There is a tonne of video, now, of the landing and evacuation of US Airlines Flight 1549. Some of the best was captured by a US Coastguard video camera, from which this screen shot was taken.
I suppose I could post the YouTube as well, but you might as well watch it on a credible news source.
A couple of things strike me.
- The plane is floating, and it is drifting – drifting I say – downstream. The plane floats perpendicular to the current – the wings are in line with the the flow of the river.
- In the first minute, many passengers have already evacuated the plane and are standing on the wings. The plane floats (Airbuses better than Boeings).
- Within two minutes, a commuter ferry is heading towards the downstream wing of the plane.
- It seems to pay to wear non-slip soled shoes when flying.
- By four minutes after the crash, the first ferry has arrived at the plane. Another smaller boat is approaching the upstream wing.
Moral of this story? Pay attention to the flight safety demonstration at the beginning of the flight. And know where you emergency exits are. Not because it’s a certainty that your plane will one day crash, but because one day, it just might.
This episode, along with 2005 Air France crash (particularly that one) tell the tale. Choose your airline carefully.