Expert Opinion
Blog: Aircraft Float Posture and Ditching Considerations
Simply hoping an aircraft ditching will not happen to you is no way to prepare for a successful outcome.
USAirways flight 1549 passengers on the right wing and in the slide/rafts await the arrival of ferries.
USAirways flight 1549 passengers on the right wing and in the slide/rafts await the arrival of ferries.

After writing Blue Water Ditching in 2012, I have continued my education on the subject of aircraft emergency water landings by speaking with industry experts in our field. There are several concepts that need to be shared.

To remind pilots of the why, I point out that during the 1940s, 1950s, and even into the 2000s we trained ditching. Because it happened. Today, because of greatly improved engines, fuel systems, electrical grids, pressurization systems, fireproof cabins, etc., the risk has reduced to near zero. Training for ditching has been relegated to the back burner and some companies have pushed it completely off the stove.

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Dave Montgomery
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