(This post is dedicated to the people affected by the wildfires in Los Angeles. Also this is dedicated to our first responders who keep us safe. Whether there are wildfires or a plane crashing into the Hudson, they are there to keep you safe).
So with the 16th anniversary of the Miracle on the Hudson River on the horizon, I decided to watch the movie Sully starring Tom Hanks and Aaron Eckhart as Captain Sully Sullenberger and First Officer Jeff Skiles respectively. The film does a great job overall covering what happened on that cold January day as to how Sully and Skiles were able to land the plane safely on the Hudson. But after watching it, I did some research to see what the film didn’t get right and it mainly dealt with the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) hearings as depicted in the film. So while this won’t be a review per se, I’ll go into the inaccuracies in the film as well as the legacy of flight 1549.
Inaccuracies
The biggest controversy surrounding this movie was how the NTSB was depicted. In an CBS News article from 2016, former NTSB investigators criticized the film for depicting them as trying to smear Sully as if they were prosecutors. When making the film, director Clint Eastwood wanted to name the investigators but Sully vetoed that suggestion according to Tom Hanks. Malcolm Brenner who was one of the investigators for flight 1549 said that “he was impressed with what Sully did as well as how he is using his fame to promote aviation safety.” In response to the controversy, Eastwood claimed that “the NTSB tried to railroad Sullenberger by trying to paint a picture that the captain was wrong in his judgement.” In addition, the head of the NTSB in 2009 Tom Hautner warned that, “the film could discourage pilots and other employees in the industry to not cooperate with the NTSB which could result in more people saying the government is incompetent.” So while the movie did have its controversies, it shouldn’t take away from the heroics of that day.
Legacy of Flight 1549
The Legacy of US Airways Flight 1549 is still endures to this day 16 years later. While Sully gets all of the credit for landing the plane in the Hudson River, people forget that First Officer Skiles did a great job going over the checklists on what needed to be done to execute that landing. In addition, the cabin crew kept their composure making sure that the passengers didn’t panic and it was because of them that the passengers were able to evacuate in a timely manner. A reminder that cabin crew aren’t just there to serve food and drinks but to keep passengers safe. But it wasn’t just the pilots and crew on the plane that made this miracle special. Big props to the ferry drivers, hospital workers, air traffic controllers and ordinary citizens of New York City making sure that the 155 people onboard the plane survived.
As for Sully and Skiles, in October 2009, they were assigned the same flight route from LaGuardia to Charlotte and one passenger who was part of the Hudson incident flew on the flight to “experience the mundane as opposed to the extraordinary.” Eventually Sully would retire in 2011 with his final flight from Ft. Lauderdale to Charlotte. He would be reunited with not only First Officer Skiles, but passengers from 1549 as well. As for Skiles, he would eventually join American Airlines after the merger with US Airways and become a captain of the 787 Dreamliner. He eventually retired on November 17th 2024 with his final flight being from London Heathrow to Chicago O’Hare.
Should You Watch Sully?
So, with the controversy surrounding the movie, the question is should you watch the movie? I would highly recommend it just for how the miracle was portrayed as well as the performances from Hanks and Eckhart. As with the latter, just like Skiles during the flight, Eckhart’s acting performance is overlooked when compared to Hanks/Sully. There have been so many biopics/true stories that took creative liberties compared to the true story so it really isn’t a dealbreaker. But what do you guys think of the movie Sully? Do you like it, love it, think it’s alright or do you hate it? Let me know in the comments below and keep looking to the sky!