[taildragger]

. Here's a photo of the plane as it was coming in for it's landing in the Hudson River. You can see both engines are mounted close to and below the fuselage. In that location, they would have acted as huge water scoops, probably helping to keep the plane from cartwheeling.

Wolfstar

I wonder about that...

He came in with a high AOA. My guess is they would have contributed to a cartwheel and he is trying to prevent it.

When a Seaplane or Amphibian land with the gear down in the water it flips. I wonder if that goes the same for Nacelles.....

[Wolfstar]

He came in with a high AOA.

I wish I could find an online copy of the video of that plane's approach over the Hudson, but can't. Even so, if you were to see it, you're realize that the pilot (who also has flown gliders) brought the plane down in a textbook glide. By the time he landed, the plane was not at a high AOA at all.

Also, it's simple physics. Two heavy engines immediately on either side of and below the fuselage would initially act as pontoons for the heaviest part of the plane, helping to stabilize it. But the pilot deserves the majority of the credit because, as I said, it was a textbook glider-type landing.