by John Darer
Sorry to go off point here but I just can't shut up about Tom Nomako's shoddy reporting in Wednesday's New York Post about the above captioned incident that Nomako calls "similar to the one that force a US Airways plane to splash down in the Hudson in January".
I've compiled a comparison of the two incidents to show just how "similar"
US 1549 AA1256
Wikipedia Page Yes No
Pilot International Hero "Sully" No details available
Aboard 155 138
Aircraft Airbus 320 Boeing 737
Birdstrike On Climb Out About to Land
Elevation 3,200 feet 900 feet
Fuel Tank Full Pretty empty after 3 hours of flying
Fate Controlled ditching Landed safely
Damage Both engines taken out Damaged landing gear
Injuries 5 serious, 73 minor None
Passenger
Awareness 100% aware, saying prayers Nobody aware
Smell Barbecue Salty peanuts
Culprit Multiple Canada Geese A Seagull
Max wt/bird 7-14lbs male 5.5-12 (female) each 4.2ox -3.8lbs
NY Post HEY, GEESE, GET THE FLOCK OUT! BYE-BYE, BIRDIES
Notable quotes:
US 1549
"Got any ideas?"
" We're gonna be in the Hudson"
AA1256
"The passengers came off the plane and after coming inside the terminal…only then did they learn about the bird strike"
It's kind of frightening. When we landed I was kind of sleeping and jolted me" 16 year old passenger
"No one panicked," said Ariana Serpico, 26, who was aboard with her 2-year-old daughter. "We didn't even know what was going on."
In conclusion
- Thankfully nobody died in either incident.
- As someone who has 30 or more years of experience with the often jolting "kerplunk" nature of landings at La Guardia I find myself a bit skeptical of the 16 year old's "story", as reported.
- After The Post recently went into the sordid details of the Avian Gestapo "death squads" rounding up Canada Geese into cattle cars bound for the gas chambers at Goosewitz, Nomako notes that Canada Geese aren't flying around as much because they are molting (didn't he mean "molten"?)
- The point is that "Nomako no sense" would "mako" much more sense if he simply reported the facts instead of trying to sensationalize a frickin' 3.8 lb bird to sell a newspaper.
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