The National Transportation Safety Board member Robert Sumwalt said in congressional testimony Tuesday that the board is considering whether to recommend toughening federal standards for jet engines in response to the incident. The engines on the Airbus A320 involved in the accident are required by the Federal Aviation Administration to be able to withstand the impact of a 4-pound bird, smaller than a typical Canada goose, without bursting into flames or spewing shrapnel.

There is no requirement the engines continue to produce power.

"The fact that the accident engines exceeded even today's standard and still failed is of great interest and concern to the safety board," Sumwalt told the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

One-and-a-half minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport on Jan. 15, Flight 1549 crossed paths with a flock of Canada geese, sucking birds into both engines and losing all thrust. Without power and unable to reach an airport, pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger glided the plane into the river. All 155 aboard survived — a nearly impossible feat, according to aviation experts.

Sullenberger and first officer Jeffrey Skiles described to the committee how the geese seemed to appear out of nowhere, filling their entire windshield. Immediately there were multiple loud thumps of birds striking not only the engines, but all over the aircraft. The smell of burning birds filled the cockpit and cabin.

"I think it's reasonable for those in the industry to re-evaluate the engine certification standards," Sullenberger said. "This was atypical, but the risk needs to be adequately assessed."

John Ostrom, a Minneapolis airport official and chairman of the Bird Strike Committee, an independent panel of aviation and wildlife experts, told lawmakers that concern had been building before Flight 1549 about the possibility of a bird-related accident because of a sharp increase in bird populations.

Thirty-four of the 36 largest bird species in North America have shown significant population increases in the past 30 years, and Canada geese — which typically weigh 8 to 12 pounds — have quadrupled since 1990, Ostrom said.

"The threat has significantly increased in recent years," Ostrom said. He said the panel sent NTSB a letter in 2007 expressing "grave concerns."

Federal Aviation Administration officials, however, emphasized that the loss of two engines made the ditching of Flight 1549 an extraordinarily rare event.

Margaret Gilligan, the FAA's associate administrator for safety, also applauded the performance of both Flight 1549's crew and the aircraft, telling lawmakers, "In this emergency situation, all our standards were met."

After the hearing, Gilligan and John Hickey, the FAA's deputy associate administrator for safety, stepped over to Sumwalt as he gathered his belongings at the witness table. They stressed that a double engine failure due to birds was so unique it is unlikely to be repeated — a once in a lifetime occurrence.

"It's the first time in the jet age," Hickey said, shaking his head in amazement.

The implication: Toughening engine requirements may not be necessary.

The Airbus engines manufactured by CFM International, in Cincinnati, were approved by the FAA in 1996, according to NTSB. In 2007, the FAA toughened its standard for future engine designs, requiring they withstand birds up to eight pounds; earlier engine designs like the engines on Flight 1549 can continue to be manufactured to meet the 4-pound requirement, the board said.

More than two years ago, the board urged the FAA to change its engine requirements to take large birds into account.

"We did not specify a minimum weight, but we did note that the weight should be increased to represent birds as large as the Canada goose, which can weigh up to 24 pounds, thereby representing a more realistic threat to airplanes," Sumwalt said.

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House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee: transportation.house.gov/