The Best of Intentions

Several months ago, I was contacted by a gentleman writing an article for a Canadian aviation magazine. To accompany his piece on radar systems to detect bird activity, he requested the use of this photo of mine from the crash of US Airways Flight 1549.


I was offered the magazine's standard fee of $25 for photo usage, along with a copy of the magazine once it was published. Recently, I received the check from the magazine publishers. Taking it to the bank this weekend, I ran into a bit of a problem. Seems the check was (naturally) drawn on a Canadian bank. My bank told me it would cost me $40 for them to cash it, since it came from a foreign bank. Since I didn't want to end up $15 behind in the deal, I decided the check will become a souvenir of the event. It will go nicely with the Red Light Camera ticket I got from New York City the night of the crash!

Hockey Night on Long Island

Saturday evening I had the chance to attend a SUNY Stony Brook hockey game. It was quite a change from the Islander games I've attended - just a few hundred fans in attendance, a small community skating rink, and plenty of access for photos!







We were sitting next to the band for part of the game...


The hometown boys played a spirited game, and fought to overcome an early deficit, but came up just short.

A touch of warmer weather, the lengthening days, and an interesting sky presented a combination too good to resist. A short ride over to Sea Cliff, overlooking Hempstead Harbor resulted in these images.





With a little luck, we've seen the worst of the winter!

One Year Later

Today marks the first anniversary of the "Miracle On The Hudson", the successful ditching of US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River. On Thursday, January 15, 2009, US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus A320, departed La Guardia Airport with 150 passengers and 5 crew. Shortly after takeoff, they encountered a flock of Canada Geese, and the multiple bird strikes caused them to loose power in both engines. With insufficient altitude to return to La Guardia or reach nearby Teterboro Airport, the flight crew opted to ditch the aircraft in the Hudson River. Thanks to a controlled touchdown, and the fast action by the nearby water taxi service, all 155 were rescued, most with only minor injuries. The aircraft continued to float in the river, carried south by the current. It eventually was tied up near Battery Park City, some 4 miles from where it landed. It remained in the water until late Saturday night, when it was lifted onto a barge and moved to Jersey City where the NTSB examined the wreckage.















A job well done by Captain "Sully" Sullenberger (a former Air Force pilot!) First Officer Jeff Skiles, and Flight Attendants Sheila Dail, Doreen Welsh, and Donna Dent, as well as the many who came to the rescue of the passengers and crew. Miracle doesn't come close to describing it!

First spotting of 2010

Sunday was a cold day, but the lure of a special visitor brought me out for a little aircraft spotting. A Saudi 747SP was due in at JFK in the afternoon - there aren't many SPs left in operation, so seeing one in New York is a rare treat.





I decided it was a little too cold to meet up with the gang at 7:30am, but I made sure I didn't miss the little SP!

A time for new beginnings...

With 2009 behind us, I am looking forward to big things in the new year. I started out with a New Year's Day visit to Jones Beach, where a surprising number of people braved the cold for a walk along the beach to ring in the new year. Despite the cold, children were playing, couples were strolling, and the occasional treasure hunter combed the beach...


We should make the most of it - before we know it, 2010 will be a fading memory as well...

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Thank you for joining me for occasional ramblings on photography, aviation and life.