A good story at the right time

A good story at the right time

Americans were hungry for some good news, and on Thursday they got it — courtesy of Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger, his crew on US Airways Flight 1549, a bevy of New York’s finest and, for that matter, the Flight 1549 passengers. And among New York’s finest we include police, fire, Coast Guard, ferry and tugboat captains and crew ... a small army of people who were thrust into the role of first responders when Sullenberger turned an 80-ton Airbus A320 into one of the most graceful gliders in the sky.

If you had Googled the words miracle and Hudson three days ago, you might have gotten a few thousand random hits. Today, you’ll get about 3 million, and you could scroll for hours before finding an entry that didn’t have something to do with the landing of Flight 1549 in the Hudson River and the miraculous result: the plane came to a stop with fuselage and wings intact and all 155 passengers and crew survived. The passenger with the most severe injuries had two broken legs. Some passengers managed to get back to the airport and catch flights that got them to their destination, Charlotte, N.C., on the same day.

Hero of the day

Sullenberger has become an instant celebrity, even though he’s only been seen in one official portrait that has been shown over and over again. Presumably once he’s been interviewed by federal and airline officials, he’ll be made available in some way to the press. Clearly, millions of Americans want to know more about the man who performed a nearly impossible feat.

It is sobering to think about how different things could have been if Sullenberger and others not done just about everything perfectly.

As the nation approaches a new political era, it has Sullenberger’s success on its mind. The stories are about his skill, the skill of the rescuers, the cooperation of the passengers and the lack of panic. It adds to an optimistic mood in a challenging time.

How different it would have been if Sullenberger had not kept the nose up as his plane hit the water, or if he had tried unsuccessfully to make it to a nearby airport and instead crashed into a densely populated area.

His passengers and crew owe Sullenberger thanks, but so do all Americans.