How to Land an Airplane in an Emergency

[Midnight Mike]

Have you ever wondered what you would do if the pilot became unconscious? If there is no one else capable of flying the plane, your safety may depend on you making an emergency landing. A basic knowledge of how to safely land an airplane could prevent a disaster. However, to fully enjoy the thrills of flying is is strongly suggested that you take lessons from a certified flight instructor.

http://www.wikihow.com/Land-an-Airplane-in-an-Emergency

[N790SW]

My friend who flys for Southwest Airlines told me a few procedures ( keep in mind these are the basic ones)

Takeoff

- flaps 5
- throttles forward
- rotate at least 2,000 ft before the end of the runway
- gear up

Emergency Descent

- igniton switches on

- full power

- oxygen 100%

- 15 degree angle of descent

Landing

- if above 150 mph gear down flaps 30

- if flying at 150 mph , flaps 5 and then eventually gear down flaps 30

- gently decrease power - and land on the assigned runway.

- after landing reverse and apply the brakes.

[Derf]

- gently decrease power - and land on the assigned runway.

Your friend must have been talking to a pilot....if I were talking to you,
this line would read "Land on ANY runnway as ATC would not be able to
communicate with you and would have cleared every runway in
advance.......as soon as the mains SLAM into the runnway...yank the
throttles back and STAND on the topps of the peddals an pray..... (DO
NOT EVEN BOTHER WITH THE REVERSERS.... Nobody really gives a sh!t
if your breaks are on fire as the truck will be out and ready"

my .02c

[h2opunk1822]

well to use the revers on an airbus.. all you have to do is life a lever w/ your piny and pull back on the throttle... and the flaps are right in front of you., underneath the trottle. as for landing.. atc will give you all the clearance you need, and instruction's... its just a matter in having confidence.. flying is the easy part.. anyone can fly.. its the radio communions and procedures that get most people.. if i wanted to.. i can say.. lets go.. and will trust any normal person to fly my plane.. esp any of you guys!

[Derf]

..........i can say.. lets go.. and will trust any normal person to fly my plane.. esp any of you guys!

Ummm, well..... lets just say that I would trust very few people on the forum at that controls of a real aircraft... I would say Midnight Mike, Moose and Tommy.....cough, after myself of course....sorry Mel ;)

[Derf]

well to use the revers on an airbus.. all you have to do is life a lever w/ your piny and pull back on the throttle... and the flaps are right in front of you., underneath the trottle. as for landing.. ......

I do not even know where to start.....but it would not be on an airbus,
Boeing you pull the interlocks up and back and then Throttle forward for
power after the interlocks are engaged, the flaps are to the right of the
throttle and is usually easy to find because it is a big handle that
says "FLAPS". Of course I am just "Parlor talking" because I never held a
license, I am just one of the people who played pilot in the level D
Sims.... and some limited time on the right seat of .....well, I guess I
could not go into that even know it was like 20 years ago.

Of course Sim's are much more fun than the real thing, doing loops in a
fully loaded 727 with cargo would not be a good idea. Dead stick in a 727
is lots of fun.....IN A SIMULATOR! Then there is landing backwards due to
a 160kts headwind or with two engines out and one engine at Idle with so
little oil pressure that the engine would be toast (just for hydraulics).

Just because a Microsoft Flight Simmer could land a plane in perfect
conditions does not mean anything to me. Give me a pilot who could land
a 747 with only 1 of 4 hydraulic systems operational and an outboard
out...... Then we are talking.

[nwafan20]

Oh God no! With this article we will have 11 year old kids who don't know anything about an airplane thinking that, in an emergency they could land the dang thing!

[N790SW]

Ummm, well..... lets just say that I would trust very few people on the forum at that controls of a real aircraft... I would say Midnight Mike, Moose and Tommy.....cough, after myself of course

well I myself landed a 73NG during my simlulator course when WN gave me the tour in Feb of 2005 soo I think if I really had to I can land that plane. I know most of the procedures, the only thing I would need help with is the radio and the aircrafts computer systems, other then that I know I could.

[mirrodie]

Ummm, well..... lets just say that I would trust very few people on the forum at that controls of a real aircraft... I would say Midnight Mike, Moose and Tommy.....cough, after myself of course

Derf, hey, I'm not on that list :shock:

I'm a kick ass pilot, MidnightMike can vouch for me. You're just ...dangerous 8)

[USAF Pilot 07]

I don't think I'd want anyone on these forums, except for of course Moose, landing any airplane I was on!

Let's just hope that if the very unlikely situation ever occured where both pilots became incapacitated, there would be another qualified pilot somewhere on board to get the plane down safely. I can't imagine, even with all the sim time in the world, stepping into the flight deck of a fully loaded airplane and having to land it with hundreds of souls' lives at stake. Talk about pressure!

[cancidas]

i'd call ATC, ask for the guy who picked the worst day to quit drinking and smoking and have him read of checklists for me... then ask someone for a massage while i was up there to.

[moose135]

Hey, it's just like riding a bicycle, just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the wheels...

[mirrodie]

i'd call ATC, ask for the guy who picked the worst day to quit drinking and smoking and have him read of checklists for me... then ask someone for a massage while i was up there to

yada yada....


just a lot harder to put baseball cards in the wheels....

Love it! LOL


Sim or not, believe you me, I'd land that thing safely.

[GrummanFan]

I'd land that thing safely.

Just as long as you didnt have fish for dinner.

[SCOTYDEMCO]

I would have to rely on Ted Striker.

"Looks like I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue"

[nwafan20]

How come with aviation fans EVERY conversation ALWAYS turns into somthing about Airplane! Surely you can't be serious.

:lol:

[moose135]

I am serious, and don't call me Shirley :D

[nwafan20]

Moose, do you like movies about gladiators?

[N790SW]

hey nwafan 20

you ever been in a Turkish prison =P

[nwafan20]

MAAAYYYYBBBEE :wink:

Bu' serious' yo, da smaka jacka in da YAKA NAKA!

[moose135]

Just to get this thread back on topic:

"There's no reason to become alarmed, and we hope you'll enjoy the rest of your flight. By the way, is there anyone on board who knows how to fly a plane?"

[nwafan20]

Yes, on topic Moose! Good idea!

Rex Kramer:Rex Kramer: [talking to Steve McCroskey] Our only hope is to build this man up. We gotta give him all the confidence we can.
[to Striker]
Rex Kramer: Striker, have you ever flown a multi-engine plane before?
Ted Striker: No, never.
Rex Kramer: ****. It's a God damn waste of time. There's no way he can land this plane.

----

and THAT my friends, is why you should get your multi-engine rating before attempting to land a 707!

[moose135]

Just a few more thoughts from this old fart...while it's been a lot of years since I've piloted an aircraft, yes, I could probably land one in an emergency. It might not be pretty, but I think everyone would walk away from it, and that's the true test of a good landing :D

For all these armchair pilots (and I'm not pointing to anyone here) who think they could jump into the left seat of a 767 and land it in an emergency because they do it all the time in MSFS, it's time for a wake up call. For what it's worth, I can't land worth a damn on MSFS - and I've made several thousand landings in everything from a Piper Tomahawk to a KC-135. Of course it's different. Sitting in a chair, looking at a 15" screen is nothing like the real thing. I have no peripheral vision to give me cues on pitch or bank, no sound of engines or airflow to judge airspeed, no "seat-of-the-pants" feelings, just a small screen that I'm using to aim at the runway. I think if you put an MSFS ace into a real aircraft, they would suffer from sensory overload. And don't forget - there is no "Pause" or "Reset" in the real thing.

Unless you have actual experience, and I would include a fair amount of full-motion simulator in that category, you are unlikely to be able to land a large aircraft safely the first time around. Remember, for all the landings I've made (and I've had my share of grease-jobs and controlled crashes) I never made the first one in a new aircraft without seeing a few demos by an IP, and having an IP next to me ready to keep me from killing us both.

[SCOTYDEMCO]

Just hang loose blood. She gonna catch up on da rebound on da medici.

OK sorry, I am cracking up with these posts, back to the topic. I believe that Moose, good point. I never flew and never been in a sim, so I guess don't fly with me.

[USAF Pilot 07]

Well put Moose. I'm not anything close to being a qualified pilot, but I flew something like 25 hours this summer in a Katana (DA-20). Although I had simmed a lot on MSFS before actually really flying, the real thing was nothing like MSFS. The whole "feel" of actually flying an airplane and being able to accomplish multiple things at once, and think about the upcoming procedures/steps was a lot to take on at first. Your vision, senses and feel in MSFS are nothing like they are in a real aircraft. Although I ended up soloing twice, and nailing my final checkride, I couldn't imagine stepping in and having to land anything much bigger than the DA-20 (which is about the size of a fly), let alone a 767!

On the other hand, I did stay at a Holiday Inn last night... ;)