He’s happy not to be called Chesley.
When I was reading the accident report for this, I was amazed at what these pilots and crew go through.
Before the accident, Sully was living in San Francisco.
The rest of this comes from the report
"On January 12, the captain began a 4-day trip sequence with the first officer. He stated that they departed CLT (Charlotte, NC) at 1806 and arrived at San Francisco International Airport (SFO), San Francisco, California, at 2119 PST.17 He stated that he spent the evening at home and that he went to sleep about 2300 PST.
On January 13, the captain awoke about 0700 PST and ate breakfast. He stated that he left his house about 1100 PST and arrived at SFO about 1220 PST. The flight departed SFO about 1315 PST and arrived at PIT about 2100. The captain stated that the total layover time in Pittsburgh was about 10 hours. He added that he did not recall what time he went to bed.
On January 14, the captain awoke about 0510 and ate breakfast. He stated that the quality of his sleep the previous night was good or average and that, although he did not get 8 hours of sleep, he was “ok” and felt “normal.” The flight crew flew from PIT to LGA and then back to PIT. The captain stated that the total layover time in Pittsburgh was long. He added that he went for a walk around town, ate dinner, answered some e-mails, and went to bed about 2200.
On January 15, the captain awoke about 0640. He stated that the quality of his sleep the previous night was good and that he felt rested. The captain ate breakfast at PIT. The captain’s first flight departed PIT at 0856 and arrived at CLT at 1055, at which point the flight crew changed to the accident airplane. The captain stated that he did not get anything to eat in CLT. The flight departed CLT at 1154 and arrived at LGA at 1423. The captain stated that, because they had a quick turnaround at LGA, he purchased a sandwich to eat on the airplane after departure." (Apparently, the sandwich was not either chicken or fish (or Lasagna)
Thus, in the 4 days before the plane accident
Sully went from
Charlotte, North Caroline - San Francisco, California (Across the country once)
San Francisco - Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh - New York- Pittsburgh (Across the country a second time + even more)
Pittsburgh - Charlotte - New York (roughly 1/2 way across the country)
Then on the crashed flight, they were scheduled to go back to Charlotte (which would have been roughly 1/2 way across the country again)
Thus, in 4 days, Sully would have done the equivalent of crossing the country (East to West or West to East) 3 times in 4 days.:eek:
That seems like a lot of travel for one person in only 4 days but from what I have been told is that is not unusual for many pilots in the industry as once you refuse more than a few flights (for whatever reason), you get put lower on the priority list and get less flights in or get bumped down to the smaller regional carriers.
The other thing that surprised me is that there was only 5 crew members on the plane. (2 pilots and 3 flight attendants) for 150 passengers. (roughly a 1:30 ratio)
Also, the ages of the pilots were 57 (Sully) and 49 (first officer)
The three flight attendants were 58, 57, and 51 meaning that the youngest crew member was 49 years old.
The nearest comparison that I can make is the cruise industry. A cruise ship will typically have about one support person for every 2 passengers or so. (roughly 1000 crew for 2000 passengers)
Granted, I am not comparing apples to apples as cruise ships have to offer more amenities which require does require to having more staff but the difference in staffing is remarkable.
However, this may explain why Sully (who is one of the more respected pilots) mentioned that he would NOT enter the aviation industry currently.
I probably babbled on too long
s
The idea of making this a movie about one man is ridiculous and a little offensive.
I have nothing but admiration for Captain Sullenberger, he made good decisions under difficult circumstances and should be commended for it, but please.
Maybe they’re already working on the sequel, “Jeff”.
[the bystander who jumped into the freezing water to save a drowning passenger; don’t actually know his name].
…“And do you happen to cohabit with a large flock of Canada geese?”
Nah…
If those other guys had landed a plane on a river with no one seriously hurt, they’d be making a movie about them, too.
Sully himself says he only did what he was trained to do. I don’t think he is unique; there are other pilots that could have done the same thing. But the whole thing makes for a good story and Sully’s background is a part of that.
You need to tune in to the right channel.
The co-pilot’s name is Jeffrey Skiles.
He’s on an episode of “American Pickers”; they’re at a barn full of airplane memorabilia, and he says, “I’m famous.” They ask him why (of course you know it’s all a setup, but anyway) and he says, “Chesley Sullenberger wasn’t the only pilot in the cockpit on that day.”
As for having so few flight attendants, maybe it was because it was a relatively short flight and they didn’t anticipate needing any extra help?
p.s. I said “human” because it’s not unlikely that there were animals that drowned in the cargo hold. 
Code of Federal Regulations
Part 121 OPERATING REQUIREMENTS: DOMESTIC, FLAG, AND SUPPLEMENTAL OPERATIONS
A320-214 aircraft N106US was configured for exactly 150 passenger seats (12F, 138Y). Thus, 3 flight attendants required. There were 149 occupied seats plus one lap-held infant.
The airline told the NY Times that there were no live animals on the flight and they don’t carry pets in the cargo hold.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/17/nyregion/17scene.html?_r=0
Not to derail but…did you see the one about the guy who landed on some kind of enbankment when he thought he was going to have to put the plane in a canal? (I may be misremembering a bit). I love the ones where everything works out. They’re so rare.
It was, however, an outstanding movie, and Hanks’s performance was magnificent.
I don’t understand how casting Tom Hanks, one of the greatest actors in the history of cinema, is a bad move. Who would be significantly better in the role?
The ABC Movie of the Week presents, “Flight 1549, Where Are You?”…With Buddy Ebsen, Christopher George, and George Gobels. (Cue Nikki)
“Hundreds of people died today helping Daniel Day-Lewis get into character…”
My problem is that Tom Hanks plays a certain sort of hero (Captain Phillips, The Terminal, Cast Away, You’ve Got Mail, Saving Private Ryan, Apollo 13, Forrest Gump, Philadelphia, Sleepless in Seattle, Joe Versus the Volcano, Big, Splash, etc.) that’s a little too stereotyped for my taste. And, no, I’m not going to expand on that comment. If you disagree with me, fine, then you disagree with me.
Uhhh,“Joe Versus the Volcano” and “Big” don’t fit there,
“You know, Sully… the cockpit door… it Only Works… if you have every single piece…”
“Boo…?”
It’s worth noting thar Sullenberger, on his own initiative, spent extra hours in the simulator rehearsing emergency landings during engine failure. It’s not a story of luck; this was a man who had thoughtfully prepared for even unlikely eventualities.
He was gunnin’ for those birds!