Captain Sully and Crew on 60 Minutes Tonight.

[WacoFan]

Re: 1549 crew on 60 Minutes

When I was working as an alternate in Inflight management years ago, I went through Eagle's CISD (Critical Incidents Stress Debrief) class. It was a very enlightening experience and it talked a lot about how people react after having been through a "Critical Incident" (a ditching in the Hudson certainly qualifies as that). Every one of those crew members & pax WILL feel the effects of what they have been through. It will affect them all differently, but they will ALL be affected to some degree.

I did not see the segment, but I hear some of you ripping into "the blonde F/A"..... maybe she didn't say things as well as she could/should have, but she has been through a very traumatic experience, and is being interviewed about it to be televised nationally! Let's cut her a little slack. Again, I didn't see it myself, but let's keep in mind what they all have been through.


Personally, I would have a very hard time going on national TV to talk about an incident like that. As an AMR employee, anything we say, any interviews we would give HAD to have the approval of Corporate Communications and AMR Corporate before we would be allowed to utter a peep to anyone. I would be terrified of saying the wrong thing, so I would try hard to not say anything at all.... But that was the militant AMR mindset! Not sure how stuff like that would be there at Airways.

I agree that the blonde FA had a different experience, and she did get a cut/gash on her leg that she said "cut through the muscle". I think that the criticism is her in comparison to the other two FA's, who were just a lot more composed and great. If the other two FA's had been more traumatized by the event, the blondes performance last night wouldn't be generating any comments here. The fact that the other two were awesome in comparison is probably fueling this train of thought.

 

[MQAAord]

While I agree it may be a terrifying incident, the FA allowed a passenger to open an exit door she was standing by because she couldn't control the passenger.

She also stated that she was pushing passengers out of the way and climbing over seats to get out.

Sounds to me like she forgot her job and went into self preservation mode. I'm sorry, but that's not cool.

When the plane I was in with a student caught fire, I instructed the student to exit and get another extingusher. I ran the checklist. I put the fire out with the extinguisher from the cockpit as the student was running to get another.

What I was doing was my job duties: protecting those onboard, then property, then myself.

Just because you're scared, doesn't preclude you from doing your job. Sully even said that.

$.02

Again, I did not see the segment, but as part of our evacuation procedures, sometimes we DO push our way past people. Be it to assess through a window, or get to an assigned duty position.

At AMR, as part of our evacuation procedures, if our "assignment" in an evacuation was to open/operate a window exit (and yes there are times when it's a F/As duty station to get to and operate a window exit) we would come out of our jumpseats shouting "Out of my way" and elbow our way down the aisle to get to the assigned exit.

Not saying this necessarily in defense of this particular F/A, but just as an FYI about F/A duty stations in an evacuation.

 

[moxiepilot]

Again, I did not see the segment, but as part of our evacuation procedures, sometimes we DO push our way past people. Be it to assess through a window, or get to an assigned duty position.

At AMR, as part of our evacuation procedures, if our "assignment" in an evacuation was to open/operate a window exit (and yes there are times when it's a F/As duty station to get to and operate a window exit) we would come out of our jumpseats shouting "Out of my way" and elbow our way down the aisle to get to the assigned exit.

Not saying this necessarily in defense of this particular F/A, but just as an FYI about F/A duty stations in an evacuation.

I definitely recognize that part of the role. It just appeared to me that fright took more of a role in her actions over her training

 

[Orange Anchor]

While I agree it may be a terrifying incident, the FA allowed a passenger to open an exit door she was standing by because she couldn't control the passenger.

She also stated that she was pushing passengers out of the way and climbing over seats to get out.

You might want to listen to the interview again. She didn't say she was pushing pax out of her way but rather was pushing pax so they could get out. Even the other FAs said there was no movement until Sully commanded the evac.

Another point.. the FAs in the front sit facing aft thus they would have absorbed the impact along their backs. The FA in the rear is facing forward so she would have had a very different impact. Talk to any FA who has been onboard for a tail strike and they will have a very different story than the front FAs.

Finally, good work on putting the fire out. But don't be so ready to translate your experience into a license to judge the performance of others. Each accident is like an idiom... not easily translated into another language.

Personally, were I in the accident, I would be very happy to have been wearing dark pants so the stains would not been readily visible.

 

[texas_pilot]

Everybody got baptized with some 'river water' on their pants that morning, I expect.

 

[scramjet]

If you watched the thing, you heard that she pushed passengers out, telling them to get out on the wing, not pushing her way past them. Like I said, no sense micro analyzing a sensationalist media report, but then again what am I doing now? :laff:

 

[youngpilot85]

I would have to agree that the FA was indeed a little over dramatic when asked to give her side of the story as to what transpired following the landing. In the same breath though, I can't imagine the trauma she personally went through, so we should at least be sympathetic in that respect.

Great job by the entire crew. The outcome would not have been successfull without the help of every single member of that crew. In the interview, it was stated that Captain Sully wasn't sure when next he would jump back into the cockpit. I don't blame the guy. It's a lot to take in...

 

[skybobb]

Felt bad for the FO - they gave the PTSD FA more lines. Skiles only got one line and the entire thing was very Sully oriented.

We need to do something for Skiles - god knows nobody else will. We should have a JC virtual meeting in some chatroom, or we should start a thread here to the effect that we appreciate his contribution as well - and then, when we have put up some pages of accolades, someone should direct him to the site. Just an idea.

Sully was measured and did what he had to do as far as the interview goes. You just know that he is preparing to hit the speaking circuit to rake in some dough, so he needed it to be about him - marketing. I don't begrudge him that at all - but we need to do something for Skiles. Skiles is a 23 year FO with USAir, with all their troubles. He will not be able to go on the speaking circuit, and he is not getting lots of mail about how he is the second coming. As far as the general public knows, he is basically invisible.

I know that the captain and the pilot that was doing the flying is getting all of accolades for bringing this situation to a joyous conclusion. I also know that some of you are saying the FO got screwed over. I would like to ask you who the FO was for Al Haynes in the Sioux City in the DC-10 crash. I would like you to look at this about that accident and see what they said about the FO.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_C._Haynes

 

[Qgar]

I finally saw the segment (thanks, YouTube!) The blonde FA seems to have been the most traumatized from the event. Can't you guys cut her a break? Different people respond differently to stressful situations, and people should understand and respect that. IMHO, calling her a "crybaby" and a "drama queen" isn't very nice. Also, remember that working in the rear of an aircraft as opposed to the front is a whole different experience during certain conditions, such as turbulence. I can't imagine (and hope I never get to experience) a crash landing in the water, especially if I'm working the "B" position.

Oh and Tracey, why did you assume the other FA I mentioned I was working with and invited to my room was a female?

 

[JumpWake]

They're all on Larry King right now...I think it's live....

 

[CcrlR737AMT]

Did anyone get the feeling that the questions may have been approved in advance? I'm sure someone at the airline wanted to know what the crew was going to say prior to going on TV.

Even if they were, this rates up to the interview Patrick Swayze did about his pancreatic cancer. It was entertaining and showed their true colors. Even if it was a horrible awful event that had happened to them.