Water Landings

There have been a lot of supposed “facts” by the news media that I would like to refute:

1. The airplane will float — at least for a while. The amount of time that the aircraft will actually float depends on a few factors. One, how many holes are in the fuselage? Are there underwater doors open? Are there cracks in the fuselage? Are the pressurization outflow valves closed? Two, how empty are the fuel tanks? Airplanes rarely take off with full tanks, and air in the tanks adds to the flotation. Also, fuel weighs less than water, so even the fuel in the tanks will add to the buoyancy.

2. There were no liferafts on this airplane. Although the Airbus 320 can be equipped with liferafts, those airplanes destined for US domestic service prefer to save on the weight. The exit slides can be used for flotation, and can be separated from the airplane in case the airplane sinks, but, in this case, they were not liferafts. Also, not all domestic airplanes even carry lifevests. But, they all have flotation seat cushions. Just lift your cushion out of the seat — it’s secured by velcro. To use it, put the padded part against your body, and look for strap loops on the bottom where you can thread your arms. If jumping into the water, be aware that the cushion can bump against your jaw, so either keep it away from your head when entering, or put your jaw on the edge before jumping — I know this from experience…

One more thing — they talk about how the pilot was initially trying to return to Laguardia airport. I find this very unlikely, given the runway configuration. More likely, he would have tried for JFK Kennedy or EWR Newark airport. To talk about Teterboro is also very unlikely. The Hudson river was perhaps the only option.