Shuvrajit Das Biswas
‘Sully’, also known as ‘Sully: Miracle on the Hudson’, is a 2016 American biographical movie directed by Clint Eastwood, based on the autobiography titled ‘Highest Duty’, written by Chesley Sullenberger and Jeffrey Zaslow. The movie follows Sullenberger, the pilot who made an emergency landing on the Hudson River. Although all the passengers and members of the crew survived with minor injuries, the incident sparked off much debate and an investigation into why the veteran pilot chose to land in the river instead of taking the flight to the nearest airport.
Although the movie was well-received by fans and critics, it did manage to stir up some controversy of its own for portraying the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as close-minded and prosecutorial. It also won an Oscar for best sound editing. Naturally, now you must be wondering where you can watch ‘Sully’ and we are here to tell you that. But first, let us walk you through the plot of the movie.
What is Sully About?
The story of ‘Sully’ begins from January 15, 2009. The US Airways pilot Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger and his First Officer Jeff Skiles, board the US Airways Flight 1549, which takes off from LaGuardia Airport to the Charlotte Douglas International Airport. We are made aware of the fact that Sully is a seasoned pilot and has a good rapport with Skiles. When the flight is airborne for three minutes, at an altitude of 2,800 feet (approximately 850 m), the Airbus A320 runs into a flock of birds, which results in both the engines being disabled. When the aircraft is left without engine power, the pilot and co-pilot judge themselves to be too far away from the airports to make a landing (the closest being the Teterboro Airport). Ultimately, Sully manages to land the aircraft on the Hudson River, evacuating the passengers and the crew members without any casualties. Although the press and public hail him to be a hero, he is haunted by the incident, even dreaming about the aircraft crashing into a building.
As the investigation into Sully’s river landing unfurls, he learns from the ACARS that the port engine was still running at idle power. Technically, this would have allowed him to either return to LaGuardia or land at Teterboro. The NTSB also adds to the problem saying that several computerized simulations have shown that the aircraft could have landed at either airport without the engines. Sully, however, stands his ground, maintaining that not only did he lose both engines, but was also left without adequate time, speed, or altitude to carry out a safe landing at any of the airports.
Problems arise for Sully when he realizes that the Board feels that there had been a pilot error. Facing the very real possibility of his career coming to an end is daunting, but Sully is confident about what he knows. He arranges for the simulations to be run with live pilots. Both simulations, one at LaGuardia and the other at Teterboro, are successful and the results are relayed to the public hearing. But Sully is still not done making his case, and he makes the argument that the simulations are unrealistic since the pilots knew in advance exactly the situation they would face as well as the suggested course of action. They were also able to practice the emergency scenario several times. The board accepts Sully’s argument that in real life, the pilots would have taken some time to react and run the emergency checks before deciding to divert the plane.
The simulations are rerun and once again they are relayed to the hearing. However, this time, the simulations have a 35-second delay to account for pilot reaction time, before the plane is diverted. In case of the LaGuardia landing, the aircraft lands short of the runway, while in case of Teterboro, the flight crashes into buildings before reaching the airport. The board takes all of the information into consideration. Another one of Sully’s assertions turns out to be true when the port engine is recovered from the river and it confirms the pilot’s account that it was indeed disabled by bird strikes. The NTSB has no choice but to conclude that Sullenberger had acted absolutely correctly. The investigation is closed since he selected the best of the options that were available to him, and in the process, saving the lives of everyone on the aircraft.
Is Sully on Netflix?
Netflix has an amazing collection of movies and television shows which makes it a premier content provider. Though ‘Sully’ is not on the platform, you can check out ‘Saving Mr. Banks‘ on Netflix, if you are in the mood to see the magic of Tom Hanks unfurl in front of you.
Is Sully on Hulu?
Hulu has a fantastic collection of movies and television shows and they keep smartly adding to the library, in order to stay ahead of the competition. Though ‘Sully’ is not on Hulu, you can always look for more movies of Tom Hanks on the platform. Check out ‘The Polar Express‘.
Is Sully on Amazon Prime?
Amazon Prime has a fantastic collection of movies and television shows that can perhaps only be bested by Netflix. Although ‘Sully’ is not on Amazon Prime, you can rent or buy the movie and watch it on the platform. It costs $3.99 to rent and $14.99 to buy. Thus, we would suggest renting unless you are bent on keeping the movie in your library. Check it out here.
Where Can I Stream Sully Online?
No subscriptions to the major platforms? No worries. You can still stream and watch ‘Sully’. Just head over to YouTube, Vudu, or FandangoNow. You can rent or buy the movie. It costs $3.99 to rent and $14.99 to buy on all three platforms. Vudu and FandangoNow offer the Ultra HD versions as well. Naturally, we recommend renting, in order to save money.
Where Can I Watch Sully Online For Free?
Sorry freeloaders, but we have some bad news for you: ‘Sully’ cannot be streamed online for free at the moment, using legal means. You have to wait till it arrives on one of the sites with free trial periods. However, we would urge the readers to pay for all the art that they consume.
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