Dozens of NY Waterway ferry workers were honored Friday as heroes for rescuing more than 120 passengers after US Airways Flight 1549 crashed into the Hudson River.

When the transmission came through the radio that there was a plane in the Hudson, ferry boat Capt. David Martin, of Somers, feared the worst.

"We kind of just froze for a second, and I said, ?Let's go,?" Martin, 24, recalls.

The next thing Martin saw were passengers standing on the wings of the sinking jetliner.

?We do drills, but we never rescue a plane,? Martin says.

Martin helped survivors climb up the ladder to the deck of the ferry from a life raft below. The last man who came on board the vessel turned out to be the heroic pilot, Capt. Chesley Sullenberger.

?He did say that everyone was off the plane,? Martin says. ?So when you hear the captain of the plane say that, it made you feel a little better.?

Flight 1549 was struck by a flock of geese and went down at around 3:30 p.m. Thursday, just minutes after taking off for Charlotte, N.C. All 150 passengers and five crew members aboard the plan survived the crash.

For extended coverage of the plane crash and news conferences, go to Channel 612 on your iO Digital Cable Box.