Air Force Academy superintendent praises pilot 's character . Chesley B . " `` It was an amazing piece of airmanship , '' said Peter Goelz , a former managing director of the National Transportation Safety Board . Sully" Sullenberger is the first person to die in a commercial airplane accident since 1970, and he was piloting an American Airlines jet that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Hatteras, N.C. on July Sullenberger has 40 years of flight experience . Sullenberger is frequent speaker on airline safety .
Air Force Academy superintendent praises pilot 's character . Chesley B . "Sully" Sullenberger is the first person to die in a commercial airplane accident since 1970, and he was piloting an American Airlines jet that crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off Cape Hatteras, N.C. on July Sullenberger has 40 years of flight experience . Sullenberger is frequent speaker on airline safety .