlessanderson]

My father in law was one of the lead wing designers for the Airbus 320 based in Bristol UK. I remember having a conversation with him about the design of the bolts securing the engines. They were designed to sheer to avoid them causing an issue for the wing integrity following a water landing. We then went on to discuss the likelihood of survival following a water landing. I wish he had still been with us to witness the outcome of the teams design work and the amazing flying Captains Sullenberger and Skiles.

[mohamedelziftawi]

I watch your channel daily. I'm a retired, highly experienced Airbus 320 Captain. In my opinion what saved the day and all those lives, was Capt Sully thinking outside the box and turning on the APU. He immediately, due to his experience and wit, knew he will need flaps if there is to be any hope of a successful landing or ditching without breaking up of the aircraft and subsequent fatalities. Kudos to the entire crew.

[Habu]

The best line, which was said by Jeff Skiles(Aaron Eckhardt) in the movie shows what a sense of humor we can still keep as pilots. When asked if he would have done anything differently....
"Yes..I would have done it in July."

[phj]

I've watched a lot of videos on this incident, and the "Sully" movie of course, but watching the animation without any pauses for comments, in real time and with real time ATC, it is absolutely crazy how short the time frame for this event was. I count roughly 35 seconds from the bird strike and loss of both engines until Sully notifies ATC that they "may end up in the Hudson", which means he's probably gone through all of his options, and decided that that would be one of them, at least 10 or 20 or even 30 seconds before. To have that mindset to switch on in an instant - during what would have been a complete routine flight - is just the pinnacle of professionalism.

[UncleManuel]

Holy crap! The flight recreation in real time is even scarier! Now you can REALLY appreciate how damn quickly both pilots reacted. Wow! 😲

[JeffInDFW]

ATC in that airspace is well known for But in this you see why they come across that way. Speed. It is incredible hearing the behind the scenes communication between airports, how fast they convey the information and how fast decisions are made. ATC was pulling out all the stops to save that aircraft and deserve props and thanks for being the best in the world at what they do.

[enigmadrath]

I'm glad you acknowledged and included the copilot in this vid. Years ago I initially believed the first officer had been incapacitated and unable to assist because the news channels weren't mentioning him at all. All attention was on the captain. They both did an amazing job together.

[PeriMedic]

I was the cabin safety manager for a US government agency who flew airliners. I constantly argued for rafts on all flights, and had an uphill battle. After reminding management of 1549 enough times, I won my battles. Besides, even if one crashed in the mountains, the survival kits inside them are valuable.

[nordvegfigg]

No matter how many times I see this, I still get goosebumps when Scully says "Unable" and "We're going into the Hudson". And am also always impressed with the calm professionalism of everyone involved.

[gloriclyoko]

I watched several documentaries about this famous incident quite a few times now and I thought I knew almost every detail. However, the recreated simulation with the actual synchronous ATC communication in the end still shocked me how fast the entire incident unfolded and ended. The fact that everything happened in such a short period of time really amazed me at how the entire crew and everyone involved responded with true professionalism. Very vivid storytelling as always from this channel. Thank you and the entire crew for the fantastic work!

[MicrowavedAlastair]

One of my favorite things about this incident is how enthusiastic so many pilots are about how great of a job the crew did.

[trueriver]

0:22 only a few minutes to save themselves and everyone on board.

At the formal enquiry Sully testified that he also had in mind saving lives on the ground.

The unstated implication was that even if he lost out on the lives of his crew and passengers, at least by going down in the Hudson he wouldn't kill anyone on the ground. For me that was the bravest part of his testimony.

And the most professional.

[jennifergriffin]

No matter what, the plane crashed and nobody died. The captain, first officer and crew did an amazing job. Everyone went home to their families, alive.