Passengers reunite with hero pilot

The start of a whirlwind New York City tour for hero pilot Capt. Chesley Sullenberger and the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 began with the arrival on the set of "The Early Show" before sunrise.

It was the start to a day in which Sullenberger and the crew were honored at City Hall for saving the lives of the 150 passengers aboard the Airbus A320 that was forced to ditch in the Hudson River this past month. Mayor Michael Bloomberg presented the keys to the city.

-Click for 127 photos of Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger in NYC, and the Hudson River plane ditching

After arriving at CBS studios at 59th and Fifth to tape the segment for "The Early Show," Sullenberger was seated on stage with his crew. Twenty-three passengers from the miracle flight also were on hand, seated in bleachers to the side of the stage.

Australian singer Emma Sophina, who was a passenger on the flight, sang a song she had written in honor of the captain. Though normally stoic and somewhat reserved, Sullenberger beamed as Sophina sang "Send Another Prayer."

"I'm thankful for the things you've done," Sophina said. "Send another prayer to heaven because tomorrow has just begun."

Survivor Diane Higgins, 58, and her mother, Lucille Palmer, 85, who are from upstate Goshen, said they woke at 3 a.m. and had a car take them to New York for "The Early Show."

"It was very exciting meeting Sully," Palmer said afterwards, adding: "I have a legacy to leave my children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.

"I survived the 'Miracle in the Hudson,' " she said.

Asked what she told Sullenberger when she met him, Palmer said: "You made history today . . . Thank you."

Higgins called the day "a whirlwind" and said: "It is the icing on the cake to meet the crew and just to meet the other passengers and to listen to their stories." She said she told Sullenberger: "You're my hero. And God was your co-pilot."

She said Sullenberger laughed at that one and said: "No, Jeff was my co-pilot."

The reference was to co-pilot Jeff Skiles, who was with Sullenberger in the cockpit when Flight 1549 ditched in the frigid Hudson on Jan. 15.

Higgins said she and her mother were on the flight to Charlotte en route to South Carolina, where they planned to attend a first birthday party for Higgins' grandson. They were seated in seats 17E and F.

They were both uninjured in the miraculous crash landing.

"We're just happy to be alive," Higgins said.

Following the taping for the show, Sullenberger and the crew left the studios at 6:30 a.m., got into waiting black sport utility vehicles and headed to the set of "Good Morning America" at 44th and Broadway. The crew was scheduled to be on-site there for about two hours. The media was not allowed into the studio.

The show sent out a news release that said 27 passengers from Flight 1549 were in attendance -- and that many of them shook hands with Sullenberger, some giving him an on-the-air hug.

"Good to see you, thanks for coming," Sullenberger was quoted as saying as he greeted each, asking one of the passengers: "Holding up OK?"

"I thought I was going to lose my wife and never get to see my children," an emotional Larry Snodgrass was quoted as telling Sullenberger.

"I thank you from the bottom of my heart," he said.

Passenger David Sontag was quoted as saying he had written a letter to each member of the crew -- and he read part of it on the air: "I wish for you the old Irish saying, 'May the wind always be at your back and may God hold you safely in his hands.' "

Passengers Vallee Collins said that, as the doomed jetliner descended toward the Hudson without power, she texted her husband a note. It read: "My flight is crashing."

Collins said she expected the flight to end "tragically" -- and didn't want her husband to be wondering whether she was on that plane or not.

"I wanted him to get to the business of telling our children," Collins said, adding that she was delighted to be talking to the crew on "Good Morning America" instead.

Following the "Good Morning America" appearance, Sullenberger and the crew were off to City Hall for ceremonies with Mayor Bloomberg.

Staff writer John Valenti contributed to this story.

-Click for 127 photos of Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger in NYC, and the Hudson River plane ditching