Captain Chesley Sullenberger III, better known as “Sully,” successfully landed a plane on the Hudson River between New York and New Jersey on Jan. 15, 2009 – 10 years ago. The flight was headed to North Carolina from New York. But the US Airways jet lost power and was falling after some birds got sucked into the engines and damaged them, according to Newsweek. Sullenberger and his crew had under four minutes since the engine failure to figure out how to land the plane and make sure the jet could float long enough on the river so the 155 passengers could get rescued. Floating was crucial that particular day because the river was 38 degrees Fahrenheit. “That’s why I turned south along the Hudson,” Sullenberger said, Newsweek reported. “I knew from experience, having visited Manhattan, the ferries operate between Pier 79 and Weehawken, New Jersey. That was the only place a rescue could happen fast enough.” Then-New York Gov. David Paterson called the landing “Miracle on the Hudson,” according to ABC News. Sullenberger rose to celebrity status and was recognized as a hero. (RELATED: Days After Bush’s Death, Slate Publishes Article Critical Of His Service Dog) Prior to gaining publicity, Sullenberger was a fighter pilot for the U.S. Air Force between 1975 and 1980, according to his website. He worked with Pacific Southwest Airlines after his Air Force years before switching over to US Airways. Sullenberger is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and holds two master’s degrees – a masters in industrial psychology from Purdue University and one in public administration from the University of Northern Colorado. Sullenberger stopped flying commercially in March 2010. Since the miracle landing, Sullenberger became a #1 New York Times best-selling author for his book, “Highest Duty: My Search for What Really Matters.” He also became a speaker, lecturer, and a member on Department of Transportation’s Advisory Committee on Automation in Transportation. Actor Tom Hanks portrayed Sullenberger in the 2016 movie “Sully.” Sullenberger kept some items from the incident. Mementos included weather and forecast reports, his trip sheet, a slip of paper showing how much fuel was added to the jet and a schedule of flights, ABC reported. Follow Neetu on Twitter Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.<doc-sep>"We can't do it. We're gonna be in the Hudson," Sullenberger can be heard saying before radar contact is lost. 10 Years After Miracle on the Hudson, Cockpit Audio Recording of Captain Sully Is Still Chilling It’s been ten years since Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger safely landed a jet on the Hudson River, but the dramatic event is still miraculous to watch — and listen to. The event that became known as the Miracle on the Hudson, occurred on the afternoon of January 15, 2009, when a flock of Canada geese collided with US Airways flight 1549, knocking out both of the plane’s engines. Get push notifications with news, features and more. After realizing he could not make it back to LaGuardia airport, where the plane had taken off, or an air strip in New Jersey, that air traffic controllers had cleared for an emergency landing, Captain Sullenberger, a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, managed to land the plane on the Hudson River, saving the lives of everyone on board. Plane in River, New York, USA - 15 Jan 2009 Credit: Steven Day/AP/REX/Shutterstock While the terrifying incident and ensuing rescue by emergency services and nearby ferry boats, ended with all 153 passengers and crew members alive and safely on dry land, the audio recording of Sullenberger’s conversation with air traffic controllers is still chilling to listen to. “This is Cactus 1549. Hit birds. We’ve lost thrust in both engines. We’re turning back to LaGuardia,” Sullenberger says to the controller, referencing the plane’s call sign. “We may end up in the Hudson,” he adds, sounding extremely calm. Plane In River, New York, USA - 15 Jan 2009 Credit: Edouard H R Gluck/AP/REX/Shutterstock The air traffic controller tells him he is cleared to return to LaGuardia and make an emergency landing, but Sullenburger replies, “Unable.” The controller can then be heard trying to arrange for him to land at nearby Teeterboro airport in New Jersey and ensuring he’s got a clear path there. New York Plane in River, New Yrok, USA - 15 Jan 2009 Credit: Bebeto Matthews/AP/REX/Shutterstock But when he returns to the conversation with Sullenberger, the pilot says simply, “We can’t do it. We’re gonna be in the Hudson.” The recording ends, “Cactus 1549, radar contact is lost.” US Airways Passenger Jet Crashes Into Hudson River By NYC Credit: Chris McGrath/Getty In a second recording, the controller at LaGuardia can be heard calling in emergency services. “Get me a police department helicopter . . . right now,” he says. “You get anybody. You send them right to the Lincoln Tunnel. We had a cactus Airbus go down in the water . . . He went down in the river [up near] the Intrepid.” The Intrepid is an aircraft carrier docked on the Hudson and a clear landmark from the air. captain-sully-chesley-sullenburger Captain Sully, as he became affectionately known, now 67, was heralded as a hero following the event and was suddenly the most famous pilot in the world. He later became the subject of the film Sully, directed by Clint Eastwood, and starring Tom Hanks. He told PEOPLE in a 2016 interview, that making peace with the hero label – or as he calls it the ‘H word’ – was a great struggle. Plane in River, New York, USA - 15 Jan 2009 Credit: Bebeto Matthews/AP/REX/Shutterstock “I resisted the H word initially,” says Sullenberger, who remains in regular contact with the group of grateful passengers whose lives he saved. “But I certainly have grown to understand people’s need to feel the way they feel about this event and, by extension, about me.” In an interview with ABC News marking the anniversary, the now-retired pilot said, “I never had any extraneous thoughts in those few seconds that we had. I didn’t allow myself to and I didn’t have any inclination to. I never thought about my family. I never thought about anything other than controlling the flight path and solving each problem in turn until, finally, we had solved them all.”<doc-sep>Captain Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger has tweeted the events of the day he landed US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River after double engine failure, as if he were reliving those events in real time on the 10 year anniversary of the great feat. Capt. Sully helmed the controls on January 15, 2009, as the plane he piloted collided with a flock of geese after takeoff from New York City's LaGuardia Airport, shortly after 3pm Eastern. '#Flight1549 was completely routine and unremarkable - for the first 100 seconds,' Sully wrote, as he relayed the event in extreme detail over on Tuesday over his Twitter account @Captsully, just as he lived it a decade ago in real time. All 155 people on board survived the plane's crash landing into the Hudson River, which has since been dubbed the 'Miracle on the Hudson.' Some of those survivors, including Sully, raised a glass on Tuesday in North Carolina, at the museum where the plane's remains are on display, in celebration of living to tell the tale. Scroll down for video In posts prepared ahead of time, Captain Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger tweeted the events of the day he landed US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River after double engine failure, as if he were reliving those events in real time on the 10 year anniversary of the great feat. Sully (third from left) is pictured sharing a toast with members of the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 at the Carolinas Aviation Museum in Charlotte, North Carolina on Tuesday, to mark the 10th anniversary of the 'Miracle on the Hudson' '10 years ago today the lives of everyone on #Flight1549 changed forever,' Sully began the long string of tweets. 'I offer my recollections here in a series of tweets that I’ve written for my team to send out today' '10 years ago today the lives of everyone on #Flight1549 changed forever,' Sully began the long string of tweets. 'I offer my recollections here in a series of tweets that I’ve written for my team to send out today.' Sully wrote: 'I began a four-day trip on Monday, 1/12/09 in Charlotte, where I met First Officer Jeff Skiles for the first time. 'Wednesday night we had a long layover in Pittsburgh. I later learned Jeff went to see Clint Eastwood’s "Gran Torino." (Eastwood would direct "Sully.")' Sully wrote: 'I began a four-day trip on Monday, 1/12/09 in Charlotte, where I met First Officer Jeff Skiles for the first time. 'Wednesday night we had a long layover in Pittsburgh. I later learned Jeff went to see Clint Eastwood’s "Gran Torino." (Eastwood would direct "Sully.") 'Thursday, January 15, 2009, started like 10,000 other days,' Sully continued. 'It was snowing in Pittsburgh and our plane had to be deiced. I hoped the weather would cooperate so I could get home to California that evening. We made it to LaGuardia only a few minutes behind schedule' The Captain was referring to the movie about the incredible crash landing which came out in 2016, and saw Tom Hanks play the real-life hero. 'Thursday, January 15, 2009, started like 10,000 other days,' Sully continued. 'It was snowing in Pittsburgh and our plane had to be deiced. I hoped the weather would cooperate so I could get home to California that evening. We made it to LaGuardia only a few minutes behind schedule. 'In my luggage onboard #Flight1549, I had a library book – "Just Culture: Balancing Safety and Accountability" by Sidney Dekker; an interesting coincidence that would be talked about later.' In this January 10, 2019 photo, US Airways Flight 1549 passenger Steve O'Brien poses for a photo at his home in Charlotte, North Carolina, with an editorial cartoon framed with his boarding pass from the flight that crash-landed in the Hudson River on January 19, 2009. 'In my luggage onboard #Flight1549, I had a library book – "Just Culture: Balancing Safety and Accountability" by Sidney Dekker; an interesting coincidence that would be talked about later.' One of those later conversations occurred during questioning by the National Transportation and Safety Board, where Sully discussed pilot authority, corporate culture, airplane design and more, as detailed by NPR in November of 2009 One of those later conversations occurred during questioning by the National Transportation and Safety Board, where Sully discussed pilot authority, corporate culture, airplane design and more, as detailed by NPR in November of 2009. But those topics weren't at the forefront of everyone's mind on the anniversary of the crash, as Sully's team posted his tweets. 'I still have the fuel slip from #Flight1549. After a brief stop we were ready to go,' Sully went on, adding military time stamps to subsequent tweets, which highlighted how quickly thinks began to unravel. '15:24:54: First Officer Jeff Skiles and I were ready and LaGuardia tower cleared our flight – identified as "Cactus 1549" – for takeoff. And like nearly every other flight I’d had for 42 years, #Flight1549 was completely routine and unremarkable - for the first 100 seconds,' he said. 'I still have the fuel slip from #Flight1549. After a brief stop we were ready to go,' Sully went on, adding military time stamps to subsequent tweets, which highlighted how quickly thinks began to unravel '15:26:00 Air Traffic Controller Patrick Harten: "Cactus 1549, New York departure, radar contact, climb and maintain one five thousand." '15:26:03 Me: "maintain one five thousand Cactus 1549." '15:27:07 Me: "after takeoff checklist complete."' And then, the moment everything changed happened. 'I saw the birds three seconds before we struck them; we were traveling 316 feet per second and could not avoid them,' Sully wrote 'I saw the birds three seconds before we struck them; we were traveling 316 feet per second and could not avoid them,' Sully wrote. '15:27:10 Me: "Birds." '15:27:11 Jeff: "Whoa." '15:27:12 Jeff: "Oh sh&*." '15:27:13 Me: "Oh yeah."' He continued: 'We could feel and hear the thumps and thuds as we struck the birds, followed by a shuddering, and then a rumbling sound coming from the engines. We felt them rolling back' He continued: 'We could feel and hear the thumps and thuds as we struck the birds, followed by a shuddering, and then a rumbling sound coming from the engines. We felt them rolling back. '15:27:15 Me: "We got one rol- both of ‘em rolling back."' In aviation parlance, 'engine rollback' refers generally to engine failure to thrust, or an engine that is not responding to a pilot's commands. In aviation parlance, 'engine rollback' refers generally to engine failure to thrust, or an engine that is not responding to a pilot's commands 'As the engines rolled back, they made the most sickening, pit-of-your-stomach sound, "whoooooooo" as they ran down. It was a sudden, complete, symmetrical loss of thrust. I had never experienced anything like it before,' Sully wrote. 'Within two and a half seconds, I had begun to take the first two remedial actions by memory. I turned on the engine ignition and started the aircraft’s auxiliary power unit. '15:27:18 Me: "Ignition, start." '15:27:21 Me: "I’m starting the APU."' 'Within two and a half seconds, I had begun to take the first two remedial actions by memory. I turned on the engine ignition and started the aircraft’s auxiliary power unit,' he wrote Sully went on to explain why he took that measure, almost involuntarily Sully went on to explain why he took that measure, almost involuntarily. 'The engine ignition would allow the engines to recover if they could. The APU would provide a backup source of electrical power, especially important in a fly-by-wire airplane like the Airbus A320, where there is not a direct mechanical connection to the controls,' he wrote. 'I took control of the aircraft as Jeff and I completed verbatim the important transfer of aircraft control protocol: '15:27:23 Me: "My aircraft." '15:27:24 Jeff: "Your aircraft."' 'I took control of the aircraft as Jeff and I completed verbatim the important transfer of aircraft control protocol: 15:27:23 Me: "My aircraft." 15:27:24 Jeff: "Your aircraft."' he wrote<doc-sep>
A decade after successfully landing a crippled US Airways jet on an icy slice of the Hudson River straddling New York and New Jersey, Capt. Chesley Sullenberger tells ABC News of the mementos he keeps from his most famous flight, what it was like to be portrayed on the silver screen by actor Tom Hanks and if he ever plans to go into politics. Watch "Good Morning America" Tuesday, Jan. 15, at 7 a.m. ET for Amy Robach’s exclusive interview with Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger. On the 10th anniversary of what former New York Gov. David Paterson dubbed the "Miracle on the Hudson," the pilot America came to know by his nickname "Sully" answers 10 questions: ABC News: Is there any part of the story that the world hasn't yet heard? Sullenberger: Many people know that I retired from US Airways just over a year after the famous flight, after over 30 years of airline flying, but many do not know that I did not retire from working; I just changed professions, not just as a speaker, author, and safety expert, but also as an advocate for the safety of the traveling public, and for safety in every industry. When I realized that the sudden notoriety had given me a greater voice, I felt an intense obligation to use this bully pulpit for good, including now as a defender of our democracy. ABC News: What was it like to be portrayed by Tom Hanks in the movie "Sully: Miracle on the Hudson"? Did you take him on a flight? Sullenberger: It doesn't get any better than to have Tom Hanks portray you in a movie. I think he was everyone's first choice. And while I did not take him flying, I did get Tom and Aaron Eckhart, who played our first officer, Jeff Skiles, in an airline simulator to help them understand how airline pilots work closely together as a crew, how even pilots who have never met before (as was the case for Jeff and me) can quickly form an expert team, and the critically important team skills necessary to create the kind of collegial atmosphere we must have to be able to suddenly face a crisis we have never trained for, solve a problem we've never seen before, and get it right the first time, in 208 seconds. ABC News: Now that you are retired, do you fly privately for pleasure and have you had any near misses since the Hudson River landing? Sullenberger: Flying is still a lifelong passion for me, and I fly privately for business and personal travel over shorter distances, as well as traveling a lot as a passenger on all the major airlines. No close calls. ABC News: What is the thing you remember most about Jan. 15, 2009, and what was your last thought before you hit the water? Sullenberger: Right before the landing, I knew that without engine thrust, and using gravity to provide the forward motion of the airplane, it was going to be a hard landing. My thought right before we touched down was, "This is going to be bad." But when we stopped in the water and it was obvious that the airplane was intact, stable, and floating, Jeff and I turned to each other and simultaneously said, "That wasn't as bad as I thought!" ABC News: Did you ever think you were going to die, or had doubt that you and Skiles could pull it off? Sullenberger: I never thought I was going to die that day. Even though we had never trained for this scenario. In our flight simulators, it was not possible to practice a water landing; the only training we got for a water landing was a theoretical classroom discussion and reading a few paragraphs in a manual. I was confident we could find a way to solve all the many problems we faced. ABC News: Do you keep anything with you from that day? Sullenberger: I kept a few pieces of the flight paperwork: the weather reports and forecasts, the fuel slip specifying the amount of fuel added for the flight, and my trip sheet, a small piece of paper with the schedule of flights on this four-day trip. ABC News: Who do you thank for getting you through that moment?