Sully-a Hero?

Its been a long time since I provided any primary flight training. But as I recall, once it appears that the student will, in fact, stick with the training long enough to attempt solo flight and hopefully go on to obtain their private pilot certification, we start teaching them in earnest how to handle a power failure. Then, power failures remain an important part of our training for most of the rest of our flying careers.

Frank Bowlin

Thursday, October 20, 2016 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

The author, a retired pilot, asserts that the "Miracle on the Hudson" was not an act of heroism but rather a demonstration of competent pilots executing fundamental emergency procedures, which are taught from early flight training.
Pilot training extensively covers handling power failures, including optimizing for best glide and identifying the most suitable "soft spot" for an emergency landing, making the Hudson River an obvious choice for Flight 1549.
The true lesson from USAir 1549 is a reinforcement that calmly applying basic pilot skills—not panicking, managing the aircraft, and aiming for the soft spot—can ensure survival even in severe, transport-category aircraft emergencies.

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I am sick of hearing about Sully and being asked what I, a retired airline pilot, think. Now, the movie. Argh!

It’s been a long time since I provided any primary flight training. But as I recall, once it appears that the student will, in fact, stick with the training long enough to attempt solo flight and hopefully go on to obtain their private pilot certification, we start teaching them in earnest how to handle a power failure. Then, power failures remain an important part of our training for most of the rest of our flying careers.