Systematic progression of airplane flying skills - Landing

Started by anwar, March 31, 2009, 09:44:37 PM

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anwar

This is one of the most critical parts of flying, even for real aircraft.  Other parts of flight (like take off and flying around) does not restrict you to a limited amount of space, whereas landings are typically done in a confined amount of space.  So this calls for a great deal of practise and fine stick adjustments, to do it right. 

To put it in perspective, if I were to practise flying on a sim, I would spend 15% of the time on take-offs, 30% of the time on flying around and the bulk (55%) on landings !

Just like take off, remember to land INTO the wind as much as possible. Plan ahead.  Most people fly  past one end of the runway, take a U turn, and come in to land.  One important thing to note during such a landing attempt is that almost all the time, you have to lower the throttle to glide speed BEFORE starting that U turn.  I have seen many newcomers make the U turn and then reduce the throttle, only to see them overshoot the runway.

To be continued...

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anwar

Other points to note.

* Train your self on the sim as much as you can.  Remember that you will have the plane facing you most of the time when you come in to land, so be prepared/trained for nose-in flight, where the rudder and aileron controls are reversed (as oppose to tail-in flight). 

* On the sim, continously train so that you can touch down towards the beginning of the runway.  Try to land exactly on the runway, and not anywhere else.  Specific targets greatly enhances your skills.

* Try to get into the habit of using the rudder to do final adjustments, instead of airlerons.

* Once you have lowered the throttle and aligned with the runway, do not apply too much of any controls. Just very very small inputs should do. 

* Aim for the main wheels to touch down first.  It is a lot of fun trying to practise two wheel touchdowns first, and the third wheel touching down next. Doing it on the field is even more fun.

* If you are on a field with other fliers, inform your intention of landing vocally, so that others may stay clear.

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anwar

More...

* If you feel uneasy about your approach, do not risk it with too many last minute corrections.  It is always better to abort, gain altitude, and try a fresh landing approach.
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Prady

Well put there. Take off is optional but landing is mandatory. Hence landing is the most crusia part of flying. Once you have managed a few landings, i always prescribe touch and go. I do that on any new aircraft that i fly. this way it gives you the real feal of how the aircraft handles. While you are coming in for landing, you are low on speed and altitude thats where the aircraft actually shows its tendencies. Up in the air with full throttle is always easy to play with but once you are committed to the landing pattern you have to be 100% sure what you are doing.

Practice touch and go and see the improvement in your controls.