On this day in history, Jan. 15, 2009, US Airways flight makes miraculous landing in the Hudson River

US Airways Flight 1549 made a miraculous emergency landing in the Hudson River on this historic day, January 15, 2009.

The maneuver occurred shortly after the US Airways Airbus A320 departed LaGuardia Airport in New York City for Charlotte, North Carolina.

Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, along with First Officer Jeffrey Skiles, flew the plane, which was delivered new to US Airways in 1999.

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Both pilots had sufficient flying experience at the time, according to simpleflying.com

A former military pilot, Sullenberger had accumulated nearly 20,000 flight hours, which included 4,756 hours in the A320.

Pilot Chesley B. Sullenberger, left, and First Officer Jeffery Skiles of US Airways Flight 1549 attend a news conference at City Hall in New York City, where then-Mayor Michael Bloomberg presented them with the keys to the city, on February 9, 2009 (Michael Nagle/Getty Images)

Skiles, who was a newly transferred pilot, had more than 20,000 total flight hours.

The flight departed Queens, New York, at 3:26 pm in 2009, simpleflying.com noted.

Shortly after takeoff – nearly 4.5 miles from the airport – the plane encountered a flock of Canada geese.

The large group of birds flew into the field of vision of the pilots, while some of the geese got into the engines.

Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger is shown here, along with an FDNY rescue boat, as the craft rises alongside downed US Airways Flight 1549, which landed in the Hudson River. (AP/Getty)

Both engines were damaged shortly after impact when the aircraft was at an altitude of just under 3,000 feet.

With a cool, level-headed reaction and quick thinking, Sullenberger took control of the plane, which Skiles had flown during takeoff.

The plane had entered a glide descent 10 seconds after impact when Sullenberger started the APU, otherwise known as the auxiliary power unit.

It powers an electrical generator and provides air pressure, as simpleflying.com describes.

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As efforts to restart the main engines failed, Sullenberger made a mayday call just 22 seconds after the birds struck the plane.

A recording of the radio call from the cockpit reveals that Sullenberger calmly reported the incident.

“This is Cactus 1549, hit birds,” he said.

“We’ve lost power on both engines. We’re heading back to LaGuardia.”

Air Traffic Control quickly offered options for an emergency landing at LaGuardia, but Sullenberger figured the plane wouldn’t make it.

Instead, the pilots asked to land at New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport – and were allowed to land on Runway 1.

As the A320 flew just 900 meters above the George Washington Bridge — which connects New York and New Jersey — Sullenberger realized that an emergency landing in the Hudson River would be the only option, as simpleflying.com noted.

Rescue workers assist an NYFD boat that was pulled near a US Airways plane after it crashed in the Hudson River on January 15, 2009. (Mario Tama/Getty Images)

“We could end up in the Hudson,” the pilot radioed.

Air Traffic Control continued to provide assistance as Sullenberger and Skiles prepared for a water landing.

“We can’t do that,” Sullenberger responded to the entry landing options.

“We’ll be on the Hudson.”

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The plane plunged into the Hudson River at 3:31 p.m. The flight lasted just five minutes in total, according to simpleflying.com.

The plane’s 155 passengers were evacuated on the wings and emergency slides.

Wet and shivering passengers in life jackets are pulled toward the World Yacht pier on 40th St. in Manhattan aboard FDNY Marine Unit Rescue 1, after US Airways Flight 1549 landed in the Hudson River. (John Roca/NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images)

The plane was equipped for extended use over water, according to simpleflying.com, which meant it had full life jacket provisions and the exit slides could be detached and used as rafts.

Nearby boats moved quickly to pull passengers from the water, according to the New York Waterway.

Sully Sullenberger retired from US Airways on March 3, 2010, after 30 years as a commercial pilot.

Fourteen New York Waterway ferries responded and rescued 143 passengers, while the US Coast Guard and FDNY (New York Fire Department) rescued the other 12 passengers and crew members.

The New York Waterway considers it “the most successful marine rescue in aviation history,” according to its website.

The Statue of Liberty stands in the background as lifeboats float by US Airways Flight 1549 after it crashed in the Hudson River. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)

Many of the passengers could have died or suffered the effects of hypothermia if the ferry crews had not responded as quickly as they did, experts noted.

All passengers were removed from the water and the plane by 3:55 p.m., just 24 minutes after landing. All 155 people on the plane survived the landing.

The maneuver has become known as the “Miracle on the Hudson” – as a water landing without power like this is “extremely dangerous”, as simpleflying.com reported.

Many of the passengers could have died or suffered the effects of hypothermia if the ferry crews had not responded as quickly as they did.

“There are procedures for water downs, or excavations, by manufacturers and regulators, but in practice, these are rare occurrences,” the website says.

Sullenberger was ranked second in Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential Heroes and Icons of 2009,” behind Michelle Obama.

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Sully Sullenberger retired from US Airways on March 3, 2010, after 30 years as a commercial pilot.

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Sullenberger is the co-author, with Jeffrey Zaslow, of the best-selling book, “A Higher Duty: My Search for What Really Matters,” a memoir of his life and the events surrounding Flight 1549, published in 2009 by HarperCollins.

Angelica Stabile is a lifestyle writer for Fox News Digital.