Several thousand people fill the town green in Danville, Calif., to welcome home Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger, the US Airways pilot who ditched in New York's Hudson River. (Noah Berger/Associated Press)

The pilot who safely landed a US Airways flight in the Hudson River received a hero's homecoming on Saturday.

Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger arrived in his hometown of Danville, Calif., for a celebration in his recognition.

Music, an honour guard and about 3,000 people greeted the pilot, who ditched a passenger jet into the Hudson River off Manhattan on Jan. 15.

US Airways Flight 1549 had just departed from LaGuardia Airport and was headed to Charlotte, N.C., when the pilot reported a "double bird strike" about six minutes after takeoff.

US Airways pilot Chesley Sullenberger walked the length of his plane twice after ditching it on the Hudson River, making sure no one was still on board. (Safety Reliability Methods/Associated Press)

Sullenberger, 57, steered the jet toward the river and slowly brought it down on the water, keeping the fuselage intact. All 155 people on board survived.

Family and friends have described the pilot, who has become known as the "Hero of the Hudson," as "notoriously modest" to reporters.

Sullenberger told the crowd that it was just "circumstance determined that it was the experienced crew" aboard the plane during the flight.

"We were simply doing the jobs we were trained to do," he said in brief remarks at Saturday's celebration.

Sullenberger was made an honorary member of the Danville police department and received a proclamation from the fire department. He was also given the keys to the city, a San Francisco suburb.

Sullenberger declined to address the specifics of the incident, which is still being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.

With files from the Associated Press