One of the passengers on that miracle flight that landed in the Hudson thinks that miracle may be due to something more than just divine intervention — perhaps, Divine Mercy.

From Florida Catholic:

Frederick Berretta humbly admits to being away from the church, to his “half-hearted approach to living the faith and not trusting in God.” He acknowledges that he was living a life of “all” – a pilot’s license and private plane, a corporate executive in the financial world. And on Jan. 15 aboard U.S. Airways flight 1549, everything changed.

“As I look back now, God was trying to get my attention all along,” Berretta said. “I had a conversion experience just before I married my wife, Liz, and tried to be a good Catholic. Our fifth child died shortly after birth at Christmas in 2003 and that gave me a more profound appreciation of life. Then six months later, my dad died and I was close to my dad. Work became very stressful and the last couple of years, we’ve had the financial crisis. We lost our retirement. We went from better off to the reality of how we are going to get the kids through college. My New Year’s resolution was to get in better spiritual shape.”

Berretta read a story about a couple hiding under a bed for 14 hours during a terrorist attack in India and the woman prayed the rosary the entire time. He was inspired and started praying the rosary.

A last-minute decision sent Berretta on a business trip to New York City from his home in Charlotte, N.C. He had a few moments of unoccupied time, cleaned out his briefcase only to find a Divine Mercy pamphlet and he prayed the chaplet. The following day his business finished early, so he stopped at St. Patrick’s Cathedral for noon Mass. In the cathedral’s gift shop, he bought the book “The Seven Secrets of the Eucharist” by Vinny Flynn, which he read as he waited for his flight to depart.

The story of U.S. Airways flight 1549 and it’s landing in the Hudson River without any loss of life is well-known now. As a pilot, Berretta has an even greater understanding and appreciation for all that transpired.

“As the engines blew, I thought there’s a good chance many of us will die. I thought about my wife and kids and how hard it will be for them. Something was pushing my conscience and I knew I have to accept this. I’m not sure I’m ready for this, but then I remembered the Divine Mercy promise, ‘nothing will be refused in that hour’ and with every fiber of my being I asked God to be merciful to us.”

Berretta does not claim cause and effect in his prayer for mercy and the outcome of the splash landing, but he was comforted by the prayer and is thankful for the outcome and was transformed by the experience.

“The plane left the gate at 3:03 p.m., it was 3:30 p.m. when I prayed the chaplet and at 3:48 p.m., I was on a boat talking to my wife. There are so many things that could have gone wrong, but everything was in place to make it miraculous.”

Read more at the link. Amazing.