My Hour with Captain "Sully" Sullenberger

One day I was flying from Oakland to Burbank, and next to me was a guy my age who looked both stiff and relaxed at the same time. He was dressed very neatly and groomed impeccably. He looked military.

Being a sometimes annoyingly chatty fellow, I struck up a brief conversation. The kind of standard, "Where are you headed? What do you do?" He told me that he was an airline pilot and was flying out of Burbank later. I asked if he lived in LA and he said no. He lived in Danville. I remarked that for a civilian like me, it seems strange to commute such a distance. He replied that he liked flying, gliding and Danville. That pretty much was the end of our chat till...

I am not a totally relaxed flyer. In fact, I avoided flying altogether for better than two decades. I have taken some of the great ocean liners of our time back and forth to Europe--and spent many wonderful days and nights on the original Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth. I also crossed numerous times on the France and the QE II.

18 years ago when planning our honeymoon my wife to be informed me that she was flying to Europe for our honeymoon and I could go along if I chose. That stark choice focused my mind and priorities sufficiently that I decided to get over it--not my fear but my boycott. I did join her on the 747 bound for Paris. Though, I was not comforted by the fact that Pavarotti was in first class. Keeping tons of aluminum in the air already seemed improbable if not impossible. Technically, however, I don't really have a fear of flying. I do have a fear of falling.

...So, as we were flying towards Burbank, and had begun our descent on a beautiful cloudless afternoon, we hit a big bump. It was a single shock and not the usual turbulence or bad weather. I had never felt anything like it. It was not terrifying, but I did glance at my seatmate, Sully, to see if he seemed startled or looked worried. He looked at me calmly and said simply, "Wake turbulence," and explained that we had flown through a trail of air disturbed by an earlier plane.

He wasn't worried, and therefore, I wasn't worried. He was a calm and assuring presence. He exuded a sense of competence and control. As all of America is saying today, "I'll fly anywhere at any time with Captain Sullenberger." He is so good that he doesn't even have to be flying the plane to make a nervous person feel at ease. That is good. It's better than good; it is truly "The Right Stuff."

©2009 Jonathan Dobrer
www.Dobrer.org