Chesley Sullenberger 29 to 31, 2007. On January 15, 2009, Sullenberger was the captain of US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus A320 taking off from LaGuardia Airport in New York City. Shortly after takeoff, the plane struck a large flock of birds (Canada geese) and lost power in both engines. Quickly determining he would be unable to reach either LaGuardia or Teterboro airport, Sullenberger piloted the plane to a water landing on the Hudson River. All 155 people on board survived and were rescued by nearby boats. Sullenberger said later: "It was very quiet as we worked, my copilot Jeff Skiles and
US Airways Group is open to merger. As of September 2012, American Airlines, under chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, was looking to merge with another airline. In July of that year, in a Bankruptcy Court filing US Airways disclosed that it was an American Airlines creditor and "prospective merger partner. Then on August 31, 2012, US Airways CEO Doug Parker announced that American Airlines and US Airways had signed a nondisclosure agreement, in which the airlines would discuss their financials and a possible merger." On February 14, 2013, US Airways Group and AMR Corporation officially announced that the two companies would merge to form