miracle on the hudson

VAULT: 'Miracle on the Hudson' breaking news coverage from 2009

By Eyewitness News
Monday, January 15, 2024
Watch archive footage from WABC/Eyewitness News showing breaking news coverage of the 'Miracle on the Hudson' -- which happened January 15, 2009.
NEW YORK (WABC) -- Fifteen years ago Monday, US Airways Flight 1549 crash-landed on the Hudson River with no fatalities, causing it to be dubbed "Miracle on the Hudson."

Eyewitness News had extensive breaking news coverage on-air and online as soon as word of the water landing hit our newsroom that cold afternoon.
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Re-watch our coverage from that day, pulled from our vast video archive, in the player above.

The event made Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger a household name after the courageous captain and his crew piloted the crippled jet and made an unthinkable belly-first landing on the frigid waters of the Hudson.

Two years ago, Sullenberger asked for thoughts from people who were in any way affected by the events of that day.

"As we reflect this year, Lorrie & I would love to hear from those who were affected in any way - what memories you have & the story you took with you from your experience," he wrote on Twitter. The entire thread can be read below.








Miraculously, all 155 people on board were rescued. But watching a plane with people standing on the wings in freezing temperatures floating down the Hudson was a sight many could not believe -- or forget.



Our live coverage continued with extensive coverage from the ground and in the air. Watch part 2 here:
2009 breaking news coverage: Miracle on the Hudson (part 2)

Hours later, Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave an update. You can watch it here:
2009 breaking news coverage: Miracle on the Hudson (part 3)

Our team coverage continued at 7 p.m. that night. Watch it here:
2009 breaking news coverage: Miracle on the Hudson (part 4)

We followed that special report with in-depth reporting at 11 p.m. that night:
2009 breaking news coverage: Miracle on the Hudson (part 5)

Check out photos of the scene of the landing here:
An Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that crashed into the Hudson River was towed to the west side of Manhattan for further inspection.none
Passengers in an inflatable raft move away from an Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that has gone down in the Hudson River in New York.none
Passengers in an inflatable raft prepare to move away from an Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that has gone down in the Hudson River in New York.none
Passengers in an inflatable raft prepare to move away from an Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that has gone down in the Hudson River in New York.none
Authorities move an unidentified passenger, second from right, to a waiting ambulance after the plane she was on crashed into the Hudson River, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009.none
An Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that went down in the Hudson River is seen in New York, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009.none
An Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that went down in the Hudson River is seen in New York, Thursday, Jan. 15, 2009.none
Passengers in an inflatable raft move away from an Airbus 320 US Airways aircraft that has gone down in the Hudson River in New York.none
New York City police officers look over part of the US Airways Airbus 320 that crashed into the Hudson River on Thursday, January 15, 2009none
A crane looms over the submerged wreckage of US Airways flight 1549 as it prepares to lift the Airbus A320 from its makeshift mooring.none
The wreckage of US Airways Flight 1549 is lifted from the waters of lower Manhattan Saturday, Jan. 17, 2009, in New York.none
The wreckage of US Airways Flight 1549 sits on a barge after being lifted out of the Hudson River at the southern tip of Manhattan as seen from Jersey City.none
A worker looks into the damaged right engine of the US Airways Airbus A320 that made an emergency landing in the Hudson River.none
With Jersey City in the background, a crippled US Airways Flight 1549 rests on a barge on the Hudson River in New York, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2009.none
The wreckage of US Airways Flight 1549 sits on a barge at Weeks Marina in Jersey City, N.J. on Monday, Jan. 19, 2009.none
Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, the US Airways pilot who landed in New York's Hudson River with all onboard escaping safely, smiles during a homecoming celebration.none
The fuselage of the U.S. Airways jetliner that splashed down into the Hudson River is escorted by police on Saturday Jan. 31, 2009.none
Air Traffic Control Specialist Patrick Harten, right, is all smiles as US Airways flight 1549 Capt. Chesley B Sullenberger III.none
US Airways jet, flight 1549, is trucked onto local streets after leaving J. Supor and Sons warehouse in Harrison, N.J.none

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BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Flight 1549 had just taken off from LaGuardia Airport for Charlotte, North Carolina, when a flock of geese disabled the engines.

Circling west and then over the George Washington Bridge, the plane with 150 passengers and five crew members glided to a water landing.



"I saw half the plane submerged in the water and was just astounded by the miraculous event that just occurred and was just thankful, just absolutely thankful," passenger Ian Wells said.
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Those on board then began moving precariously out onto both wings in what has become an iconic picture.

"I went out and slipped off the wing and went into the water," passenger Eileen Shleffar said.

Watching the unbelievable drama unfold, ferry captains from New York Waterways then became the first to reach the plane and began rescuing people.

Captain Vince Lombardi's boat was the first.

"It just goes to prove what discipline and hard work and teamwork, how successful it turns out," he said.



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