Competence, savoir-faire and grace have been demonstrated by many of the participants in this drama, both in the air and on the surface. That is a good thing for aviation, and for America.
Many people, from the first officer to members of the flight crew, from the passengers to the civilian and city rescue crews who converged on the craft to save them, earned accolades on Thursday. But Captain Sullenberger’s efforts, like twice checking the soaked cabin for stragglers before fleeing the sinking plane himself, emerged as singularly selfless leadership of a sort that seemed so removed from things like Ponzi schemes and subprime mortgages, corporate bailouts and deflected blame.
(
New York Times)
And far removed from the events of September 11, where aircraft arcing in the New York skies were harbingers of evil, darkness and sorrow, not of goodness, joy and rescue.