Tadeusz Wrona (aviator)
Encyclopedia
Tadeusz Wrona is a Polish pilot.
On November 1, 2011, he successfully performed a belly landing
of a Boeing 767 LOT Polish Airlines Flight 016 at the Chopin Airport in Warsaw
. None of the 231 passengers and crew were injured.
A video of the landing was recorded and widely broadcast in international media. Wrona was described as a hero in Polish and International media and by the Polish president Bronislaw Komorowski
. Komorowski spoke to Wrona shortly after the incident, and announced that state decorations were to be given out to Wrona and rest of the crew of the flight. In subsequent interviews Wrona downplayed his role in the event. After the event internet fan websites, including facebook, were established to celebrate his accomplishment, many of which included a pun on his name, "Fly like an eagle, land like a Crow" ("Wrona" means "Crow
" in Polish).
He holds a diamond badge for gliding awarded by the Aeroklub Ziemi Lubuskiej (Lubusz Land
Air Club).
He was compared to Chesley Sullenberger
who successfully ditched US Airways Flight 1549
in the Hudson River
on January 15, 2009 (also without any serious injuries). Sullenberger himself, in a CNN
interview, congratulated Wrona and stated that this might have been a first emergency landing of its kind.
On November 7, 2011, Wrona was awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta, Officer's Cross, one of Poland's highest decorations. His co-pilot, Jerzy Szwarc was awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta, Knight's Cross.
Tadeusz is married to Marzena Wrona. They have two children; a daughter, Natalia Wrona, who is a five-time champion of Poland in Eventing
, in the category of Juniors, and a son Mikołaj, who is also a civilian pilot like his father.
On November 1, 2011, he successfully performed a belly landing
Belly landing
A belly landing or gear-up landing occurs when an aircraft lands without its landing gear fully extended and uses its underside, or belly, as its primary landing device...
of a Boeing 767 LOT Polish Airlines Flight 016 at the Chopin Airport in Warsaw
Warsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
. None of the 231 passengers and crew were injured.
A video of the landing was recorded and widely broadcast in international media. Wrona was described as a hero in Polish and International media and by the Polish president Bronislaw Komorowski
Bronislaw Komorowski
Bronisław Maria Komorowski is the President of Poland. As Marshal of the Sejm , Komorowski exercised powers and duties of head of state following the death of President Lech Kaczyński in a plane crash on 10 April 2010...
. Komorowski spoke to Wrona shortly after the incident, and announced that state decorations were to be given out to Wrona and rest of the crew of the flight. In subsequent interviews Wrona downplayed his role in the event. After the event internet fan websites, including facebook, were established to celebrate his accomplishment, many of which included a pun on his name, "Fly like an eagle, land like a Crow" ("Wrona" means "Crow
Crow
Crows form the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Ranging in size from the relatively small pigeon-size jackdaws to the Common Raven of the Holarctic region and Thick-billed Raven of the highlands of Ethiopia, the 40 or so members of this genus occur on all temperate continents and several...
" in Polish).
He holds a diamond badge for gliding awarded by the Aeroklub Ziemi Lubuskiej (Lubusz Land
Lubusz Land
Lubusz Land is a historical region and cultural landscape in Poland and Germany, on both sides of the Oder river.Originally the settlement area of the West Slavic Leubuzzi, a Veleti tribe, the swampy area was located east of Mark Brandenburg and west of Greater Poland, south of Pomerania and north...
Air Club).
He was compared to Chesley Sullenberger
Chesley Sullenberger
Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III is an American airline transport pilot , safety expert, and accident investigator from Danville, California...
who successfully ditched US Airways Flight 1549
US Airways Flight 1549
US Airways Flight 1549 was US Airways' scheduled domestic commercial passenger flight from LaGuardia Airport in New York City to Charlotte/Douglas International Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina...
in the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
on January 15, 2009 (also without any serious injuries). Sullenberger himself, in a CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
interview, congratulated Wrona and stated that this might have been a first emergency landing of its kind.
On November 7, 2011, Wrona was awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta, Officer's Cross, one of Poland's highest decorations. His co-pilot, Jerzy Szwarc was awarded the Order of Polonia Restituta, Knight's Cross.
Tadeusz is married to Marzena Wrona. They have two children; a daughter, Natalia Wrona, who is a five-time champion of Poland in Eventing
Eventing
Eventing is an equestrian event comprising dressage, cross-country, and show jumping. This event has its roots in a comprehensive cavalry test requiring mastery of several types of riding...
, in the category of Juniors, and a son Mikołaj, who is also a civilian pilot like his father.