Yesterday was a weird day for reasons I won't get into. It did however give me ammo for 2 blogs so I will knock this quick one out. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger retired after a 30 year career as a commercial pilot. Just over a year ago nobody knew who he was, but the whole "miracle on the Hudson" thing sort of changed that. Yes he returned to flying a few months back, but for all intents and purposes he could never be the same guy he was before 1549. He will forever be known as the guy that made the one in a million landing and that probably made it difficult to do his day job. Sully never sought out the fame. It just happened and in todays internet age the public could not get enough. I'm sure the millions of cards and letters were fine, but the daily updates of his flights on the internet and he constant handshakes and photos have taken their toll. Especially for a guy who is very quiet. I'm currently reading his book and it paints a picture of a nice family man who was very well trained and just wanted to fly from the time he was young. He's done that and now its time to move on.
Yesterday he took off from Hollywood/Ft. Lauderdale International Airport (FLL) for his last flight before retirement, US Airways Flight 1167 to Charlotte North Carolina. Joining him was Jeff Skiles who was also beside him on that fateful day last January. Following the push back from the gate, the flight was given priority taxi clearance on Taxiway Alpha for a westerly departure on runway 27R. At the end of the taxiway, Ft Lauderdale Tower ATC communicated a very nice tribute to Sully before giving him his clearance to line up and hold. In his usual professional voice, the reply to the tribute was “Thank You. Confirm Cactus 1167 cleared to line up and hold.” The take off clearance was equally professionally acknowledged and the Airbus A321 (N181UW) rolled down runway 27R and climbed out into the cloudy South Florida skies. With that takeoff completed he moved on his life. I wish him well.
