Some thoughts from Joe Katzman. I agree with the commenter who said that ditching the plane safely wasn’t heroic — that was just doing his job. The heroism lay in risking his life to help get all the passengers off the plane.
5 thoughts on “What Is A Hero?”
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What I think really was impressive was the call to duty that was answered by all involved. The boats that arrived to help out. The fellow passengers that orderly left the plane. The people who worked to keep the plane afloat even after passengers were safely off. That’s the real hope for America, and it is not the first time we have seen it.
For Sullenberger, commanding a multi-engine failure and not crumbling under duress is admirable. Double checking that everyone is off the plane by actually walking the entire length twice is heroic, but not beyond what I would expect. Sullenberger is just another person willing to take on responsibility, and for people like him, I’m sure he’s amazed that anyone would find that remarkable.
Sullenberger – an experienced glider pilot – and his copilot did a very good job of putting the plane into the water in one piece. The cabin crew did a very good job of evacuating the people quickly. The boat crews were there in minutes to rescue the people. Kudos are deserved all around.
A hero is simply someone that does his job under difficult circumstances – personally, I think the appellation fits.
New York City has a reputation for surly people, but there’s no denying they step up.
What does “hero” mean anyway? Possibly something like “someone who takes much greater than ordinary risks, for someone else’s benefit, because it’s the right thing to do”.
If you agree with that, then landing the plane wasn’t heroic – it was his life on the line too, after all. (Not to say that it wasn’t an incredible display of skill and grace under pressure – it was.) Staying in a plane sinking in 4 deg C water to make sure everyone else was out – that’s heroic.