Happy Landing in the Hudson Boosts Confidence in Flying
Americans are more confident about flying in the wake of the heroic crash landing of U.S. Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River which resulted in no loss of life.
Thirty-four percent (34%) say they are more confident, while 23% are more fearful of flying, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
For 39%, the January 15 incident has no impact on their thoughts about flying, and just four percent (4%) are not sure.
A majority of adults (54%) know one thing, however: U.S. Airways should give a pay raise or bonus to the flight's pilot, Capt. Chesley B. Sullenberger. who calmly landed the Airbus A320 in the Hudson five minutes after lifting off from LaGuardia Airport when geese apparently knocked out its engines. A cut on the leg was the most severe injury to any of the 155 passengers.
Only 28% say Sullenberger doesn't deserve a raise or bonus, and 18% are undecided.
Sixty-two percent (62%) say, too, that flying in a commercial airliner is safer than riding in their own cars. Twenty-seven percent (27%) feel safer in their automobiles, and 11% are not sure.
For 58%, airline travel in the United States is safer than it is in the rest of the world, and only 10% disagree. Nearly one-third of adults (32%) are not sure.
Forty percent (40%) of men say the Flight 1549 incident has made them more confident about flying, compared to 17% who are more fearful. Women are evenly divided in their reactions.
Among whites, 34% are more confident, 20% more fearful and 40% say the crash landing has no impact on their thinking. Thirty-nine percent (39%) of African-Americans are more confident, 36% more fearful, and 23% not impacted by the event.
Higher-income Americans, who are more likely to be regular airline flyers, are much more confident than those in lower-income brackets.
In a survey last April , 63% of those who fly more than once a month said they were somewhat concerned or very concerned about airplane safety.
Fifty-eight percent (58%) of women and 49% of men think the pilot deserves a pay raise or a bonus. One-third of men (33%) think he doesn't, along with 24% of women.
Seventy-three percent (73%) of investors believe commercial airliners are safer than their own cars, compared to 51% of non-investors. Sixty-six percent (66%) of married Americans agree versus 56% of those who are not married.
Sixty-eight percent (68%) of whites say flying in an airliner is safer than driving a car, but the plurality of blacks agree by just an 11-point margin. Again, higher-income adults are more sure of airline safety than those who earn less.
Sixty-nine percent (69%) of men say airline travel in the United States is safer than in the rest of the world, but just 48% of women agree. Nearly as many women (41%) are not sure.
Sixty-two percent (62%) of investors also believe U.S. air travel is safer, compared to 55% of non-investors.
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