A US Airways plane crashed into the Hudson River minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport. Domestic flight 1549 was headed to Charlotte, North Carolina, carrying 150 passengers excluding three flight attendants and two pilots.

The incident which occurred sometime around 0330 pm (local time) Thursday was allegedly due to the plane’s double collision with a flock of geese. According to an air controller union spokesman, the pilot Captain Charles B. Sullenberger had requested landing back at the LaGuardia airport due to the collision but instead opted to for a water landing, due in part to the fact that one of the engines had caught fire. The emergency landing did not did not cause any fatalities though many of the injured are being treated at nearby hospitals. The absence of any fatalities has been attributed to the smooth landing by the pilot and it has been likened to a normal landing on a runway by many of the passengers and those who saw the incident first-hand. NY Senator Charles Schumer called the pilot heroic in choosing to reduce the altitude of the plane before heading towards the Hudson River for a safer landing.

Following routine emergency protocol, flight attendants evacuated the passengers, children and women first, onto the wings of the plane as it started to fill with water. Coast Guard and FDNY boats, and even commercial ferries, were soon rescuing the passengers who were already fitted with lifejackets. However, the plane was sinking fast and some people had to be rescued from the freezing cold water by police divers.

The passengers, most of whom had started to pray believing they were about to die, are all accounted for and some fifteen people are currently being treated for injuries and exposure. Kudos for 57 year old Sullenberger are coming from every direction, including President Bush who has already released congratulating captain Sully for his bravery. NY Mayor Michael Bloomberg added on how impressed he was by the fact that the pilot insisted on being the last to get off the plane and made two rounds of it to make sure that no one was left behind. Furthermore, aviation experts state that since water landings are not really practiced with commercial planes, the expertise that Sullenberger demonstrated was quite amazing; the passengers all agree.

Any speculations about this being an act of terrorism have been denied; bird collisions are quite common with approximately 8000 bird collisions occurring every year. However, those desiring a malicious turn of events may be pleased to know that there is a rumour of PETA picketing outside US Airways’ headquarters!

Via: BBC/CNN