‘Miracle on the Hudson’ pilot Captain ‘Sully’ Sullenberger has Alzheimer’s disease.

In the year In 2009, the heroic pilot who safely ditched a stricken airliner in a New York City river was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

Capt. Chesley ‘Sully’ Sullenberger III, 75, shared the update on his personal website, writing that he was recently diagnosed and is in the early stages.

“For now, this means that the name may not come easily to me, I may forget the story I told recently, or I may not sleep, but I am at the beginning of this long journey,” he wrote.

US Airways Flight 1549 went down in the Hudson River on January 15, 2009. It was after take off with a flock of geese with both engines disabled. All 155 people on board survived.

Sullenberger’s quick thinking and calm demeanor are characterized by his avoidance of danger.

A former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot from California said in a post on his website Tuesday that his Alzheimer’s diagnosis “challenged what service means” and that he found “the answer is to talk” about the disease.

“Over the years, when people ask about the successful outcome of Flight 1549, I say, ‘Courage can be contagious,’ and everyone helped get off that plane successfully that day,” Sullenberger said.

“Now we need that courage to fight this disease. I am now part of a larger community with many of you, and together we will be brave.”

Sullenberger had been flying for 40 years before Flight 1549.

He retired as a pilot a year later in 2010, and continues to advocate for aviation safety.

In the year In 2016, his exemplary emergency landing was featured in the Tom Hanks-starrer Sully.