WASHINGTON - A visual inspection of the battered, dented left engine of the U.S. Airways jetliner that crash landed in the Hudson River shows no evidence of organic matter.
But federal investigators say there are signs the plane hit a soft body.
The engine was pulled from the bottom of the Hudson Friday.
This engine and the right engine, which remained attached to the plane, will be shipped to their manufacturer for thorough examination by safety board investigators. Both will be completely torn down to examine damage, and advanced equipment will search for organic material not apparent during visual inspection.
Investigators say they've already found organic material in the right engine, which also shows "soft body damage."
All 155 people aboard survived when veteran pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger splashed the crippled Charlotte, N.C.-bound plane in the river Jan. 15th.
Sullenberger received a hero's welcome complete with marching band as thousands of people turned out Saturday when he returned to his home in the San Francisco suburb of Danville, Calif.