Retired US Airways Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, who saved 155 lives on Flight 1549 after a heroic emergency landing on the Hudson River in 2009, visited the Academy Oct. 20 to hear cadets’ thoughts on veteran care. (more…)
Category: In The News
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Avoid common air travel problems
SULLY SULLENBERGER
Avoid common air travel problems
Air travel can be a bummer due to unfortunate seat assignments, small airplanes and flight delays, but AOL Travel Expert Captain Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger has some pointers on how to make your air travel experience as enjoyable as possible.
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Sully’s five all-time favorite books
Sully’s five all-time favorite books for Biography.com’s “Celebrity Summer Reading Series”. View Article >
Celebrity Reading List: Hero Sully Sullenberger Is Driven By Smart Landings
Former airline captain Sully Sullenberger was hailed as a hero in 2009 when he safely executed an emergency water landing of U.S. Airways Flight 1549 in New York City’s Hudson River. We wondered which books keep a hero’s mind flying high? He tells us in his own words.The Price of Civilization (By Jeffrey D. Sachs)
“An insightful look at how lobbying and big money interests drive our political process, what we must do to correct it, and how doing so will also help us face the challenges of globalization.”
Retirement Heist (By Ellen E. Schultz)
“A Wall Street Journal investigative reporter provides a well documented look at what happened to the pensions that many American workers used to be able to depend on and why.”
The Art of Happiness (By The Dalai Lama)
“A great mix of philosophy, science, and practical steps to a happier life.”
The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark (By Carl Sagan)
“A very practical and interesting primer on how to be capable of independent critical thought, something that has never been more important to our future.”
A Walk in the Woods (By Bill Bryson)
“Downright fun. I’ve never laughed so hard!”
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Conversation With Sully Sullenberger
It’s been five years since the “miracle on the Hudson.” How did that event change your life?
It was, at first, very difficult, very shocking, but with time you have to make it part of you, not simply something that happened to you.
What about you is different?
It’s made me think that whatever trivial things I have to deal with don’t even hold a candle to that.
Tell me about meeting President Obama several days later at his first inauguration.When my wife, Lorrie, and I met the president at a ball, he turned to her and said, “America considers him a hero.” My wife said, “Well, the world may think him a hero, but he still snores!” This hero stuff doesn’t get you much past the front door no matter who you are.
How important was your experience in the sky above the Hudson?
Training in flight simulators, you can’t practice a water landing. We had 208 seconds to solve a problem for which we had never specifically trained. The experience and the judgment my crew and I had developed over many decades allowed us to have the creative reserve to deliver the airplane full of people to the surface intact.
Sully Sullenberger, retired “Miracle on the Hudson” pilot, talks personal achievement and reinvention. — Jonathan Sprague/Redux
Full Article: Conversation With Sully Sullenberger (on AARP)View More >
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Five myths about air turbulence
For many fliers, encountering air turbulence is the most challenging aspect of any flight. The effects of turbulence, which can cause an aircraft to shake and move suddenly and erratically from side to side or up and down, can be distressing and even frightening, sparking fear that the airplane is out of control and about to crash or break apart. So we spoke with two notable pilots to expose the truth behind five of the most common myths of air turbulence.
1. Pilots always get a lot of warning about air turbulence.
There’s no mystery about what air turbulence is: It’s created by atmospheric pressure, jet streams, and the air that circulates in mountainous areas, as well as weather fronts and thunderstorms. There’s also so-called clear air turbulence, which are air masses moving without any obvious visual clues such as clouds, literally coming out of the blue.
“It helps to visualize flight as a river flowing rapidly over rocks, where water is forced upward and then down, with swirls and eddies,” says Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, retired US Airways pilot, speaker, author and CBS news safety & aviation expert. In short, turbulence is a normal part of flying and every pilot knows that they might encounter it in the course of a given flight.
Still, many passengers think that pilots have some device in the airplane to provide warning about approaching turbulence, which can’t be detected by radar. But there is no such technology.
“We generally don’t get more than a general warning,” Sullenberger says. That warning comes from aircraft flying ahead at the same altitude reporting to the nearest air traffic control. Based on a report of turbulence, a pilot can then change altitude or change speed to anticipate and avoid it. Sully says that education, training, experience and judgment to recognize conditions are the most important tools for any pilot to handle turbulent air. Even so, turbulence is often unpredictable, especially if you’re flying in remote areas where there are few aircraft reporting to local air traffic control.
Full Article: Sully talks with USA Today about Turbulence View More >
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Captain Sullenberger To Be Honored At Santa Monica American Red Cross Gala
Captain Sullenberger To Be Honored At Santa Monica American Red Cross Gala View More >
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Capt. Sully appears on BBC Newsnight
Capt. Sully appears on BBC Newsnight to discuss various investigation tactics of the missing Malaysia Flight 370: View More >