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Water Landings Are So Hot Right Now

Do we need to retrofit airplanes with floats and return them to parking at the docks outside of LaGuardia's Marine Air Terminal? With all the hoopla over US Airways' Hudson River miracle and now the new story of another successful water ditching in Australia, we're thinking that bringing floaties on our next flight isn't such a bad idea.

Just hours after the 60 Minutes interview with US Airways Flight 1549 pilot/hero Captain "Sully" Sullenberger aired, a private jet carrying five passengers and two crew was forced to ditch into the water off the coast of Darwin, Australia. Although this is not a case of freak bird intervention but good old malfunction, the story is still oddly similar to that of the US Airways flight.

In fact, the pilot of the Aussie jet, whose quick thinking saved the lives of all onboard and landed them close enough to walk to shore, has been dubbed "Sully Lite." That's almost like adding insult to injury, essentially making this hero pilot out to be like the diet version of another hero pilot. Silly Australia; don't they realize that as long unavoidable water landings end happily, that there's plenty of room in this world for several pilot heros?

Related Stories:
· Water Landing for Australia Plane [BBC News]
· Australia: Pilot saves 5 after ditching plane in sea [CNN]
· Flight 1549 Coverage [Jaunted]

[Video still: BBC News]