Co-pilot Braved Frigid Waters to Retrieve Vests for Passengers (Our Hometown Boy Did Good!)

JSOnline ^ | January 16, 2009 | Stacy Forster

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Oregon, WI - The water in the Hudson River was so cold Thursday afternoon that US Airways co-pilot Jeffrey Skiles' legs were immediately numb, his wife said today.

Barbara Skiles said her husband, 49, was walking through the plane to find more life vests for people who had exited without them. The quick response from New York City's police and fire departments, as well as ferries and other boats that helped bring passengers to safety, was a key reason no one was injured or killed, she said.

All 155 passengers on the US Airways flight were rescued and brought to safety after the plane hit a flock of birds following takeoff from New York's LaGuardia Airport, lost power to both engines and had to land in the Hudson River.

"He did say that it was amazing the help that they got; how quickly boats were at the side of the airplane," she said.

Barbara Skiles said her husband lost his cell phone in the incident but used a borrowed phone to call her with news about the accident.

"'We had to ditch the plane in the Hudson, I want you to know I'm OK and I think we got everybody off OK,'" she said he told her. She said she's spoken with him a couple more times from his hotel room, but isn't sure when he'll be home.

"I think it's still sinking in," she said of how he's feeling. "He just really doesn't know how things are going to happen from here."

Jeffrey Skiles got his private pilot's license when he was a teenager and has been flying professionally since his early 20s, spending the past 23 years flying for US Airways, Barbara Skiles said.

Barbara Skiles and the couple's three children, ages 17, 15 and 12, spent Thursday evening watching TV coverage for more news about the incident, and were hoping media attention dies down soon so they can get back to their normal lives.

"We're so grateful," she said, fighting back tears. "Not just for Jeff but for everybody on the plane."

She said she's always worried more about Jeffrey Skiles driving to airports in Chicago and Milwaukee than flying.

"If you're going to be in an airplane disaster, you couldn't ask for a better ending," she said.

[null and void]

I have lots of chocolate...

[Monkey Face]

*sigh*
Should you be in real estate, then? With Lots of chocolate? What a money-maker!

[null and void]

Should *I* be in real estate???

I was hoping you’d support me!

};^P

[Monkey Face]

Well, I could. But it would depend on the chocolate supply. When that’s gone, so am I...

[null and void]

Deal!

[Monkey Face]

Ya wanna shake on it?

;o]

[null and void]

As soon as I get back from Ghirardelli...

[Monkey Face]

*swoon*

*thunk*

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Jeeze. Get a room. ;)

[Monkey Face]

LOL!

I thought we were in one...a “chat” room, anyway!

:oþ

[Diana in Wisconsin]

:)

[EDINVA]

” ...work gets in my way..”

Not to worry, Diana, after Tuesday it’s one big party, blue skies, mortgages paid, gas tanks filled, and free everything !!

Cheers to your home town boy, that crew and the NY rescuers were amazing. The passengres did well, too.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

[null and void]

Soooooooo, do you like chocolate?...

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Your powers are useless against me... ;)

[null and void]

Damm.

[null and void]

How about?

[safisoft]

Nothing on your guy but more on the pilot...

Ah, there are always at least two pilots in a commercial aircraft. There is no such thing as "the" pilot.

I know for those not in the industry, taking issue with such things seems like mere semantics, but I assure you it is not. Both of these gentlemen are equally qualified. That is true in almost every cockpit today. That means the only difference between the Captain and the First Officer (both are "pilots") is who was hired first at the airline. They both are trained identically, and have identical FAA certification to fly the aircraft. They take turns as "PF" [Pilot Flying] and "PM" [Pilot Monitoring] (i.e. swapping flight legs on a trip).

The correct terminology is: "Captain" and "First Officer" ("copilot" is a term no longer used) - or "Left seat" and "Right seat." Example: Are you in the left seat on the A330?" [Are you a captain on the Airbus A330?], or "Who was in the right seat on that leg?" [Who was the First Officer on that flight?].

For most airline pilots, you can tell the difference between a Captain and a First Officer by the stripes on their shoulders (Captain = four stripes, First Officer = three stripes). Counting stripes on a coat does not bring the same results. Some First Officers have four stripes on their coats because they previously were Captains on a smaller aircraft. For instance, on a B777, you may find the First Officer was previously a Captain on the B737. If so, he/she may keep the stripes on their coat (but not on their shoulders).

[null and void]

Somehow “God is my First Officer” doesn’t have the same ring....

[safisoft]

Somehow “G-d is my First Officer” doesn’t have the same ring....

LOL. Maybe He never should have been thought as "co-pilot" - because a co-pilot means "second in command." Shouldn't He the Captain - the One in command?

The airline industry has changed greatly since the days of the "High and the Mighty." There are no "copilots" any longer. The airlines' safety record in the past decade are proof that new training and procedures that treat pilots as crewmembers, instead of the old way of "Captain and copilot" is the most effective safety tool.