What: Smoketown Banners Piper PA 18 en route from NJ
Where: Fresh Kills landfill in Staten Island
When: January 15, 2010
Who: pilot
Why: While engaged in flying a 4,000-square-foot sailcloth banner marking the one year anniversary of the Hudson River emergency landing, the cylinder on the plane’s engine blew, and the pilot had to make an emergency landing. The pilot is shaken but uninjured; and the plane will be towed to New Holland, Pa.

The plane’s banner said “If you died today, would you go to heaven or hell? John 14:6”

George’s Point of View

Although the banner’s intent is being summarized as “marking the anniversary” of US Airways Flight 1549’s safe Hudson River landing, a lot of planes flew on Jan. 15, many of them also over the Hudson River location. One might expect that the banner of a flight whose only purpose was to “remember” the anniversary would actually mention Flight 1549 or Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger.

One might even wonder at the irony—or synchronicity—of a pedantic bible verse crash landing on a landfill. What would have happened if the banner had said “Thank you Sully” or “1549” or “Remember the miracle” or even “Remember” ?

Was today’s landing an accident, a publicity stunt, or a message?

On the ground, on January 15th 2010, there was a reunion of the survivors of flight 1549.

Do I think the words on that banner were condescending? superfluous? gawky? lumbering? bunglesome?

Well, let me express it this way:

Even without any well-meant instruction from the client who hired the banner flight, in every breath the survivors of Flight 1549 have taken since January 15th 2009 3:31 pm., they have tasted a sweeter blessing than the rest of us can ever guess.

And how does ANY ONE mock that blessing with some pompous, portentous, pretentious homily?