Engine Recovered and Pilot Honored
By: /NBC
Updated: January 24, 2009
A big break for investigators of the US Airways plane that landed on the Hudson River.
Divers were able to retrieve the plane's missing engine from the frigid waters and now they work to piece together what happened to the plane begins in earnest.
It was the only major missing piece of US airways 1549.
Salvage crews finally lifted the plane's mangled left engine out of the icy waters of Manhattan's Hudson River.
Dangling wires and a mangled outer shell revealed some of the damage caused when the Airbus plunged into the river more than a week ago.
New security video, released by Utility Company Con Edison, shows the miraculous moments when the plane splashed down and the quick evacuation of passengers and crew.
All 155 on board survived the emergency water landing.
Pilot Chesley Sullenberger and co-pilot Jeff Skiles reported hitting a flock of geese just after takeoff from LaGuardia.
NTSB investigators will now examine the recovered left engine for evidence of a bird strike.
Inspectors have already found remnants of what they call organic material in the right engine along with a single feather attached to wing's flap track.
While investigators continue their probe into the cause, the community of Danville, California is welcoming back hometown hero "Sully" Sullenberger.
Thousands of people turned out to honor Pilot Sullenberger and his family in their hometown Today, he was honored for his courageous act of heroism and was given the key to the city of Danville.
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"Lorrie and I are grateful for your incredible outpouring of support. It's great to be home in Danville with our neighbors and our friends. Circumstance determined that it was this experienced crew that was scheduled to fly that particular flight on that particular day. I can speak for the entire crew when i tell you we were simply doing the jobs we were trained to do. Thank you."
Meanwhile his wife Lorrie says, "I knew when I married Sully, the one thing I knew for sure he was the most honorable man I knew. I have always known him to an exemplary pilot. I knew what the outcome would be that day because I knew my husband. But mostly for me, he's the man that makes my cup of tea every morning."







