Pilot hailed for Hudson miracle

The pilot of an airliner that ditched in New Yorks Hudson River has been hailed a hero after all 155 passengers and crew were rescued, reports BBC.
The US Airways Airbus A320 made the crash-landing minutes out of LaGuardia airport, both its engines apparently disabled by a flock of birds. Passengers were rescued from the wings or helped from the icy water by divers.
Captain Chesley Sullenberger was praised by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg for his masterful landing. The state governor spoke of a miracle on the Hudson.
The BBCs Greg Wood reports from New York that it was a true delivery from disaster, a commercial airliner forced to ditch in the river just next to the skyscrapers of mid-town Manhattan but with no fatalities.
One person suffered two broken legs and paramedics treated 78 patients, most for minor injuries but, through a combination of luck, the skill of the pilot and a rapid emergency response, 155 people have had a very narrow escape, our correspondent says.
Flight 1549 departed LaGuardia en route to Charlotte, North Carolina, at 1503 local time (2003 GMT), after a delay of 18 minutes, US Airways said.
The pilot reported a double bird strike less than a minute after take-off and asked to return to the ground, before ditching in the Hudson, an air controllers union spokesman said.
Ferryboats arrived within minutes of the crash to begin the rescue as passengers emerged in life jackets.
The temperature was almost -7C and the current in the Hudson was running rapidly.
The plane moved rapidly down river, threatening to submerge at one point, until guided to a halt by tug boats against a pier.
It would appear that the pilot did a masterful job of landing the plane in the river, and then making sure that everybody got out, Mr Bloomberg said Thursday evening.
I had a long conversation with the pilot. He walked the plane twice after everybody else was off and tried to verify that there was nobody else onboard. And assures us there were not.
The mayor also commended emergency services, saying: They train for these kinds of emergencies, and you saw it in action.

Sourece: the Financial Express

Air India Fires 10 Flight Attendants For Being Overweight

State-run carrier Air India fired 10 flight attendants for being "exceptionally overweight," a spokesman said Tuesday.
The staff had been grounded for years and were sacked after a medical board declared them unfit for duty. The airline says they were given ample opportunity to shed weight.
"They haven't been flying for two to three years for being exceptionally overweight," Jitendra Bhargava, the airline's spokesman said.
Bhargava confirmed some of the air hostesses had approached the New Delhi High Court for a legal challenge, which was later thrown out.
"That is their democratic right," he said.
This is not the first time the airline has sacked employees for being overweight, he added.

Sourece: AIRWISE News Date06-01-2009