The tenor of the June 9, 2009 hearing was typified by Robert Sumwalt, the NTSB board member who was chairing the inquiry. After several questions, Sumwalt said: “I want to thank you very much for your testimony, for being here this morning, and for representing the piloting profession as you do.”
Accident Report
The board’s final report, adopted on May 4, 2010, gave Sullenberger and Skiles credit for making what should have been a horrific accident survivable for all aboard.
As the agency always does in an accident, it put the pilots’ performance under a microscope. The reason was not to assail them, according to Benzon. It’s part of the process of ensuring similar accidents can be prevented.
Among the areas they examined was whether Sullenberger -- who had taken control of the plane in the emergency -- could have made it back to LaGuardia instead of having to make the dangerous water ditching.
While simulations showed it may have been possible to turn back immediately and land at LaGuardia, it wasn’t reasonable to expect any pilot to have done that without taking a few seconds to assess the situation. By then, it was too late to reach the airport and Sullenberger made the most sensible decision, the NTSB concluded in its report.
"The professionalism of the flight crew members and their excellent crew resource management during the accident sequence contributed to their ability to maintain control of the airplane," the report said.
While the report made no findings even approaching a conclusion of pilot error, it did note that Sullenberger’s flight path toward the water was far steeper and faster than what was optimal for a water landing. That led to a hard landing that caused damage to the plane.
“He was right on the ragged edge all the way down,” Benzon said.
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