C-GAUN in flight at Vancouver, 26 Jun 2007, in its later colours, not the day of the event. Photo: Ken Fielding, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped, sky extended at the left and below, aircraft and sky animated · Source
Climbing out of LaGuardia, flight 1549 struck a flock of Canada geese and both engines lost almost all their thrust. Controllers offered runways at LaGuardia and Teterboro. The captain answered: we're gonna be in the Hudson.
“To suggest that the accident was the result of a metric mix-up is simplistic and inaccurate.”
The Board of Inquiry, on the idea that this was a units error and nothing more:Board of Inquiry, Final Report, April 1985, p. 35Case File 006: Air Canada 143
“The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the ingestion of large birds into each engine, which resulted in an almost total loss of thrust in both engines and the subsequent ditching on the Hudson River.”
The National Transportation Safety Board, probable cause:NTSB AAR-10/03, adopted 4 May 2010, p. 123Case File 005: US Airways 1549
“A critical stage is to be expected at some time before 50 per cent of the flow is diverted. Following this critical stage, closure of the Mississippi River below Old River will be rapid and diversion will be uncontrollable.”
Harold N. Fisk, in his 1952 report for the Mississippi River Commission:Fisk, Geological investigation of the Atchafalaya Basin and the problem of Mississippi River diversion, 1952, paras. 216 and 217Case File 004: Old River
“The flight and cabin crew managed the event as a competent team in accordance with standard operating procedures and practices.”
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau, on the crew:ATSB AO-2010-089, final report, 27 June 2013, p. 146Case File 003: Qantas 32
“This should have read that 55 per cent of the Netherlands is at risk of flooding; 26 per cent of the country is below sea level, and 29 per cent is susceptible to river flooding.”
The planning agency's figure, in its own correction:PBL Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency, correction noteCase File 002: Below sea level
“Think of the paralysis of intellect that gave that idea birth”
Mark Twain, changing trains at Albury in September 1895:Mark Twain, Following the Equator, 1897, chapter XIVCase File 001: Three gauges
This week
11 November 1966
Gemini 12 lifts off at 3:46 p.m. Eastern time. It splashes down four days later, on 15 November.
Case File 004Old River13 min filmMorganza spillway open, 20 May 2011, P. Kelley · U.S. Coast Guard via DVIDS, 1102976. US federal government work, public domain · Source
Case File 001Three gauges13 min filmVictorian S301 and NSW 3606 at Albury, about 1930s · National Library of Australia, nla.obj-155066202. Out of Copyright. Reason for copyright status: Created/Published Date is Before 1955 · Source
Both engines have lost their thrust. You are at about 1,770 ft over the Bronx. Where do you go?
Heights from the flight recorder; times from the cockpit voice recorder transcript. Nothing you pick is recorded or counted.
Lines from the aircraft's position at each offer to the runway end or the river touchdown point. NTSB docket item 85, Table 1a; FAA runway data.
The controller offered LaGuardia three times.
15:28:05do you want to try to land runway one three?p. 174 15:28:10.6we're unable. we may end up in the Hudson.p. 174
15:28:31its gonna be left traffic for runway three one.p. 175 15:28:35unable.p. 175
15:28:46runway four's available if you wanna make left traffic to runway four.p. 176 15:28:49.9I'm not sure we can make any runway. uh what's over to our right anything in New Jersey maybe Teterboro?p. 176
The captain asked about New Jersey; Teterboro was offered.
15:29:21turn right two eight zero, you can land runway one at Teterboro.p. 178 15:29:25we can't do it.p. 179
The crew chose the river.
15:28:10.6we're unable. we may end up in the Hudson.p. 174 15:29:28we're gonna be in the Hudson.p. 179
What the crew chose, and what the simulator found
The crew ditched on the Hudson at 15:30:43, 211.6 seconds after the bird strike. All 155 on board survived (pp. 48, 6).
In simulator runs that turned back at once, 8 of 15 reached a runway, with pilots briefed in advance. A turn back to runway 13 after a 35-second delay, to allow for recognising the problem and deciding, did not succeed (p. 50).
Backstory Report
2
Case File 006Air Canada 143Cover photograph: C-GAUN at Vancouver, 26 Jun 2007, Ken Fielding, CC BY-SA 3.0, cropped, colour graded, words added · Source
Case File 005US Airways 1549Cover photograph: flight 1549 on the Hudson, 15 Jan 2009, Greg L, CC BY 2.0, cropped, colour graded, words added · Source
Case File 002Below sea levelNationaal Archief, Anefo 905-5477, G. W. van Duinen, 1953, CC0 · Source
Case File 001Three gaugesVictorian S301 and NSW 3606 at Albury, about 1930s · National Library of Australia, nla.obj-155066202. Out of Copyright. Reason for copyright status: Created/Published Date is Before 1955 · Source
National Transportation Safety Board, AAR-10/03, 2010, 213-page PDFCase File 005: US Airways 1549
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