So, that plane floating in the Hudson near the Intrepid, it’s U.S. Airways flight 1549. Nobody is really sure why the plane is floating in the Hudson, but CBS speculates that “a bird strike may have caused the plane to go down, meaning a bird may have entered the engine, causing a malfunction.” The flight carrying 148 passengers and 5 crew members was destined for Charlotte, North Carolina. Everyone is reported to have survived, and a photo uploaded to Twitter shows people evacuating the A320 onto the plane’s wings and inflatable rafts. The AP reports that New York City firefighters are on the way to pluck the passengers out of the river.

Despite the pre-flight safety warnings, this is the first time we’ve heard of a water landing. As an aviation expert explained on the radio, “this is exactly how a plane crash is supposed to happen.”

US Airways Plane Crashes Into Hudson River [WCBS]
US Airways plane goes down in Hudson River [AP]
(Photo: AlleyInsider)

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