Why did these pilots spend extra seconds trying to fix theunfixable? The answer is that many feared retribution if they lostmillion-dollar jets. And so they remained determined to try to savetheir airplanes。

　　为什么这些飞行员当时会耗费数秒时间，试图解决无法解决的问题？答案是，很多人担心如果他们损失价值数百万美元的飞机会遭受惩罚。因此，这些飞行员仍然决定努力保住飞机。

　　Sully says he has never shaken his memories of fellow AirForce pilots who didn't survive such attempts. Having those detailsin the recesses of his brain was helpful as he made quick decisionson Flight 1549. 'As soon as the birds struck,' he says, 'I couldhave tried to return to LaGuardia so as not to ruin a US Airwaysaircraft. I could have worried that my decision to ditch the planewould be questioned by superiors or investigators. But I chose notto.'

　　萨伦伯格说，他从未忘记那些因为此类尝试而不幸罹难的空军战友们。他将这些细节保留在脑海深处，这帮助了他在1549次航班上做出迅速决策。萨伦伯格说，那些飞鸟撞机之后，我本可以试图返回拉瓜迪亚机场，以避免飞机坠毁。我当时也可能会担心自己的迫降决定会遭到上级或调查人员的质疑。但我没有这么做。

　　Sully values the concept of 'goal sacrificing.' When it's nolonger possible to complete all your goals, you sacrificelower-priority goals. He instinctively knew that goal-sacrificingwas paramount on Flight 1549. 'By attempting a water landing,' hesays, 'I would sacrifice the 'airplane goal --trying not to destroyan aircraft valued at $60 million -- for the goal of savinglives.'

　　萨伦伯格尊崇“取舍目标”的观念。当完成所有目标变得不再可能的时候，你就得牺牲优先级别较低的目标。他本能地知道1549次航班上什么才是最重要的。萨伦伯格说，在试图迫降的时候，我就做出了取舍，为了拯救生命而放弃了保住这架价值6,000万美元飞机的想法。

　　Able to compartmentalize his thinking, even in those diremoments over the Hudson, Sully says his family did not come intohis head. 'That was for the best. It was vital that I be focused;that I allow myself no distractions. My consciousness existedsolely to control the flight path.'

　　萨伦伯格说，即便飞机在哈德逊河上方的那些可怕时刻，他的思维也很有条理，没有想到家人。他说，那样最好。全神贯注很重要，我没有让自己分心。我唯一的想法就是控制飞行路径。

　　Since saving 155 lives that day, Sully has received thousandsof emails and now has 635,000 Facebook fans. His actions touchedpeople so deeply that they felt compelled to reach out and sharetheir own seminal experiences with him。

　　由于在那天拯救了155条生命，萨伦伯格收到了数千封电子邮件，他的Facebook帐户如今有了63.5万名粉丝。他的壮举如此感人，以致于人们觉得必须表达出来，和萨伦伯格分享他们自己的重要体验。

　　'I am now the public face of an unexpectedly upliftingmoment,' Sully says, and he accepts that. Still, he's notcomfortable with the 'hero' mantle. A hero runs into a burningbuilding, he says. 'Flight 1549 was different because it was thrustupon me and my crew. We turned to our training, we made gooddecisions, we didn't give up, we valued every life on that plane --and we had a good outcome. I don't know that 'heroic' describesthat. It's more that we had a philosophy of life, and we applied itto the things we did that day.'

　　萨伦伯格说，我现在成了一个象征令人振奋的、意外时刻的代言人。他接受了这一切。但萨伦伯格仍然对“英雄”的称号感到受之不安。萨伦伯格说，他觉得英雄应该是消防员那样主动面对危险的人。而1549次航班是不同的，因为这一事件被强加于我和我的机组人员。我们将训练中的技能运用于实践，做出了正确的决定。我们没有放弃，尊重飞机上的每个生命──最后获得了满意结果。我不知道英雄壮举形容的是这个意思。英雄的意思更是说，我们有着人生哲学，并将其运用到我们那天所做的事情中去。

　　Sully has heard from people who say preparation and diligenceare not the same as heroism. He agrees。

　　萨伦伯格曾听人说，准备和勤奋和英雄不是一回事。他对此表示认同。

　　One letter that was particularly touching to Sully came fromPaul Kellen of Medford, Mass. 'I see a hero as electing to enter adangerous situation for a higher purpose,' he wrote, 'and you werenot given a choice. That is not to say you are not a man of virtue,but I see your virtue arising from your choices at other times.It's clear that many choices in your life prepared you for thatmoment when your engines failed。

　　在萨伦伯格收到的来信中，来自马萨诸塞州的凯伦(PaulKellen)写得尤其感人。凯伦在信中说，我认为英雄应该是被选出为了一个更高的目标去应对危险境地的人。而你没得选择。这并不是说你不是一个品德高尚的人，而是说我看到你的品德来自于平时的选择。显然，你人生的诸多选择为你在引擎失灵的那个时刻挺身而出做了完善准备。

　　'There are people among us who are ethical, responsible anddiligent. I hope your story encourages those who toil in obscurityto know that their reward is simple -- they will be ready if thetest comes. I hope your story encourages others toimitation.'

　　凯伦说，我们中很多有道德、负责任和勤奋的人。我希望你的故事能够鼓励那些平凡的人们，让他们明白，他们的回报就是做好准备应对未来的考验。我希望你的故事鼓励其他人仿效。

　　Sully now sees lessons for the rest of us. 'We need to try todo the right thing every time, to perform at our best,' he says,'because we never know what moment in our lives we'll be judgedon.'

　　萨伦伯格说，我们需要每次都努力做正确的事，尽力而为，因为我们不知道人们会因为哪一件具体的事情来评价我们的人生。

　　He always had a sense of this. Now he knows it for sure。

　　他一直都这样想，现在更是对此深信不疑。