The Life-Saving Death

A while ago my husband relayed to me an incredible story that he learned from Rabbi Pesach Krohn. A few years ago, in 2009, a plane landed in the Hudson River. You might remember the story- US Airways flight 1549 took off at 3:26 pm from LaGuardia Airport, loaded with 150 passengers. About two minutes later, both engines suddenly died and the pilot, Captain Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger, was forced to land the plane in the Hudson River. The plane landed safely at 3:31 pm, a mere five minutes after takeoff.

A subsequent investigation revealed that multiple bird strikes were the cause of the multi-engine failure. Furthermore, Captain Sully made the best choice of landing, as his other option was the busy street below, which obviously would have caused many casualties.

The man is obviously a hero. So what makes this hero story unique?

In one special interview, Captain Sully was asked what was going through his mind when he was faced with the reality that he would have to either crash land on a busy New York street, or ditch the plane into the Hudson. His answer is not well-known, but it has an extremely powerful message.

He revealed that when he was a young boy, he lost his father to a tragic death that he refused to elaborate on. For many years, Sully suffered intense pain from the loss of his father.

When faced with the possibility of a fatal plane crash, the memory of his father’s death came to the forefront of his mind. He quickly realized that if he did not land the plane perfectly, not only would more than 150 people die a terrible death, but all of their loved ones would suffer immensely from their loss. He just could not, under any circumstances, allow that to happen.

Performing an emergency landing on the ground is relatively easy compared to landing a plane without power on the water. If even the smallest part of the tip of one of the wings would touch the water, the entire plane would flip over, and disaster would follow.

Rabbi Krohn shares a beautiful message from this story. He explains that when a person really has love for others, he is able to feel their pain. Captain Sully used this love in order to save potentially thousands of people from suffering the loss of a loved one. Because of his love for others, he didn’t want them to go through the same pain he went through.

There are two points that I’d like to add to Rabbi Krohn’s message. First point: what if one major purpose of Sully’s father’s death was just for this one moment, for when Sully could draw on that painful event and use it toward a positive end? It is taught that before the soul comes down to this world, it is shown its entire life and agrees to all terms and conditions. It even signs on the dotted line.

It’s totally crazy-sounding when you think about it, but it’s not a concept that can be dismissed simply because we don’t understand. Imagine if it were true. Do you know what that means? It means that, first, we have no idea of why we go through the things we go through. What if we all had this great love for others that Sully and his father had- the willingness to go through painful events just so others wouldn’t have to?

Who says we don’t? For example, sometimes it takes a certain person to break through the spiritual barriers of another.

Therefore, if we or our loved ones go through very difficult, challenging, and painful experiences, we can’t just write it off as a random occurrence or a punishment from God.

Second, since we have no idea of why we signed up for the life that we did, we must do our best to believe that everything that happens to us is to help us and others achieve an ultimate good. Emuna really is everything. Without it, we are doomed to a painful life of suffering in vain. That’s beyond depressing, no?

Here’s my second realization: Hashem prepares us for certain moments in life, where we will have to draw on past experiences in order to get through the present challenges. These past experiences may be painful, but not necessarily so. Again, Captain Sully’s story is a wonderful example of this. Aside from being an airline pilot with over 40 years of experience, he has worked extensively in the area of aviation safety.

Noted early on as a genius, his high IQ scored him an exclusive membership with Mensa International at the age of 12. He enlisted in the US Air Force Academy, and was chosen as top pilot in his class, as well as receiving numerous honors. He moved on to become a fighter pilot for the USAF, and attained the rank of Captain. Among many other impressive achievements in his Air Force career, he served as a member of an aircraft accident investigation board.

In 2007, he founded a consulting firm that focused on improving the safety and reliability of airplanes. He has also been involved in numerous accident investigations conducted by the US Air Force and the National Transportation Safety Board. His involvement in a particular investigation “led to improved airline procedures and training for emergency evacuations of aircraft,” as reported by Matthew Moore.

Wow, that’s a whole lot of coincidences, right? NOT! Hashem was clearly preparing him for the moment when the lives of thousands of people would literally be in his hands! Even Captain Sully himself touched upon this insight by saying, “One way of looking at this might be that for 42 years, I’ve been making small, regular deposits in this bank of experience, education, and training. And on January 15, the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal.”

What can I say? The bottom line is that we have absolutely no idea what is going on and why. We can’t see the chess moves that Hashem is making with us. The only, only, only good option we have is to believe that Hashem knows what He’s doing, and to trust that it’s all for our best.

If you know someone who is suffering in vain and hating God for it, send that person The Garden of Emuna! Use that innate love you have for others to really make a life-changing difference in their lives! Godspeed!