16-01-2009: The pilot of the US Airways flight who managed to successfully crash land his crippled plane in the Hudson River, saving all 155 people aboard, is being hailed a hero. The pilot of the doomed Flight 1549 was Chesley B. Sully Sullenberger III, 57, of Danville, Calif., a former fighter jet pilot who also runs a flight safety firm in addition to flying commercial planes.