Heroes
17 April 2009
On January 15, 2009, less than two minutes after take-off from LaGuardia Airport in New York City, U.S. Airways Flight 1549 sent out a mayday. The airbus A320 carrying 155 passengers and crew had struck a flock of birds and lost power to both engines. This airliner was going down. To make things worse, it was going down in one of the most densely populated areas in the world – New York City. All the lives on board that airliner and the lives of people down below were suddenly in the hands of one man …
Flight 1549 ’s Captain, Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III.
No fatalities in this accident thanks, in large part, to Captain Sullenberger. Not to minimize the work of his well trained crew who performed their parts flawlessly. The crew gave their credit to Capt. Sullenberger. Capt. Sullengberger guided a powerless 75 ton aircraft over New York City and crash landed in the Hudson River. The first time in 45 years that a major aircraft crash landed in the water and every person on-board survived.
A similar landing in 1996 was not as fortunate. On November 23, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 961 was hijacked by three armed men. Circling the Comoros islands, the airliner ran out of fuel. With nowhere to go but down, Pilot Leul Abate attempted a crash landing in the Indian Ocean. The left wing and engine struck first, causing the airline to spin violently and break apart at 200 mph. 123 of the 175 passengers and crew were killed, as well as the three hijackers.
Ask any pilot, a water landing has to be perfect. Sullenberger told about all the things that have to be considered: air speed, angle of attack, wing balance, trajectory… no place for mistakes. And what a perfect man for the job. Sullenberger had 40 years commercial flying experience, teaches emergency flight procedures, investigates airliner accidents, and was a safety board chairman.
In an interview, Katie Couric asked Capt. Sullenberger, “Did you think ‘How are we going to get ourselves out of this?’” Sullenberger’s reply, “No … I had a job to do … I knew I could do it.” During his interview, Sullenberger said something that I have experienced in my life. Maybe you have too? Sullenberger said, “It’s like my whole life, up to that point, was preparation for that one moment.”
Amen, Sully …
It was no accident that Capt. Sullenberger was on that flight. Far from coincidence that Capt. Sullenberger had years of training and experience in accident investigation and emergency procedures. Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberg III was there on PURPOSE … For a PURPOSE.
Paul explained to the church in Rome that GOD causes things to happen for the good of His purpose for them (ROM 8:28). Did you catch that? GOD causes things to happen for His purpose. So all the schooling and expertise you have … hero training! All the experiences (good and bad) that you’ve gone through – hero training! God’s got a plan, and YOU are the hero part of it.
Maybe your part doesn’t involve landing an Airbus A320 in the Hudson river. But I guarantee that what ever it is, you’ve been training for it your whole life.
You’ve got a job to do … It’s HERO time.
This is great stuff. I’m not a police officer, but a friend of mine was on your retreat at Camp Eagle. Keep up the good work!