Sully Sullenberger, ‘Miracle on the Hudson’ pilot, says he has Alzheimer’s disease

Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, the retired pilot who successfully landed a commercial airliner filled with passengers on the Hudson River after the plane lost thrust in both engines, announced Tuesday that he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. “It is early stage. For now, this means a name may not come easily to me, I forget a story I have recently told, or I don’t sleep as well, but I am in the beginning of this long journey,” Sullenberger, 75, said in a statement on his website. Sullenberger said he hopes that by sharing the news of his diagnosis, “other families living in the shadows with this disease will feel they too can step forward.” “Though it may impact my memory of the past, this diagnosis will not prevent me from looking forward to and appreciating our future,” Sullenberger said.