The details continue to emerge over a downed US Airways aircraft on Thursday with over 150 passengers and crew aboard. The plane, which was headed to Charlotte, hit a flock of geese, causing irreparable damage to the plane. The aircraft was flying over New York's Hudson River, and somehow the pilot managed to land the plane - intact - in the water.

Although it appears that several injuries occurred, miraculously everyone was rescued from the sinking airplane. New York, along with large parts of the United States and Canada, is currently in the depths of cold that can be best described as Arctic, and record breaking low temperatures.

The fact that the pilot managed to land the plane on water without it breaking apart has been described as extraordinary.

Max Vermij, a plane accident investigator with Accident Cause Analysis of Ottawa, Canada told Reuters - "A water landing is typically even more destructive than a ground landing. It is amazing an Airbus jet was able to land in the river without breaking up".

Brief outline of US Airways, Flight 1549 crash over water.

Chances of Surviving an Airplane Crash over Water looks at a few examples of ditching - emergency landings of planes on water, and the survival rates.

Patrick Smith has written an excellent explanation of the danger of birds to airplanes, commenting on the crash that occurred, and on how pilots train to land on water. A must read for understanding this type of incident.
You can read more of Reuter's report of the details of the accident.

photo credit: Chris McGrath / Getty Images

I actually said "wow" out loud when I saw the sheer depth of airfare specials available for sale this week. Some even have travel dates that extend to summer and beyond. Guess that is what a worldwide recession will do - give airlines the impetus to slash prices.

Delta Airlines, American Airlines - really all the big players - matched each other and put on a huge sale. That sale does have to come to an end, and it does on January 16, but there are a lot of really great airfare specials on flights within the US, and worldwide!

Westjet (Canada's version of Southwest Airlines) has put on a really great special for travels within Canada that also ends on January 16. There are one way airfares (no roundtrip booking is required) that start as low as $39 Canadian each way.

Aer Lingus has cheap, cheap airfares for within Europe. Fares start at 10 Euros including taxes and fees. For winter travel. Book by January 19. They also have great deals for flights originating out of the United States to Ireland.

Don't forget to check the Air Travel Forum - there are seriously lots of airfare specials/airline promotions listed this week.

image by Arlene Fleming

After the last blog entry about flight delays and cancellations due to the airline's own issue, I thought it might be good to look at the flip side - when an airline is not responsible for your flight being grounded.

The holiday season that just ended was rife with weather-related cancellations - with story after story of travelers stranded at airports, inside a gate area during the holidays - stuck!

But is there anything you can do, or the airline will do when weather swoops in and destroys your chances of getting to your destination on time? When Flights Cancel due to Weather - Typical Airline Policies and a Few Tips for Flights Canceled due to Weather looks at answering this question.

Having worked for an airline for almost 15 years, I've seen a lot of the unavoidable reality of air travel - flights will delay or cancel. There are two types really - ones that the airline is responsible for (like a mechanical issue), and ones that an airline is not responsible for (like weather - an all-too-common source of flight delays and cancellations at this time of year.

What makes weather delays or cancellations different is that the airlines consider these an act of god or a force majeure, in effect the airline is not required to compensate you when weather is a factor (other things are also considered a force majeure, but weather-related is by far the most common).

Things are a lot different if a flight delays or cancels because of the airline: whether it be a mechanical or staffing problem. In the United States, for many airlines, Rule 240 is there to protect you...if you know your rights. Low cost airlines are not included, neither are flights that originate outside of the U.S.. However, although 240 doesn't exist in other countries, it doesn't mean that you aren't entitled to compensation. But again, if you are traveling a low cost or charter airline, you may be out of luck.

To know a bit more about Rule 240, and what to do if your flight delays or cancels then read through - Flights Canceled, Delayed and Rule 240