A US Airways jet departing New York’s LaGuardia Airport yesterday made an emergency landing in the Hudson River minutes after takeoff, leading to the safe evacuation of all 150 passengers and five crewmembers.

Flight No. 1549, an Airbus A320 bound for Charlotte, NC, touched down on the river’s surface less than three minutes after takeoff, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. “It was a miracle on the Hudson,” said David Paterson, New York’s governor. The cause of the crash was unconfirmed, but eyewitnesses said the plane struck a flock of birds.