Tadeusz Wrona (aviator)

Tadeusz Wrona (born April 16, 1954[1][2] in Żywiec[3]) is a Polish pilot who successfully performed a belly landing of a Boeing 767 during LOT Polish Airlines Flight 16 at the Chopin Airport in Warsaw on November 1, 2011. None of the 231 passengers and crew was injured.[4]

This article is about the Polish aviator. For the Polish parliamentary deputy, see Tadeusz Wrona (politician).
Tadeusz Wrona
Tadeusz Wrona (2012)
Born (1954-04-16) April 16, 1954
Żywiec, Poland
NationalityPolish
Known forCaptain of LOT Polish Airlines Flight 16, which he successfully performed a belly landing of a Boeing 767 at the Chopin Airport in Warsaw, Poland.
Spouse(s)Marzena Wrona
AwardsOrder of Polonia Restituta (Officer's Cross), FAI Gliding Commission diamond badge
Aviation career
Full nameTadeusz Wrona
Famous flightsLOT Polish Airlines Flight 16

Award

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.[5] The following week, Wrona was greeted as a hero when he visited a Polish and Slavic center in Brooklyn, New York.[6]

LOT Polish Airlines Flight 16
Main article: LOT Polish Airlines Flight 16

A video of the landing was recorded and widely broadcast in the international media.[7] Wrona was described as a hero in Polish and International media[8][9] and by the Polish president Bronislaw Komorowski.[10] Komorowski spoke to Wrona shortly after the incident, and announced that state decorations were to be given out to Wrona and the rest of the flight crew.[10] In subsequent interviews Wrona downplayed his role in the event.[11] 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", pronounced "vro-nah", means "crow" in Polish).[11]

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.[11][12] Sullenberger himself, in a CNN interview, congratulated Wrona and stated that this might have been the first emergency landing of its kind.[12]

Personal life

Wrona also holds a diamond badge for gliding awarded by the Aeroklub Ziemi Lubuskiej (Lubusz Land Air Club).[13] He 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 junior category, and a son Mikołaj, who is a civilian pilot like his father.[14]

References
  1. "U C H W A Ł A Nr XII/183/2011 Rady Miejskiej Leszna z dnia 8 listopada 2011 roku w sprawie nadania "Honorowego Obywatelstwa Miasta Leszna" Panu Tadeuszowi Wronie" (in Polish). bip.leszno.pl. 2012-01-28. Archived from the original on 2012-06-29. Retrieved 2011-11-10.
  2. Joanna Paczkowska (14 December 2011). "Kapitan Tadeusz Wrona wyróżniony tytułem Honorowego Obywatela Województwa Lubuskiego" (in Polish). naszemiasto.pl. Retrieved 2012-03-04.
  3. "ZIELONA GÓRA: Tadeusz Wrona uratował 230 osób. U nas uczył się latać - 2 listopada 2011". Gazetalubuska.pl. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  4. "Awaryjne lądowanie na Okęciu. Nie ma rannych - Onet Wiadomości". Wiadomosci.onet.pl. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  5. "LOT 767 hero receives honours from President Komorowski". Polskie Radio. November 7, 2011. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
  6. Katie Nelson and Corky Siemaszko, B'klyn cheers miracle-landing Polish pilot, New York Daily News, November 16, 2011
  7. "BBC News - Plane carrying 230 passengers crash lands in Warsaw". Bbc.co.uk. 2011-11-01. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  8. "Hero LOT Pilot Tadeusz Wrona Speaks About Safe Emergency Landing « CBS New York". Newyork.cbslocal.com. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  9. "Pilot z Leszna okrzyknięty bohaterem". Poznan.gazeta.pl. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  10. IT Gratka Sp. z o.o. (2011-11-01). "Prezydent gratuluje pilotom Boeinga: "Te zdjęcia obiegną świat" - Wiadomości24". Wiadomosci24.pl. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  11. "Hero Polish pilot says he feared his packed plane would break up when he crash-landed in Warsaw". New York: NY Daily News. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  12. "Wylądował na rzece. Teraz gratuluje kpt. Wronie - Onet Wiadomości". Wiadomosci.onet.pl. Archived from the original on 2011-11-04. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  13. "KAPITAN TADEUSZ WRONA. Kim jest bohaterski pilot? [WIDEO] - 1 listopada 2011". Wspolczesna.pl. Retrieved 2011-11-05.
  14. "Kapitan Tadeusz Wrona z rodziną w DDTVN!". Gorące tematy. TVN. November 3, 2011. Retrieved November 7, 2011.
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