Sullenberger: Airline Cuts Invite Risks

(AP) - A federal aviation official says the plane that crashed into a house near Buffalo, killing 50 people, was on autopilot when it went down, a possible violation of airline policy in icy weather. Steve Chealander of the National Transportation Safety Board says Colgan Air recommends pilots fly manually in icy conditions. Pilots are required to do so in severe ice. More»

'Thank you' inadequate for speedy rescuers, says Sully

(NEWSER) - The moments after the engines of US Airways Flight 1549 died were the worst of his life, hero pilot Chesley Sullenberger tells Katie Couric in a 60 Minutes interview to air Monday. Disbelief was followed by a "sickening, pit-of-your-stomach, falling-through-the-floor feeling," as an eerie silence and a disturbing smell filled the plane, he recalled. More»

Survivors embrace heroes at '60 Minutes' taping

(NEWSER) - The passengers of US Airways Flight 1549 thanked and embraced hero pilot Chesley Sullenberger at a meeting in Charlotte, NC, the Charlotte Observer reports. As part of a 60 Minutes episode on the crash, about 50 of the passengers and their families met the crew of Flight 1549. “There was a tremendous outpouring of love from the families to Capt. Sullenberger,” said Mark Hood, one of the passengers. More»

'Sully' from age when pilots were trained to be mavericks

(NEWSER) - In an era when pilots are trained to minimize risk and stick to standard procedures, Chesley Sullenberger of Flight 1549 may be one of the last of his kind, New York magazine reports. He was trained in an earlier era, one in which pilots were treated as gods, and a military mentality was embraced. Many had fought in Vietnam, and thus were trained to take risks. More»

Copilot reports Obama is a 'very, very nice guy'

(NEWSER) - He helped saved 155 people with the successful water landing of US Airways Flight 1549, but co-pilot Jeff Skiles says he was only doing his job. "I'm just an airline pilot, and that's what we do,” Skiles told the New York Post. "We weren't doing anything any other pilot wouldn't have done." More»