Most of us remember that remarkable incident of averting
an air disaster when Captain “Sully” Sullenberger successfully ditched a
commercial airliner in the Hudson River alongside the Manhattan skyline after
losing both engines to a flock of geese on takeoff. That man, otherwise
ordinary except that he was suddenly and unexpectedly elevated to hero status
for saving the lives of all on board, became an overnight media sensation. The
talk shows wanted him for five minutes on air. Magazines wanted to delve into
his personal history to find something in his past that led to his calm during
what appeared to be certain death for everyone. What if it had turned out that
he was drunk or high on drugs at the time? Would that negate the good he did in
saving lives? What if the hypothetical alcohol in his system actually helped
him relax enough to safely land the plane on the water? How does that change
our approach to him as a human being and as a pilot?
