AVIATION NEWS                                      Back To Index Page

Hudson hero Sully to share his 'pricey' Flight 1549 story

     Washington: Hero pilot Chesley (Sully) Sullenberger is going to share his success story with America - and the world, but only at a price. Sullenberger glided into aviation history on January 15 with a flawless emergency landing in the Hudson River after geese disabled his jet's engines shortly after takeoff from LaGuardia Airport. All 155 people aboard U.S. Airways Flight 1549 survived. Now, the Hudson hero has signed a pricey contract with the Washington Speakers Bureau, which schedules speeches for luminaries ranging from former President George W. Bush to astronaut Sally Ride and heavy hitter Sugar Ray Leonard. "Capt. Sullenberger is ready to share with audiences his story about that day on the Hudson and his remarkable life journey - one of discipline, life-long education, crisis management, personal responsibility and preparedness," the Daily News quoted the Speakers Bureau, as saying. He's looking for fees in the range of 90,000 dollars for talks on the East Coast and at least 60,000 dollars on the West Coast, the sources said. The level-headed pilot, however, is willing to cut his demand for speeches in the San Francisco area, where he lives. The Speakers Bureau described Sully's availability as "limited" for speeches, but industry sources said Sullenberger wants to give twenty speeches this year and another twenty in 2010.
-Mar 27, 2009