Loud Noise Rocked Earlier Flight 1549

The same US Airways flight that landed in the Hudson River nearly made an emergency landing 2 days before when passengers heard loud banging noises, CNN reports. "It sounded like the wing was just snapping off," said one passenger. "Red lights started going on." Then the pilot emerged and announced that the engine had stalled, but the flight would continue to Charlotte, NC.

Two other passengers confirmed the story, saying the pilot attributed the bangs to compressor stalls. "About 20 minutes after take-off, the plane had a series of compressor stalls on the right engine," a passenger said. Experts told CNN that a lack of air reaching the engine causes compressor stalls, which can damage the engine if they happen repeatedly.
(More Hudson crash stories.)