UrbanFaith is still marveling over yesterday’s miracle on the Hudson River, when US Airways Flight 1549 landed safely there after double engine failure over New York. We send up a big hallelujah that not one of the 155 passengers on board the plane were lost. Props also must go out to the plane’s heroic pilot, Chesley Sullenberger, whose decisive courage averted what would have been certain disaster.
One of the most interesting stories we’ve seen on this day after is found at Newsweek.com, where veteran pilot Rob Schapiro describes the difficulties of water landings like the one Sullenberger pulled off yesterday. He says:
Water landing is hard and unpredictable. When you hit water at a very high speed, you can break the aircraft up as if you were hitting land. But if you hit it right, the water slows you down quickly. The danger of fire is hugely reduced. If you get it right–like this guy did–the plane floats. A few years ago, there was a Boeing 767 that had been hijacked and was out of fuel. That plane hit the water, lost its tail and just ripped apart. Unfortunately, that’s the more likely scenario for a water landing.
Make no mistake, God is always in control—keeping the universe going. Our lives are filled with multitudes of quiet, unrecognized miracles each day. (Have you ever thought about the stuff that could’ve happened to you but didn’t?) But sometimes God gives us the opportunity to witness His miracles in action in a grand, high-profile fashion. Yesterday was one of those times.