WASHINGTON, June 9 (UPI) -- The US Airways pilot who successfully landed in the Hudson River told a inquiry panel Tuesday training in water landings should be mandatory for all pilots.
The same day that the National Transportation Safety Board began its three-day hearing into January's "Miracle on the Hudson" landing, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt announced they ordered FAA inspectors to immediately focus on training programs to ensure regional airlines comply with federal regulations.
"I have no greater obligation than to ensure the safety of airline travelers in this country," LaHood said in a release.
US Airways Flight 1549 pilot, Capt. Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, was forced to ditch the Airbus into the river after Canada geese were sucked into plane's engines, disabling them. All 155 people on board were safely evacuated.
Sullenberger told the NTSB panel that with no simulation training for a water ditching, he used his 40-plus years of flying experience and common sense to navigate a successful outcome, The New York Times reported.
LaHood and Babbitt said representatives from the major air carriers, their regional partners, aviation industry groups and labor will meet in Washington Monday to participate in a "call to action" to improve airline safety and pilot training.
"It's clear to us in looking at the February Colgan Air crash in Buffalo that there are things we should be doing now," Babbitt said. "My goal is to make sure that the entire industry... is meeting our safety standard."
All 49 people aboard the commuter plane were killed in the Feb. 12 crash, as well as one person in a house, when the plane crashed short of the Buffalo, N.Y., airport. The plane was operated by commuter carrier Colgan Air Inc., a division of Pinnacle Airlines Corp.
