That was the Gimli Glider
Posted on 09/28/2009 3:27:50 PM PDT by devane617
See link for story...
Godspeed, sir.
Great news for the flying public.
This was the pilot that managed to safely get his plane down on the Hudson river after a loss of power.
As he was a glider pilot and I speculate that much of his ability to safely bring his plane down was the result of his glider skills, I would ask the FAA to seriously consider glider training / annual refresher be added to all commercial pilot training if it is not already in the program.
That Captain was the absolute right person, at the right time to avert tragedy. That he was piloting that plain was an act of Divine Intervention. IMHO. Any other pilot without the background and training as a glider pilot, and most likely there would have been many fatalities.
There was another pilot who was glider (sailplane) trained. He landed a 767 when it ran out of fuel (Canada) -
Glider pilots do it right!!! :)
“Every glider landing is a forced landing.”
That was the Gimli Glider
Glider training wouldn’t help much.
Pilots practice power off approaches and ditching procedures all the time.
I don’t think glider experience had much to do with the “Miracle on the Hudson” — he had basically no time and no choices, and was lucky he was already flying along the path of the Hudson. He did a great job putting the plane down gently, but the location had been pre-chosen for him by the flock of birds. In the case of the Gimli Glider, however, the co-pilot’s glider experience definitely was a huge help, and probably made the difference between everybody aboard getting killed, and a landing so good that the plane was flown out of the landing site a couple of days later.
A good emergency landing is one you walk away from.
A great emergency landing is one which leaves the aircraft flyable again.
‘Twas a great landing, indeed.
Incorrect. Excerpts of AP articles are allowed.
Soaring pilots....
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