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I failed my first check ride because I failed my short field landing. Took a lesson with a new instructor and while watching him demo a landing it clicked. Airspeed with pitch, rate of descent with power. We are taught this but I wasn't separating the two. Now I can put the plane down anywhere I want. I passed my second check ride three weeks ago and have been loving every second of flying. Lots of great advice in the video and the comments. This was the final thing I needed to know to put it all together.
Awesome, and congratulations!! Some people teach it differently, but I agree - pitch for airspeed, power for altitude and descent, really clicks for me.
@@wassup1581 Thanks, hope to afford a Pipistrel Virus SW someday. Then a Diamond DA50RG eventually. Maybe a used Air Force U-28 Draco aka Pilatus PC-12.
The one I found useful: when you flare and then pull the stick, you act as if you don't want to land. This way you keep increasing angle of attack, lose energy until you touch with main gear like a butterfly.
The problem that I had with this was that I was aggressively "don't want to land" or "hold it off, hold it off", and I would unintentionally be increasing the angle of attack until the plane stalled and it plopped onto the runway opposed to greasing it in.
@@bongman123 is it a 172? They are quite floaty. Think of the flare as “holding it off with just enough back pressure”. Instead of intentionally “pitching up”. Good luck!
@@bongman123 It's because 65kts is actually quite fast... I know that speed is also in the POH but maybe you know that for GA aircraft a rule of thumb is Vapp= 1.3xVs So in a C172 for example Vs with Flaps full is about 42kts, so Vapp. could be 55 kts. If you want to add a personal safety margin, maybe try 60kts. I used 60 during my whole flight training and I feel it's just about the right speed. Works even better if you maintain it until 3-5 seconds before the flare and then power to idle. You will be at 50-55 kts. low above the runway, which is almost too slow to float.
@@bongman123 you're probably pulling too hard too quickly on the stick. Try to pull it gently after the treshold (with no power) so your plane will just float above the ground, then when you feel it's coming down, pull a bit more but very gently / slowly so you dont balloon. Try to keep it just above the ground. At some point, you will touch. Every plane has a different feel for landing, the more you fly it, the more precise you will become. Even if you are coming too fast, this technique works, you just have to be even more smooth and slow with the yoke. But you will float longer above the ground. Or you can force the landing : pull more slowly than you would usually have : the plane will come down and touch. It can be useful for emergency landings but it is easy to bounce when you have too much speed. So learning to manage your energy / speed is the best way to land !
One key thing to improving my landings is frequent slow flight practice. Being comfortable flying at the speed and AOA that you land at gives you a great deal of feel for where the wheels are as you touch down. I frequently fly slow flight at altitude and, when the airport is quiet, with low passes just a few feet above the runway at minimum controllable speed.
In other words practice flying in ground effect? I have heard this tip before. My home airport has a pretty short runway, so I’d have to practice that somewhere else. No touch n goes either, only full stop
"I am not just gonna go until the plane quits, but I am gonna intentionally view this as a flight maneuver and put the wheels where I want them, when i want them, to me that was a huge shift" I hear you loud and clear, couldn't be more right about that.
Great comments and video. One lesson learned I had in only my 2nd hour of my private pilots training in a 150...I had the plane, throttle back, flaps in, 15 ft high...all of a sudden a crosswind gust direct off right wing had me left wing low about to cartwheel in the grass...instructor skillfully grabbed the plane and safely landed straight down the runway...then said, "Always expect the unexpected and keep flying till the plane is parked." I never forget that lesson.
I spoke with Rod Machado at Oshkosh years ago and he helped me through a problem I was having transitioning from being subtle and gentle on the controls in a stabilized approach to being as aggressive as necessary to control the airplane at the point of touchdown. I was freezing on the controls as if my stabilized approach would carry me all the way to touchdown. He told me to move the controls around just enough to get a sense for how the airplane is responding in slow flight without destabilizing the approach. As soon as I started doing that I stopped over or under controlling in ground effect and applied no more nor less control input than appropriate to smoothly transition from flying to rolling down the runway. Many thanks!!!
Yes, this. Your advice is exactly what I was taught long ago when flying a cub. Landing is just flying close to the ground, and all flight maneuvers should be intentional and as precise as you can make them. Excellent!!
I think it's important also to fly all the way to the ground, and beyond on the ground roll. That is essentially his other point. Many students don't keep crosswind correction in once the wheels touch down for example.
@@gringoloco8576 Hi Gringo Loco. One thing that is good here, is what you said. The other thing is discussion. I can't even land the divine plane yet. ( Divine, as opposed to darn. ) Ha.... Landings... right, what you say, needs to be repeated. My instructor keep flying, after he is out of the plane, doing the book work or hiking. Hey... I do that to. I should give myself some credit. But, I want to have in mind where I will put the plane, before the flight. The parking spot, and fly to it, so to speak....taxiing. Thanks again...
I work as a FI on airport with grass short runway and for me and my students the most important factor for a good landing is the airspeed. If we bring the plane to the threshold at 60kts the landing is significantly easier and you can tell the plane is ready to land as oppose to 70 sometimes even 75 kts where the plane bounces and is unwilling to land. This is a recommended full flaps landing speed in the plane POH and makes huge difference.
Great video! I am a student with 43 hours. My regular instructor went on vacation and I just happened to fly with another instructor who taught me to basically pitch for specific airspeeds at each leg of my approach which has really improved my landings. Before I was bouncing and ballooning and going around a lot haha. Either I was just coming in way too fast or I would come in too slow and just drop (bang) down on the runway. Now I use power as needed to control my decent, but mostly I’m using pitch to control my airspeed and it helps me to maintain the proper glide slope and then nail my airspeed across the threshold which sets me up for a nice smooth landing as I let the energy dissipate and set it down gently. I enjoy your videos thanks!
Nice video... I learned to fly in the US Navy... my instructors taught us energy management using AOA (angle of attack). In every military aircraft, there is an AOA meter that is referenced to establish the best performance of the aircraft in critical flight phases. By using the AOA as a reference, you get to learn the feel of your aircraft in different critical phases of flight and, for me, that helps me with energy management when I fly. We were taught that you can stall an aircraft at "any" airspeed. Exceeding the critical angle of attack is what determines if you stall or not. Fast forward to today... I own a 77 Grumman Tiger with my son. As with any aircraft, how you manage your airspeed and power determines how well your approaches and landings will be. A good landing requires a good, steady approach. The Tiger is a sleek aircraft, similar to a Mooney. It loves to fly and hates to slow down. Energy management is key to a successful landing in the Tiger. I still use the AOA technique by establishing a "site picture" using the nose of my aircraft against the horizon. It works very well. On a VFR approach, we slow the aircraft down to 90 knots as we enter the 45 entry to the downwind at pattern altitude. About mid-field, downwind, we slow to 80 knots and 10 degrees of flap, holding level flight and reducing power to 2100 rpm. 80 knots is also our minimum maneuvering speed... which is the speed that we maintain should the engine fail at this point. It assures us that we can glide to the runway, making 30 degree banks if necessary, without inducing a stall. Abeam the approach end, we reduce power to 1900 RPM and go to 20 degrees flap, maintaining 80 knots and begin our 500 FPM decent. As we turn to base, we add 30 degrees of flap if the winds are calm or no more flaps if it is gusty, maintaining 80 knots. On final, again, if the wind is relatively calm, we will add full flaps. If it's gusty, we will not add any more flaps. On short final, in calm winds, we will slow to 70 knots. If it's gusty, we will maintain 80 knots to provide an extra margin for directional control. This is also where we transition from a crab to a slip if we're landing in a crosswind. As we cross the threshold, we continue to fly down to the runway to our aiming point. Once the aiming point goes beneath us, we transition and begin our flare and reduce power to idle. By this time, the mains are just a couple of feet off the ground. Touchdown usually occurs just as the stall horn is coming on. Remember, in a crosswind you need to hold that crosswind correction after landing. That's especially important in a tail dragger. Thanks again for this excellent segment on landings. Fly safe and fly often!
In my Mooney M20E these approach speeds are basically identical for what you're using on this Tiger. Only difference is I general favor half flaps on the Mooney (especially when I'm at max gross) as the Mooney really quits flying rather suddenly when it's time to and it likes to plunk on the runway a little jarringly with full flaps so often I use half flaps for very smooth touchdowns, plus I'm in Midwest and we always have squirrelly winds.
Hi Gordon - first off THANK YOU for your service! And thanks for sharing your experience here in your tiger. I like how you've described the pattern airspeeds and settings. It's great when you can have it scientific like that because it takes any guess work out of your approach.
@@VictoryAviation 500 fpm is probably pretty accurate, especially for IFR approaches. For VFR traffic patterns it's more visual but 500 f still works. We aim for 1000 ft AGL on downwind, 800 ft at the downwind to base turn, 500 ft AGL base to final turn and follow the glide slope.
This is a good presentation and as usual, well explained. My advice, especially to beginning student pilots, or all pilots that haven't done so yet, is to read the book "Sick And Rudder" by Wolfgang Langewiesche. Even though written almost 90 years ago, he explains very well the physics acting upon the airplane and how the pilot needs to react. Physics don't change with time.
I love landings. It's the one challenge you face on every flight. Assuming the weather is good and the plane is in good working condition, taking off is simple, flying straight and level is simple, turning is simple, but to ace a landing always needs a good deal of attention, no matter how many times you do it. That's just my opinion, and I know this might be wrong in other pilots' eyes.
It's not wrong... every landing is the highest challenge in flight, doesn't matter the pilots hours. It is the the flight maneuver with the highest difficulty level.
As a private pilot, I hadn’t flown in forty years but started up again in 2020. I took some lessons from an instructor but couldn’t make a good landing until I found your site. I read up on the material and decided to try it. The three landings with my instructor improved and he decided to step out and let me solo the 172 and he would video the results. Well, the first landing was ever so great and he was very happy with it as he was on the second. Both landings were greased as if I were a professional. Thank you for your advice.
Every glider pilot learns that his glide path on final (in a stabilized approach)l will intersect the surface at the spot that isn't moving up or down in the windshield. Pick any spot on the runway: If it's rising in the windshield, you aren't going to get there; if it's descending, you'll overshoot. I've always wondered at the number of powered airplane drivers who didn't get that lesson.
Okay that's a great tip, I just started flying in a Cessna 150 and have yet to pilot a landing. This is clear, concise, and simple. EXACTLY what I need when everything is going through my head all at once and I feel information overload, I'll try it when I get a chance to land myself!
Dan: In practice, you'll select an "aim point" on the runway where you want to begin your flare; then adjust thrust and drag to arrive there. Uphill runways and runways that are surrounded by higher or lower terrain can create a powerful illusion that you"re too high or low on the approach, but the aim point is immune from visual deception. Also useful in practice engine out emergencies: 1) establish best glide speed, 2) select a place to land, 3) use aim point to assess whether you have enough altitude to get there. It's also how you assess other air traffic as collision risks. The guy that doesn't appear to be moving up, down, left, or right is on an intersecting path. Unfortunately, it's that same lack of relative motion that makes it hard to notice each other.
I am currently working on getting my private pilot, and I am 37 landings in. I have some good and some not. I have been watching your channel for about 3 weeks now, and I have seen a significant improvement in my landings using all your advice. Thank you!!!
Awesome! I'm glad you've found it helpful! Don't worry, I'm over 1,000 landings in and some are still good and some not. We learn a little from each one :)
The best piece of landing advice I ever had was from my first instructor: once you've rounded out (or flared) and you're just above the runway, try to keep the plane flying as long as possible just above the ground without touching it. Greaser every time I remember that!
Learned to fly at 60YO… Never had an instructor beside me. Learned ina Cub and Soloed in a CITABRIA. Can’t stop flying at the numbers, on the ground. Tail wheel all the way!
Energy management is definitely the name of the game. And to get comfortable with energy management, I definitely recommend what Rod Machado suggested in one of his latest youtube videos... practicing flight at MCA (minimum controllable airspeed). Basically fly around and practice some turns while the stall warning horn is screaming at ya. Excellent exercise.
The energy management is a key technique that glider pilots learn during initial training. Obviously, it is way more critical when you mismanaged your remaining energy levels and found yourself in the undershooting position with no engine power to pull you out of trouble. Pilots are taught to maintain a little more energy than required for landing (because you can always wash it off) but never less. Whether it is in the form of potential energy (height) or kinetic energy (speed) is up to the pilot and circumstances to choose, but the point is that you've got to have a balance of it.
Good advice. It sounds simple but it really was eye opening for me when I viewed it not as much as just a number (airspeed) but in total energy management. You can learn to really FEEL how much energy the airplane has and that's when you can really start to get good. Exciting stuff.
@@AirplaneAcademy Very true. In fact, for Australian Glider Pilot Licence, it is a mandatory manouvre during the Annual Flight Review to safely and precisely land a glider with both ASI and altimeter covered. Every glider pilot has to demonstrate proficient energy management skill without reference to instruments (in case they would ever become inoperative).
"Energy management" (on final) leads to "descent management" after flaring. After cutting the power and flaring you want to hold the plane off the ground just enough to stop sinking but not so much that you start climbing. It is a continuous process of holding the plane off the ground until all of the airplane's energy is gone and the plane has no choice but to land and stay down - you should have the yoke all the way back and hear the stall horn when the wheels touch down. And if that isn't enough to keep you busy, you have to remain aligned with the center line. Peace.
In my limited experience this is what leads to harder touchdowns because that stall just before touchdown creates a high sinkrate and if you’re say even 1m above the ground, that’s still some bump. Interested to hear your thoughts. I guess this technique works much better for experienced pilots used to the plane they’re flying.
@@jamesordwayultralightpilot exactly. Had one perfect flare to stall landing a circuit, next time I flew my landings were arse because I was trying to replicate it without fully knowing the height I was at
The way your comment is worded, may not be the way it’s intended, is exactly what he’s talking about doing before tail wheel training. Waiting for the aircraft to bleed off that speed is allowing the airplane the control in lieu of the pilot. Controlling airspeed and energy allows me to touch down where I tell the airplane to touch down. It’s something gained with experience and good instruction. I maintain enough energy and altitude to make the runway at any point in the pattern. That being said I also keep a little extra altitude and side slip it out on final. That allows me to also bleed precisely the amount of energy desired before crossing the numbers. It’s not the text book approach but gives me a very precise amount of remaining energy to both make the runway in unforeseen circumstances and choreograph my flair and touchdown with great precision.
Thanks! I watched this last night and flew this morning. My instructor said, "Hands down, the was the best landing that you have ever done." That's coming from a tough instructor. Thanks so much for your tip!
I like to think of the last 10 feet or so as a ‘transition to slow flight’ about 7-4 feet above the ground, and leave just a very small amount of power in, when I do this at the end of a stabilized approach, and I am on speed, which is 75-80 kts depending on conditions, landings are often smoother and consistent.
You pretty much already said it, but I would expand that personally if I'm controlling the speed appropriately, I don't kill the power completely till I am the wheel just touching down. The larger airplane you fly it to the runway. But even on the smaller GA aircraft you should be able to literally hover going down the runway with just the right amount of small power while in ground effect. Once you figure out where that is, your landings should get so much smoother. The other item that helped when I first started was moving my eyes from your touch down area to down the runway and letting your peripheral vision keep track of your lateral movement. Thanks for the great video as always. Your lighting and audio are doing great by they way!!
Cool info for the progressing flight student. We learn and develop on several levels. Repetition is valuable on them all. Repetition, review, redo and re-planning. Ha Yaar!
two issues for many students,1. the FAA test standards dictate a target distance rather than smoothness and 2. many instructors are hung up on the ability to glide in from any point in the pattern, which requires a steepened low or idle power final approach.
@@mytech6779 yes all my landings are power off from the beginning. Glide at 70 to the numbers. I don't mind but if the downwind is too short I end up having to slip down and it does not give you any real time to set up on final. Definitely nice being high until you need to land, though.
Practice a power off stall like a landing. If you think about it, it’s the same thing. Full landing config, stabilized decent, level off, nose up, stall/touch down. Also continue to fly the plane to the taxiway, sounds obvious but notice your controls after the mains or nose touches.
If you want to learn this better go for some glider lessons. I am an x hang glider pilot,with a bit of time in sailplanes, and GA aircraft. But mostly trikes and soaring trikes. I use a good descending glidescope at mostly idle. Managing my ASI thru the bar. And with point of destination puts me where i want to be on the runway without a load of excessive energy to bleed off in the flare. Very good advice here and really demonstrates how it makes sense.
I heard on a YT video once "I can't get low and slow at the same time". I'm just a sim pilot but that really clicked with me and I realized I was indeed trying to do both at the same time and almost always coming in too hot. I've started getting that airspeed I want first, and then slowly working my descent and it has made a huge difference. Getting that proper approach speed is critical. I don't know about the real world, but in the sim that speed is so critical to me I'm shooting for stabilizing at that proper speed early even. Early rather than late.
The thing that helped me most was similar. I kept ballooning the aircraft till I realized, "oh, I'm just leveling off five feet above the ground and flying the rest of the lift out of the wing." Enjoy your show. Thanks for the effort.
Exactly this. I kept ballooning as well, mainly because with my grand total of 11 hours I keep seeing the ground as something to avoid. Don't want to be a pancake after all, right? When I stopped thinking of this as landing and started thinking of it as just really low flight on runway heading that I want to keep off the ground (which means I'm going to have to gradually nose up since we're not adding any power), guess what? Nice and smooth. Still needs work of course but the balloon issue seems to be behind me!
Great video! I was encouraged when you went over the exact things I was thinking you were going to say. My first real lightbulb moment, and moment that I gained a ton of confidence, was when ATC told me to make an early base. I then had to perform a slip in order to land on the numbers. Using that energy you referred to is what made all the difference. I think I'm going to have to check out your other vids now and subscribe!
I fly an experimental that is super slick. The number one thing to having a good landing is to be on speed way early. Like back on the 45. After that, it’s to be patient. It’s easy to flare too high and hit hard.
I aim to roll out on final at 400 ft AGL which sets up the same sight picture for final approach every time, contributing to a stable approach. The RV-8 does not like 3-point landings so I usually wheel it on. Power off just before the threshold, round out to a gentle descent and, importantly, keep it coming down. Dont level off after roundout. Just keep it coming down ever so slowly. I grease it just about every time. Once the tail wheel touches down, full back on the stick and apply moderate braking to taxi speed. Also, whenever taxiing, keep it as exactly on the line as you can…this is great practice for your footwork.
As a glider pilot, all my maneuvers are all about energy management. We we learn that by the intuitive approach of glider flying. Now having said that, putting the actual words out there for everybody else is a big help for the discussion. Nice video.
Great video! I'm currently working on my commercial license and have about 150 hours total flight time and it's the landings that are kicking my butt. Ill definitely keep this video in mind next time I'm in the air!
@@47EZ_DRIVER that's why you only use the other hand once the landing is assured... It's actually how the examiner on my checkride told me to do it, so I'm not in the place to question that since it gives the flare a better feeling.
As soon as I read the title, I wondered if it was going to be something of the sort that I discovered while flying gliders, and although I had a simpler description in my head, it's exactly the same dynamic on the runway: Fly the plane all the way to touchdown. I unfortunately wasn't taught this, but rather discovered that if I landed the "correct" way, which was to stall just at touch down, attempting to land at the lowest possible velocity, then my landings were controlled crashes. However, when I landed with a couple of extra knots and flew the plane to touchdown, I could more often kiss the tires to runway, and control the decent rate in fine grain right at touchdown. I told myself, I should "fly the plane all the way to touchdown" and dare not tell my instructor that I preferred to land the "wrong" way. I like the description you chose however, of "landings are a flight maneuver." I think the old school method of touching down at the moment the stick is against your stomach is a bad idea in every landing except perhaps short field. In normal landings, I doubt the landing roll is any shorter than coming in with two extra knots and having brakes for 30 more feet. At worse, it's splitting hairs, with a benefit of smoother landings.
Thanks for sharing - lots of different ways to teach landings and some people disagree with my approach in this video. But it's just the one that has worked the best for me!
I looked at the comments and seem to be odd man out. I was taught by a B-17 pilot. He told me that you can control the plane all the way to the ground with trim and should not be doing major power adjustments. He also taught me to look at the runway. With practice you will see a spot that is not moving. That is where the plane will land if you are not making adjustments and fly it to the ground. That advise helped me to bring my antique tail dragger across the country without incident, even in high winds. Try to watch that spot on the runway. It helps. Energy management is only a part. Power is altitude. Trim will take care of speed. The navy pilot's comment is correct when he referenced angle of attack.
Landing a jet and landing a small plane are different. Small planes are typically held off until the stall speed; a jet is just basically flown down to the ground, with a slight reduction in decent rate just above the runway until touchdown, spoilers are then activated to prevent floating and to "dump" the lift for efficient wheel braking..
Deciding how far back your aiming point should be from the touchdown point is something I’ve found very critical to be able to touch down at the desired spot. I feel like I’m always trying to fine tune the distance between these two points and has found needing to recalibrate if conditions are too different from my home airport. I haven’t had to land on a real short field yet but if I do, I’ll definitely be going around at least once to make sure I know all the bumps and sinks to expect on short approach before touching down.
On again, off again flight training - I've had several flight instructors. I recall some early ones did not want to hear the stall warning horn during landing. Later an instructor said he always wanted to hear the stall warning horn right before touchdown. My landings improved with the stall warning horn audible just before the wheels touch the ground (a foot or so). Still no PPL but I enjoying flying now and then.
Thanks for the comment - yeah it's one of the pros and cons of having a handful of instructors, that you get different perspectives and techniques. I agree mine are better with the stall warning screaming at me at touchdown.
I fly a Thorp experimental taildragger with essentially solid main gear. The trick with this plane is to ensure that I have enough energy so that I have time to coax it down softly to a wheel landing, because if I run out b4 I am at the sweet spot my options are either a hard landing, or a go around.
I am a glider pilot myself and bringing down a glider with higher speed than your recommended approach speed can really get dangerous because of the high-performance glide ratio, compared with the ground effect. Our huge disadvantage is we can not go around... A clean and stabilized traffic pattern is the base of a successful landing in every subcategory in aviation. Totally agree with the video 💯👌👍
My instructor has me pull the power just before we’re over the runway at 65-70 knots. Usually results in me having to pitch down more for air-speed and by the time I’ve flared, I’ve lost a lot of energy - resulting in a hard landing.
Once I learned to fly the entire approach (downwind, base and final) at proper landing speed and then use pitch for airspeed and throttle for altitude, all of landings just seemed to “click” for me.
It might sound weird but on my final, I'll blip throttle to pull nose up if I know I don't have the airspeed to pitch up with stick without stalling. It's a small shift in my thinking but it's smooth for me to just blip that throttle and when I see the nose start to rise I bring throttle back down. This helps raise the nose and give you a little more float time if needed or you can just keep descending and flare to touchdown. Sometimes, I'll pull back on stick to get the tailwheel down first and kill flaps then when the mains touch I pull full back on stick and full brakes to stop within a few feet... for stol landings. But I'm far from pro. Just flying by the seat of my pants.
Great topic and advice. Every aircraft is different on approach... example in my Cessna 180 for a short field . identify landing point ... Set up @ 1000ft AGL ... 60 knots ..500fpm decent RPM 1500.... stabilised with all flap out.. 500ftagl. Get the nose up a little bit ... now 50 knots ..stall warning coming on ... apply power to prevent excessive sink rate, and prevent stall. You're on the back of the drag curve. . ( just like Douglas Binder below Airspeed with pitch, rate of descent with power) Last 10 feet bleed power off ...pull back and trade that speed for a 3 pointer .. Of course this is simplified its hours and hours of practise... in the end the plane flies itself ... after you've been bouncing it all over the paddock getting it sorted takes time. Nail those benchmarks in your plane.
In my Mooney M20E speed management is critical it is not as "forgiving" as Cessnas on speed management. On final you have to be at or near the numbers or you really float. I'm working on finding the exact approach speeds that work well as I roll speed back slower and slower. Mooneys tend to quit flying when they want to (and really drop) so you have to be careful how slow you go in the pattern. However, because of this many Mooney pilots come in too fast I've heard. That thin wing really affects stall/spin speeds in banks etc so they tend to get flown extra fast to prevent issues.
Great points. I noticed myself playing with the power too much on final approach when first learning the 182. After finding the appropriate power setting I was then able to more accurately pinpoint my landings to within 10 feet of my touchdown point. As always, great video!
Thanks for the comment! That's awesome. I did some air work over the last week to better understand my power settings for slow slight, pattern work, final, etc... having some target power settings definitely helps me in the pattern and I wish I would have done that sooner vs. kind of winging it.
I currently fly a Grumman tiger but I did have a considerable amount of time in a 182. Also flew with a number of other pilots and they were generally looking at an approach speed of 75-78. The lower air speed of 60 kn and using the power to control the rate of dissent and the altitude is a perfect idea. Perhaps one other suggestion that made a world of difference for me. Once you’re in the flare make a super conscious effort to take your eyes off the cowling of the airplane and look down at the end of the runway. It just made a big difference for me.great video. But I also have a question. Do you get to 60 kn using pitch for air speed in power for descent when you are on final or do you use 60 kn all the way around the pattern?
I currently fly a Grumman tiger but I did have a considerable amount of time in a 182. Also flew with a number of other pilots and they were generally looking at an approach speed of 75-78. The lower air speed of 60 kn and using the power to control the rate of dissent and the altitude is a perfect idea. Perhaps one other suggestion that made a world of difference for me. Once you’re in the flare make a super conscious effort to take your eyes off the cowling of the airplane and look down at the end of the runway. It just made a big difference for me.great video. But I also have a question. Do you get to 60 kn using pitch for air speed in power for descent when you are on final or do you use 60 kn all the way around the pattern?
My tip: Directional control is everything. Spinner and tail in line with the runway, regardless of bank angle required compensate for crosswind. A crosswind landing is a sideslip to neutral as opposed by wind. My two cents. Especially for taildraggers :-)
With a stabilized approach and proper use of thrust I was taught to aim short level long. Short are the numbers on the close end of the runway and long is the numbers at the far end of the runway.
I am in Addison for a CE course that is right by KADS, and I’m wanting to fly down next time in January from KCFO near Denver. I am a freshly minted Instrument Rated PPL, with about 400 hrs, but This Dallas Metroplex is so dang big it’s got me wondering if I can spot the dang Airport!! Of course, filing IFR would solve that problem, and I’ve watched you do it VFR, but I would love to discuss it with you sometime...
@@AirplaneAcademy Trying to find Addison at night made me think the GPS in the plane was broken and I was somewhere else. I was on top of damn place and couldn't see it. It's nuts.
yep.. agree any mug can land with a nice steady head wind ..try gusty strong winds, I find no flap and nose down trim helps heaps.(in light rec aircraft)
Wow! This is invaluable information. Perfectly explained. I’m currently taking lessons and this will help for sure when I start to execute landings. Thanks for posting!
High is not the problem, you should be able to do steep approaches all day without ballooning, control of the round-out is the issue. Being at or below the minimum drag speed, which is a bit slower than the best L/D ratio speed (best glide distance), will help and maybe start the round-out a touch higher but less aggressive.
Fun fact, you can groundloop some trikes. My instructor demo'd why we try to stay off the brakes and how to actually brake if needed so that the wheels don't dig. Feeling the plane almost bounce on the grass was an experience.
What did it for me - I realized the the language being used by my instructor and my study guides was confusing. Landing isn't a 2-step process - approach, then flare - it's a 3-step process - approach, level (like you said, a flight maneuver), then flare.
Another great video! Most pilots have an overriding fear of the stall, due to this understandably being drilled into them by their instructors. The result is that most approaches are executed slightly too fast. If the training continued to reference angles of attack and airspeed, the length of the final approach and height when turning onto final would be better computed. Short field landings are a scary time for the lower hours pilot, and they highlight the need for continued training after qualifying. We all learn at airfields that are ideal for training, but I recommend booking half a dozen lessons every season, just to focus on your specific aspirations- short field, unusual attitude etc etc.
So..... everyone seems to agree on “airspeed Is KING”. It’s called or spoken a few different ways but...speed or energy or however you describe it.... it’s the (main) key or at least, the biggest “key” to a landing that makes you smile,or sit a little taller in your seat. And boy oh boy how fast you can “loose” that skill. As a 10 year PP and still low time (
Thanks Scott. Keep in mind that a small aircraft WILL fly differently without an extra 200lbs in the right seat. So there could be some of that in terms of if your landings are considerably different solo vs with an instructor, but it shouldn't make a huge difference. Comes down to practice as you've said! My instructor would always ask on the approach "high, low, fast, or slow, and what are you gonna do about it?" I still say that to myself today in the cockpit.
I'm just in a 152 Cessna Sim, and have very few hours practicing landings and I think my problem right now is judging the distance of the wheels to how far the runway is away from the wheels. Also getting lined up, lol, had the same problem in Golf!! But I'm getting better. I was doing better landing at night or early when it's still dark, except this morning. Not so hot. I have noticed that pilots landing still have power and aren't deadstick landing like I was first doing, now I still have some energy or power left while landing. Anyway thanks for the video!!
If you want to judge your height above rwy look with your left eye for second or two at the 10 hours if the the longitudinal axis of the cessna is 12 hours - this is what what the Jason Miller from the YT Finer Points Channel calls in his videos the "Lindbergh Reference"
Thanks for the comment - another thing to practice is to really try to take in the sight picture when you're sitting on the ground, how far above the ground your eye is. Over time that can help you land better because you memorize the reference point.
I do what my instructor tells me..maintain airspeed and cut to idle right during transition. Once, I didn't go to full idle until after the round-out...smoothest landing I can remember.
Depends a bit on what you're flying. In a Cessna this works but I'm not sure my Mooney wouldn't float to the end of the runway. I normally have to cut power idle when I know I have runway made (ie usually before the threshold or right over it)
@@gringoloco8576 Identical to my Van's RV-12. Throttle at idle once runway is made, aim for just below the numbers, trim up to keep airspeed at 60 to 65 Kt's depending on if the bird weighs close to 1100 or max gross near 1320. When the runway gets really wide, increase back pressure and add a bit more as the plane gets slower and slower, add some more back pressure. Nose will come up some, blocking my view a little bit, sometimes the main tires just kiss the runway, waiting and waiting for the plane to get from 60 kts, down to 41 kts where the wings with flaperons will stall out. Going that slow, it feels like a waiting game of seconds, for the mains to touch down.
Great video! Energy management is key and it is one of the most important concepts in any maneuvering phase. Tailwheel flying is such a refining experience for basic stick and rudder skills.
Best landing advice is airspeed is non negotiable. You can have a steep approach or a shallow one, but airspeed must remain constant. 90mph on downwind, 80mph on base, 70mph on final
I’m 64 years old and a student pilot. I’m also the co-owner of a 1975 Bellanca Decathlon. I split my training flights between a Cessna 152 and the Decathlon. To be honest, I have been scared to death of the Decathlon. I’m finally learning how to maintain the centerline on takeoff. The 180 HP O-320 teaches a lot about left turning tendency. I think I have those adventurous takeoffs cured after more than a few saves by my instructor on the back. As of my most recent lesson, I think I about have landings down. I just need to master the last one foot. Flaring too high has been my biggest flaw. I did finally learn to arrest the decent with just a touch of power and then let her down more smoothly. A few more like that and maybe I’ll finally stop being intimidated by my own airplane!
Thanks for sharing and being honest. I completely understand where you're at with the Decathlon. Like I said, I was pretty nervous for the first good 50 hours in the super cub.... I promise it's doable! Biggest thing when landing was realizing that it's a maneuver to gently put the wheels on the ground but fly it all the way to the runway, don't flare and hold it off hold it off like you might in a tricycle gear. Put the mains gently on the pavement and keep flying the airplane (you're on the ground but as you well know it doesn't stop flying until the prop stops haha). There's a short book called "taming the taildragger" that I felt was useful also especially for landings.
Doing power off landings to a point really helped me understand how everything relates in landing. We close the throttle abeam touchdown point, and don't touch it again till we're on the ground. Pick a point, we used a line across the runway, and land as close to it as possible, measured in feet, with no slips, no bouncing, and no floating. You learn about pitch and drag and how to control those things, you learn about ground effect and how much it contributes to extending your landing and to what extent based on where you are in the flight envelope and how to combat that, and the difference between your aim point and your touchdown point. That was huge for me. Doing these type of landings really really teach you the full extent of how different maneuvers, approach speeds, unstable approaches, weather conditions, wind, gusts, and ground effect influence how your airplane lands. Besides that, the two most crucial things I learned were pitch for speed, drag (power or thrust is the opposite of this, and when you have no engine, drag is what you can control) for descent rate; and put your aim point before your touchdown point, and if it rises in the windshield you'll undershoot, if it falls, you'll overshoot. Drag is what controls that. Speed determines how long you'll float in ground effect.
In power offs, if you're too high, you don't push forward. You pull back. That slows you down, increasing your induced drag dramatically, and you'll drop like a stone. If you hold that speed though, you'll plow through ground effect with no cushion at all and land hard. Airplanes have been damaged doing that. To prevent that, right above ground effect, about 50ft up, you dive for the runway, increase your speed, and ground effect will give you a "cushion" with which you can pull hard against, arresting your decent, and greasing it on. It is alarming the first time you ride with someone doing that, intimidating when you do it, yet fascinating that it works. It isn't a regular maneuver by any means, as it is very unforgiving. Yet, it works, and the aerodynamics that make it work are fascinating, and it really really teaches you how all this stuff works together to create a good landing. Don't go do this on your own. You'll bend your landing gear, or worse.
The thing about the 73 and all jets is that the power doesn't come on instantly, especially from idle, so keeping the engines spinning is critical for go around capability. That is more about keeping their 'outs' open than it being the ideal way to land.
Thank you for posting this. It was very helpful along with the excellent comments. Doing more practice low approaches and finding the throttle setting to float along the runway at minimum speed without stalling and landing was useful.
It’s like Mindfulness; being in tune with whatever you’re doing with a much deeper awareness & level of consciousness. I heard an SAS pilot refer to the 777 he was about to fly as his backpack - an extension of your body. One with his machine.
Jacobson Flare technique helped a lot for me, wasn't really getting it until that point. Technique by a guy in Australia, some other TH-camrs used modification of it. Main thing it allowed for me was to work out a way to "slow down" the final approach and time it out nice.
Great discussion. I learned to fly in Piper Warriors and Archers, then transitioned to Turbo Arrows and Mooneys for my Commercial. All low wing aircraft. Then some years ago, sold my Archer started flying the high wing 172. Horrible. I had a total of maybe 3 hours in high wing airplanes at that point and I had to learn to land all over again. Little/no ground effect. I would sometimes hit the nose first. A humbling experience. Like you, I became obsessed with mastering the perfect landing. I see the way instructors teach landings, and it is not the way you describe. I believe your technique is superior, although perhaps less so for students. Instructors always teach the same way. Descend to within 2 feet of the runway, chop power, yank the stick back just enough to stop the descent at exactly zero v/s, then let it stop flying and allow it to settle on the runway. Right? Seems simple enough, but if it is that good, why isn’t anyone doing it that way (i.e. your 727 pilot!)? There are two challenges to this: (1) You have to know exactly how much “yank” on the yoke you need to stop the descent and achieve zero v/s. Too little and you land hard. Too much and you balloon. (2) Even without turbulence, the aerobatic skills needed to hold an airplane 1-2 feet off the ground while managing its dwindling energy and continuously changing attitude require constant stick and rudder. Students are at a disadvantage because their stick and rudder skills are still developing (although this is one way to help improve those!). One theory I have regarding why instructors teach it that way is that they fear that if their student misjudges the approach and stall too high, they might not react quickly enough to avoid a crash. However, if they are only two feet off the runway, the “arrival” might be embarrassing, but not dangerous (that’s just my theory). But what you describe is better and it works in any airplane. It is pretty much how I land a plane, except for one critical component that I thought you missed: the sight picture. Agreed, you “bleed” the energy down and “feel” for the touchdown, but you didn’t tell them how. What I’ve learned to do is establish and maintain the same sight picture throughout the landing. One of your viewers mentioned something about “…looking at the end of the runway,” which is close. But I've learned that maintaining a consistent sight picture throughout the flare is a critical factor regarding the “how.” I put together a TH-cam video to demonstrate using the P3d simulator (“A Reliable Technique for Landing Airplanes”). I made this to help a friend who was learning to fly, so it isn't nearly as professional as your video above, but I went to some lengths to demonstrate the concept and I'd be curious to hear what you think.
Thanks for the comment and for your advice. I would add that getting the "sight picture" also involves taking a mental snapshot on the ground of how far you are above the ground when the wheels are touching. Over time in the same airplane you will develop a feel for how high off the ground you are. Thanks for taking the time to leave lengthy advice for me and others!
I thought to mention that, but my reply was already long. Yes, there is a component of timing -- that last few seconds in the flare after you chop power where you need to slowly raise the nose to change v/s from a few hundred fpm to as close to zero just as the wheels touch. The TIME it takes to get to zero v/s and that perfect touchdown is managed by the RATE at which you raise the nose during the flare, and that RATE is determined by how close you are to optimum airspeed and how far you are from the runway when you enter the flare. Managing that with the techniques you recommend does not require entering the flare at exactly the same airspeed (although it helps, of course!). But you can mitigate by adjusting when to chop power. A little slow? Wait a little later to chop power. A little fast? Chop power sooner. I agree, you certainly need that mental snapshot of the ground to know where that zero v/s point is you are shooting for. But it isn't about watching the ground rise up so much as how quickly you need to reduce the sink rate from a few hundred fpm to zero throughout the flare using a consistent sight picture down the runway. The plane is changing attitude around you as you flare, the sink rate is slowing, and the airspeed is dropping, but the sight picture doesn’t change. The video I posted focuses almost exclusively on that. Flying a different plane every flight from a rental club complicates a little. How high the airplane sits above the ground (e.g. Mooney vs 172), seat position, etc. I try, but don’t always remember to take a mental snapshot of the cowling and how high I am sitting above the ground before starting my taxi. My tendency to micro-analyze this sort of thing comes from ski instructing. Trust me, you really don't want to ask me to describe the details of the perfect Wedel turn unless we are on a really long chair lift!
My first instructors (almost exactly 60 years ago) were a WW2-era AAF heavy transport pilot and a Korean conflict-era USMC Corsair driver. They agreed that the perfect landing was on the centerline, both moving and pointed that way, in the first third of the runway; at the exact moment you run out of flying speed, altitude, and nose-up elevator, all at the same time. That, and "never carry a package by the string".
THIS is always a great discussion topic! There are still WAAAY too many long landings - mostly in GA - which end up in an over run rather than a go-around. Net result: insurance premiums go up for everyone and everyone has to wait while the wreckage and bodies are cleared: none of which is very pleasant or necessary. Going around is - at the vast majority of government run airfields - never not an option so long as the fan is turning. Good Energy Management (in the landing flare) is best achieved by following the Stable Approach philosophy: typically, that requires following an approach configuration / speed profile so as to achieve Vref when crossing the threshold at 50ft. Thereafter the landing ‘process’ is type/weight/DA/runway slope dependent as to when power is reduced; and therein lies the skill some of us are lucky enough to be paid for the pleasure of practising... and practicing ;)
Well said. I like your point about DA and runway slope etc.... for example the landing flare and power reduction will look different when landing at a high altitude unpaved strip with a steep gradient vs. a flat paved runway at sea level. That's why learning to manage energy vs. just "let the plane stop flying" was way more helpful to me in improving my landings.
My aircraft is hangered at a farm in a valley, with lots of rotors and chaotic wind, it took me a while after getting my certificate to stop landing with minimum energy. Landings are all different, we need to learn to assess the appropriate amount of energy, pitch and descent rate for the wind and strip conditions we encounter at each landing. In my case I needed to learn to carry more energy to safely land on a short, rough strip battered with squirly wind. Landing repetitively on a training strip in laminar air flow can teach you how to vary the inputs of pitch and throttle to vary point of contact and speed with the ground but I think the most important considerations are how much is the wind gusting, how much drag or flaps am I going to use in relation to my sink rate to accommodate for the short periods of tailwind and crosswind I will experience on short final. When landing at a new strip with plenty of runway why not use a little more energy until one becomes familiar with the wind conditions? Start safe but when familiar, practice tailwind landings and crosswind landings, video your landings and critically review them, talk to the video when landing tell yourself what you think you are doing wrong, many a time I tell myself 'well you're walking away from this one but it caught you by surprise' or 'you pulled that and dropped it'' I'm always capable of a bad landing, I have to concentrate on downwind to see if I can see the sock swinging, stay a couple of hundred feet high if it is go full flaps drop the nose be ready on the throttle in case I drop five hundred feet and flare forcefully to pull up and stall onto the strip, this is not how I was trained on a long strip in mostly laminar flow.
Thanks for sharing, Ralf. I think this is really great advice. I agree for windy conditions, carrying more speed for energy management is super important. In fact I'll land with just 20 degrees of flaps in the 182 if it's crazy windy. You bring up some excellent points here.
It's all about airspeed that begins with a good pattern. You should find yourself at final with the right speed and glide slope. The problems begin with wind that requires corrections
The PA18 super Cub is a very simple aircrat to take-off and land.The Cub has plenty of elevator power and plenty of rudder control.Most Cub pilots I see in trouble simple can't round the aircraft out ,thus flaring the aircraft out and it becomes prepaired for landing. flare and waiit for it to settle into the landing mode.
I was taught three keys to landings. 1- proper energy management 2- proper spatial relationship to the runway in all phases of approach 3- the nose of the airplane MUST BE POINTED IN EXACTLY THE DIRECTION YOU ARE TRAVELING. Number three sounds overly simple to many people, but anyone with significant tail wheel time will instantly recognize the importance and nuance of this statement.
Landing planes i've never flown before in the sim, i often bleed off too much speed and pretty much stall the plane onto the 1000-foot markers. After half an hour in the pattern i start to learn the planes and how they behave.
Thank you and I'm glad to hear it's helping with motivation! And I flew this weekend and the smoke was horrible!! Couldn't see a thing.... I was going to film a video and realized people wouldn't be able to see anything haha so had to audible. Keep us posted on your solo!
Airplane Academy during my stage check, I got a taste of IFR when I was trying to do steep turns without a horizon. As I came in to do some pattern work, the visibility was 3sm, and the tower ended up closing up the pattern. Keep pushing out content; I need it lol.
I think this is a good example why every pilot that intends to fly regularly should get an instrument rating.... conditions like these or especially nighttime rural VFR can necessitate the use of instruments very quickly.
Good stuff. Unless you are flying something with a swept wing, stick with power for glidepath control and pitch for airspeed, I would say. You are spot on with airspeed. Too much is downright dangerous, but today sadly, many instructors are so terrified of stalling they tell students to add some extra knots, for 'safety'. I wad taught to stall the aircraft with the wheels 6 inches above the runway. Cheers
I basically do the same as you. First off, approach speed is the first factor, getting that speed set on final is important and the first thing I do. Then it's the decent rate, but I can't do that power for decent and pitch for speed, I adjust both as needed once I'm on that glide. Crossing the threshold at the correct speed, 55 to 60 in the 172 but I keep that last power setting until I've round out and then I close the power and then control my sink, keeping that nose up, pulling back all the way till my main wheels are firmly on the ground and then lower the nose, except in soft field landings, then I will keep that nose up until it almost doesn't want to stay up anymore and then lower it, but not too long so that the nose wheel drops in.
I always found the flare difficult to explain due to the continuous judgement and adjustment as the a/c decelerates. “Pretend the runway is your sibling- get as annoyingly close as you can without touching it”. “Hehe, I’m not touching you”
4:09 I am likely the only person to have landed a SU-25 Flanker Land based jet fighter in DCS World on an old super carrier. And when I did I had a pretty landing just like that so yes 100% you are right a pretty landing is the same for any plane.
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I failed my first check ride because I failed my short field landing. Took a lesson with a new instructor and while watching him demo a landing it clicked. Airspeed with pitch, rate of descent with power. We are taught this but I wasn't separating the two. Now I can put the plane down anywhere I want. I passed my second check ride three weeks ago and have been loving every second of flying. Lots of great advice in the video and the comments. This was the final thing I needed to know to put it all together.
Awesome, and congratulations!! Some people teach it differently, but I agree - pitch for airspeed, power for altitude and descent, really clicks for me.
By this do you mean you add power to descend and pitch the nose down or lessen power to reduce airspeed?
@@thisismagacountry1318 you lower the power to descent maintain 60kts when landing
@@thisismagacountry1318 and if you pitch the nose up it will reduce speed and if you pitch the nose down you will gain speed.
@@wassup1581 Thanks, hope to afford a Pipistrel Virus SW someday.
Then a Diamond DA50RG eventually.
Maybe a used Air Force U-28 Draco aka Pilatus PC-12.
The one I found useful: when you flare and then pull the stick, you act as if you don't want to land. This way you keep increasing angle of attack, lose energy until you touch with main gear like a butterfly.
The problem that I had with this was that I was aggressively "don't want to land" or "hold it off, hold it off", and I would unintentionally be increasing the angle of attack until the plane stalled and it plopped onto the runway opposed to greasing it in.
for me i come in at 65 kts to land and cut off the throttle as i come over the threshold however when i try to flare the plane balloons how come
@@bongman123 is it a 172? They are quite floaty. Think of the flare as “holding it off with just enough back pressure”. Instead of intentionally “pitching up”. Good luck!
@@bongman123 It's because 65kts is actually quite fast... I know that speed is also in the POH but maybe you know that for GA aircraft a rule of thumb is Vapp= 1.3xVs
So in a C172 for example Vs with Flaps full is about 42kts, so Vapp. could be 55 kts. If you want to add a personal safety margin, maybe try 60kts. I used 60 during my whole flight training and I feel it's just about the right speed. Works even better if you maintain it until 3-5 seconds before the flare and then power to idle. You will be at 50-55 kts. low above the runway, which is almost too slow to float.
@@bongman123 you're probably pulling too hard too quickly on the stick. Try to pull it gently after the treshold (with no power) so your plane will just float above the ground, then when you feel it's coming down, pull a bit more but very gently / slowly so you dont balloon. Try to keep it just above the ground. At some point, you will touch. Every plane has a different feel for landing, the more you fly it, the more precise you will become.
Even if you are coming too fast, this technique works, you just have to be even more smooth and slow with the yoke. But you will float longer above the ground. Or you can force the landing : pull more slowly than you would usually have : the plane will come down and touch. It can be useful for emergency landings but it is easy to bounce when you have too much speed. So learning to manage your energy / speed is the best way to land !
As a pilot i find i can improve my landings by letting the co pilot land lol
😥😊😃😀👍
Pretend it till you do it!
Yeh same I just let the instructor land it lol
Jejeje
Genius, genius 😂
One key thing to improving my landings is frequent slow flight practice. Being comfortable flying at the speed and AOA that you land at gives you a great deal of feel for where the wheels are as you touch down. I frequently fly slow flight at altitude and, when the airport is quiet, with low passes just a few feet above the runway at minimum controllable speed.
I totally agree. You gotta spend time there to get comfortable there. Then landings are more like pulling into a parking lot.
In other words practice flying in ground effect? I have heard this tip before. My home airport has a pretty short runway, so I’d have to practice that somewhere else. No touch n goes either, only full stop
"I am not just gonna go until the plane quits, but I am gonna intentionally view this as a flight maneuver and put the wheels where I want them, when i want them, to me that was a huge shift"
I hear you loud and clear, couldn't be more right about that.
Great comments and video.
One lesson learned I had in only my 2nd hour of my private pilots training in a 150...I had the plane, throttle back, flaps in, 15 ft high...all of a sudden a crosswind gust direct off right wing had me left wing low about to cartwheel in the grass...instructor skillfully grabbed the plane and safely landed straight down the runway...then said, "Always expect the unexpected and keep flying till the plane is parked." I never forget that lesson.
"Keep flying until the plane is parked" That jumped out at me. Thank you for this.
I am glad I watched this, I have always closed my eyes about treetop high and hope for the best
Glad it was helpful! :)
Lmao 😂
Max Bray. You're a riot.
Lol
Max Bray...you made me blow my chocolate milk out of my nose...still chuckling
I spoke with Rod Machado at Oshkosh years ago and he helped me through a problem I was having transitioning from being subtle and gentle on the controls in a stabilized approach to being as aggressive as necessary to control the airplane at the point of touchdown. I was freezing on the controls as if my stabilized approach would carry me all the way to touchdown. He told me to move the controls around just enough to get a sense for how the airplane is responding in slow flight without destabilizing the approach. As soon as I started doing that I stopped over or under controlling in ground effect and applied no more nor less control input than appropriate to smoothly transition from flying to rolling down the runway. Many thanks!!!
Yes, this. Your advice is exactly what I was taught long ago when flying a cub. Landing is just flying close to the ground, and all flight maneuvers should be intentional and as precise as you can make them. Excellent!!
This ONE Technique is: Land with the appropriate speed.
Instructors hates him !
I think it's important also to fly all the way to the ground, and beyond on the ground roll. That is essentially his other point. Many students don't keep crosswind correction in once the wheels touch down for example.
@@gringoloco8576 Hi Gringo Loco.
One thing that is good here, is what you said. The other thing is discussion.
I can't even land the divine plane yet. ( Divine, as opposed to darn. )
Ha....
Landings... right, what you say, needs to be repeated. My instructor keep flying, after he is out of the plane, doing the book work or hiking.
Hey... I do that to.
I should give myself some credit.
But, I want to have in mind where I will put the plane, before the flight.
The parking spot, and fly to it, so to speak....taxiing.
Thanks again...
Great info.
Thanks.
You sparked some discussion and development on landing. That brings learning and development, that is so valuable.
Thanks
Thanks!
I work as a FI on airport with grass short runway and for me and my students the most important factor for a good landing is the airspeed. If we bring the plane to the threshold at 60kts the landing is significantly easier and you can tell the plane is ready to land as oppose to 70 sometimes even 75 kts where the plane bounces and is unwilling to land. This is a recommended full flaps landing speed in the plane POH and makes huge difference.
in my experience (only 100 hours) a good landing usually follows a good approach
My experience is I walk away
In my experience (only 8 hours), a good landing is the one that you walk away alive from.🤣
In my experience (0 hours) I am pro pylote
@@yannisl8259 xD
then 👏tell👏me👏how👏
Great video! I am a student with 43 hours. My regular instructor went on vacation and I just happened to fly with another instructor who taught me to basically pitch for specific airspeeds at each leg of my approach which has really improved my landings. Before I was bouncing and ballooning and going around a lot haha. Either I was just coming in way too fast or I would come in too slow and just drop (bang) down on the runway. Now I use power as needed to control my decent, but mostly I’m using pitch to control my airspeed and it helps me to maintain the proper glide slope and then nail my airspeed across the threshold which sets me up for a nice smooth landing as I let the energy dissipate and set it down gently. I enjoy your videos thanks!
Nice video... I learned to fly in the US Navy... my instructors taught us energy management using AOA (angle of attack). In every military aircraft, there is an AOA meter that is referenced to establish the best performance of the aircraft in critical flight phases. By using the AOA as a reference, you get to learn the feel of your aircraft in different critical phases of flight and, for me, that helps me with energy management when I fly. We were taught that you can stall an aircraft at "any" airspeed. Exceeding the critical angle of attack is what determines if you stall or not.
Fast forward to today... I own a 77 Grumman Tiger with my son. As with any aircraft, how you manage your airspeed and power determines how well your approaches and landings will be. A good landing requires a good, steady approach. The Tiger is a sleek aircraft, similar to a Mooney. It loves to fly and hates to slow down. Energy management is key to a successful landing in the Tiger. I still use the AOA technique by establishing a "site picture" using the nose of my aircraft against the horizon. It works very well.
On a VFR approach, we slow the aircraft down to 90 knots as we enter the 45 entry to the downwind at pattern altitude. About mid-field, downwind, we slow to 80 knots and 10 degrees of flap, holding level flight and reducing power to 2100 rpm. 80 knots is also our minimum maneuvering speed... which is the speed that we maintain should the engine fail at this point. It assures us that we can glide to the runway, making 30 degree banks if necessary, without inducing a stall. Abeam the approach end, we reduce power to 1900 RPM and go to 20 degrees flap, maintaining 80 knots and begin our 500 FPM decent. As we turn to base, we add 30 degrees of flap if the winds are calm or no more flaps if it is gusty, maintaining 80 knots. On final, again, if the wind is relatively calm, we will add full flaps. If it's gusty, we will not add any more flaps. On short final, in calm winds, we will slow to 70 knots. If it's gusty, we will maintain 80 knots to provide an extra margin for directional control. This is also where we transition from a crab to a slip if we're landing in a crosswind. As we cross the threshold, we continue to fly down to the runway to our aiming point. Once the aiming point goes beneath us, we transition and begin our flare and reduce power to idle. By this time, the mains are just a couple of feet off the ground. Touchdown usually occurs just as the stall horn is coming on. Remember, in a crosswind you need to hold that crosswind correction after landing. That's especially important in a tail dragger.
Thanks again for this excellent segment on landings. Fly safe and fly often!
In my Mooney M20E these approach speeds are basically identical for what you're using on this Tiger. Only difference is I general favor half flaps on the Mooney (especially when I'm at max gross) as the Mooney really quits flying rather suddenly when it's time to and it likes to plunk on the runway a little jarringly with full flaps so often I use half flaps for very smooth touchdowns, plus I'm in Midwest and we always have squirrelly winds.
Hi Gordon - first off THANK YOU for your service! And thanks for sharing your experience here in your tiger. I like how you've described the pattern airspeeds and settings. It's great when you can have it scientific like that because it takes any guess work out of your approach.
Awesomely detailed description. Are almost all small aircraft roughly about the 500fpm descent mark after crossing the numbers on downwind?
@@VictoryAviation 500 fpm is probably pretty accurate, especially for IFR approaches. For VFR traffic patterns it's more visual but 500 f still works. We aim for 1000 ft AGL on downwind, 800 ft at the downwind to base turn, 500 ft AGL base to final turn and follow the glide slope.
Are you sure you are not an Air Force pilot because real Navy pilots just slam it on the deck for the three wire?!?! 😜
Edit: Nice Tiger by the way!!!!
This is a good presentation and as usual, well explained. My advice, especially to beginning student pilots, or all pilots that haven't done so yet, is to read the book "Sick And Rudder" by Wolfgang Langewiesche. Even though written almost 90 years ago, he explains very well the physics acting upon the airplane and how the pilot needs to react. Physics don't change with time.
I will have to check this out, thanks for the recommendation and for the compliment!
😂I love SICK and Rudder skills. lol
You meant “STICK AND RUDDER”
🤣
Best TH-cam aviation presentation - very earnest, genuine, relatable delivery. Stay with it, your numbers are going to grow significantly!
Thanks so much! Really appreciate you saying so, and glad you are enjoying the channel.
I love landings. It's the one challenge you face on every flight. Assuming the weather is good and the plane is in good working condition, taking off is simple, flying straight and level is simple, turning is simple, but to ace a landing always needs a good deal of attention, no matter how many times you do it. That's just my opinion, and I know this might be wrong in other pilots' eyes.
It's not wrong... every landing is the highest challenge in flight, doesn't matter the pilots hours. It is the the flight maneuver with the highest difficulty level.
As a private pilot, I hadn’t flown in forty years but started up again in 2020. I took some lessons from an instructor but couldn’t make a good landing until I found your site. I read up on the material and decided to try it. The three landings with my instructor improved and he decided to step out and let me solo the 172 and he would video the results. Well, the first landing was ever so great and he was very happy with it as he was on the second. Both landings were greased as if I were a professional. Thank you for your advice.
I'm stoked to hear this! Congrats to you and thank you so much for sharing. I'm glad the video was as helpful as it was!
I’ve used this advice. Between you and Ray Steelman, my landings have been very smooth in the last couple of months.
Every glider pilot learns that his glide path on final (in a stabilized approach)l will intersect the surface at the spot that isn't moving up or down in the windshield. Pick any spot on the runway: If it's rising in the windshield, you aren't going to get there; if it's descending, you'll overshoot. I've always wondered at the number of powered airplane drivers who didn't get that lesson.
Okay that's a great tip, I just started flying in a Cessna 150 and have yet to pilot a landing. This is clear, concise, and simple. EXACTLY what I need when everything is going through my head all at once and I feel information overload, I'll try it when I get a chance to land myself!
Dan: In practice, you'll select an "aim point" on the runway where you want to begin your flare; then adjust thrust and drag to arrive there. Uphill runways and runways that are surrounded by higher or lower terrain can create a powerful illusion that you"re too high or low on the approach, but the aim point is immune from visual deception.
Also useful in practice engine out emergencies: 1) establish best glide speed, 2) select a place to land, 3) use aim point to assess whether you have enough altitude to get there.
It's also how you assess other air traffic as collision risks. The guy that doesn't appear to be moving up, down, left, or right is on an intersecting path. Unfortunately, it's that same lack of relative motion that makes it hard to notice each other.
I was fortunate to have a gliding/power instructor many years ago. Agree with overshooting and undershooting the aiming point.
Apply target fixation to that exact excersize and you'll be able to choose your spot during final. Look where you want to land.
Glide path, aim point, airspeed...
I am currently working on getting my private pilot, and I am 37 landings in. I have some good and some not. I have been watching your channel for about 3 weeks now, and I have seen a significant improvement in my landings using all your advice. Thank you!!!
Awesome! I'm glad you've found it helpful! Don't worry, I'm over 1,000 landings in and some are still good and some not. We learn a little from each one :)
The best piece of landing advice I ever had was from my first instructor: once you've rounded out (or flared) and you're just above the runway, try to keep the plane flying as long as possible just above the ground without touching it. Greaser every time I remember that!
Is that because ground effect keeps you suspended until the speed slows enough to land?
I think there's a throttle cut in there somewhere too
Learned to fly at 60YO… Never had an instructor beside me. Learned ina Cub and Soloed in a CITABRIA. Can’t stop flying at the numbers, on the ground. Tail wheel all the way!
Very good advice. "Don't be a passenger in your own cockpit and let the plane fly itself to the tarmac".
Energy management is definitely the name of the game. And to get comfortable with energy management, I definitely recommend what Rod Machado suggested in one of his latest youtube videos... practicing flight at MCA (minimum controllable airspeed). Basically fly around and practice some turns while the stall warning horn is screaming at ya. Excellent exercise.
Fantastic advice! Great practice.
The energy management is a key technique that glider pilots learn during initial training. Obviously, it is way more critical when you mismanaged your remaining energy levels and found yourself in the undershooting position with no engine power to pull you out of trouble. Pilots are taught to maintain a little more energy than required for landing (because you can always wash it off) but never less. Whether it is in the form of potential energy (height) or kinetic energy (speed) is up to the pilot and circumstances to choose, but the point is that you've got to have a balance of it.
Good advice. It sounds simple but it really was eye opening for me when I viewed it not as much as just a number (airspeed) but in total energy management. You can learn to really FEEL how much energy the airplane has and that's when you can really start to get good. Exciting stuff.
@@AirplaneAcademy Very true. In fact, for Australian Glider Pilot Licence, it is a mandatory manouvre during the Annual Flight Review to safely and precisely land a glider with both ASI and altimeter covered. Every glider pilot has to demonstrate proficient energy management skill without reference to instruments (in case they would ever become inoperative).
That is really cool! I like that. Very valuable.
"Energy management" (on final) leads to "descent management" after flaring. After cutting the power and flaring you want to hold the plane off the ground just enough to stop sinking but not so much that you start climbing. It is a continuous process of holding the plane off the ground until all of the airplane's energy is gone and the plane has no choice but to land and stay down - you should have the yoke all the way back and hear the stall horn when the wheels touch down.
And if that isn't enough to keep you busy, you have to remain aligned with the center line.
Peace.
In my limited experience this is what leads to harder touchdowns because that stall just before touchdown creates a high sinkrate and if you’re say even 1m above the ground, that’s still some bump. Interested to hear your thoughts. I guess this technique works much better for experienced pilots used to the plane they’re flying.
@@kickdowndoors yeah you just gotta do a few more until you know how low to flare and bleed speed.
@@jamesordwayultralightpilot exactly. Had one perfect flare to stall landing a circuit, next time I flew my landings were arse because I was trying to replicate it without fully knowing the height I was at
The way your comment is worded, may not be the way it’s intended, is exactly what he’s talking about doing before tail wheel training. Waiting for the aircraft to bleed off that speed is allowing the airplane the control in lieu of the pilot. Controlling airspeed and energy allows me to touch down where I tell the airplane to touch down. It’s something gained with experience and good instruction. I maintain enough energy and altitude to make the runway at any point in the pattern. That being said I also keep a little extra altitude and side slip it out on final. That allows me to also bleed precisely the amount of energy desired before crossing the numbers. It’s not the text book approach but gives me a very precise amount of remaining energy to both make the runway in unforeseen circumstances and choreograph my flair and touchdown with great precision.
Thanks! I watched this last night and flew this morning. My instructor said, "Hands down, the was the best landing that you have ever done." That's coming from a tough instructor. Thanks so much for your tip!
Yeehaw!!! Great to hear.
I like to think of the last 10 feet or so as a ‘transition to slow flight’ about 7-4 feet above the ground, and leave just a very small amount of power in, when I do this at the end of a stabilized approach, and I am on speed, which is 75-80 kts depending on conditions, landings are often smoother and consistent.
You pretty much already said it, but I would expand that personally if I'm controlling the speed appropriately, I don't kill the power completely till I am the wheel just touching down. The larger airplane you fly it to the runway. But even on the smaller GA aircraft you should be able to literally hover going down the runway with just the right amount of small power while in ground effect. Once you figure out where that is, your landings should get so much smoother.
The other item that helped when I first started was moving my eyes from your touch down area to down the runway and letting your peripheral vision keep track of your lateral movement.
Thanks for the great video as always. Your lighting and audio are doing great by they way!!
Cool info for the progressing flight student.
We learn and develop on several levels. Repetition is valuable on them all. Repetition, review, redo and re-planning.
Ha
Yaar!
Thanks for sharing your advice and I agree! And thanks for the feedback, I've tried to work on the audio and lighting so thanks for noticing.
two issues for many students,1. the FAA test standards dictate a target distance rather than smoothness and 2. many instructors are hung up on the ability to glide in from any point in the pattern, which requires a steepened low or idle power final approach.
@@mytech6779 yes all my landings are power off from the beginning. Glide at 70 to the numbers. I don't mind but if the downwind is too short I end up having to slip down and it does not give you any real time to set up on final. Definitely nice being high until you need to land, though.
Practice a power off stall like a landing. If you think about it, it’s the same thing. Full landing config, stabilized decent, level off, nose up, stall/touch down. Also continue to fly the plane to the taxiway, sounds obvious but notice your controls after the mains or nose touches.
If you want to learn this better go for some glider lessons. I am an x hang glider pilot,with a bit of time in sailplanes, and GA aircraft. But mostly trikes and soaring trikes. I use a good descending glidescope at mostly idle. Managing my ASI thru the bar. And with point of destination puts me where i want to be on the runway without a load of excessive energy to bleed off in the flare.
Very good advice here and really demonstrates how it makes sense.
I heard on a YT video once "I can't get low and slow at the same time". I'm just a sim pilot but that really clicked with me and I realized I was indeed trying to do both at the same time and almost always coming in too hot. I've started getting that airspeed I want first, and then slowly working my descent and it has made a huge difference. Getting that proper approach speed is critical. I don't know about the real world, but in the sim that speed is so critical to me I'm shooting for stabilizing at that proper speed early even. Early rather than late.
The thing that helped me most was similar. I kept ballooning the aircraft till I realized, "oh, I'm just leveling off five feet above the ground and flying the rest of the lift out of the wing." Enjoy your show. Thanks for the effort.
Glad you enjoy! :)
Exactly this. I kept ballooning as well, mainly because with my grand total of 11 hours I keep seeing the ground as something to avoid. Don't want to be a pancake after all, right? When I stopped thinking of this as landing and started thinking of it as just really low flight on runway heading that I want to keep off the ground (which means I'm going to have to gradually nose up since we're not adding any power), guess what? Nice and smooth. Still needs work of course but the balloon issue seems to be behind me!
The best though about landing I’ve heard is “well, nobody has managed to stay in the air forever yet” 😂
Great video! I was encouraged when you went over the exact things I was thinking you were going to say.
My first real lightbulb moment, and moment that I gained a ton of confidence, was when ATC told me to make an early base. I then had to perform a slip in order to land on the numbers. Using that energy you referred to is what made all the difference.
I think I'm going to have to check out your other vids now and subscribe!
Thank you! Pilot in training here. Working on my game. Much love and blessings to you and your family!
Very cool. Excited for you!
I fly an experimental that is super slick. The number one thing to having a good landing is to be on speed way early. Like back on the 45. After that, it’s to be patient. It’s easy to flare too high and hit hard.
I aim to roll out on final at 400 ft AGL which sets up the same sight picture for final approach every time, contributing to a stable approach. The RV-8 does not like 3-point landings so I usually wheel it on. Power off just before the threshold, round out to a gentle descent and, importantly, keep it coming down. Dont level off after roundout. Just keep it coming down ever so slowly. I grease it just about every time. Once the tail wheel touches down, full back on the stick and apply moderate braking to taxi speed. Also, whenever taxiing, keep it as exactly on the line as you can…this is great practice for your footwork.
As a glider pilot, all my maneuvers are all about energy management. We we learn that by the intuitive approach of glider flying. Now having said that, putting the actual words out there for everybody else is a big help for the discussion. Nice video.
Great video! I'm currently working on my commercial license and have about 150 hours total flight time and it's the landings that are kicking my butt. Ill definitely keep this video in mind next time I'm in the air!
An advice I can recommend is using both hands on the yoke when flaring. Especially for right handed people it adds a lot of sensibility.
bad idea. slows go-around throttle up input
@@47EZ_DRIVER that's why you only use the other hand once the landing is assured... It's actually how the examiner on my checkride told me to do it, so I'm not in the place to question that since it gives the flare a better feeling.
As soon as I read the title, I wondered if it was going to be something of the sort that I discovered while flying gliders, and although I had a simpler description in my head, it's exactly the same dynamic on the runway: Fly the plane all the way to touchdown. I unfortunately wasn't taught this, but rather discovered that if I landed the "correct" way, which was to stall just at touch down, attempting to land at the lowest possible velocity, then my landings were controlled crashes. However, when I landed with a couple of extra knots and flew the plane to touchdown, I could more often kiss the tires to runway, and control the decent rate in fine grain right at touchdown. I told myself, I should "fly the plane all the way to touchdown" and dare not tell my instructor that I preferred to land the "wrong" way. I like the description you chose however, of "landings are a flight maneuver." I think the old school method of touching down at the moment the stick is against your stomach is a bad idea in every landing except perhaps short field. In normal landings, I doubt the landing roll is any shorter than coming in with two extra knots and having brakes for 30 more feet. At worse, it's splitting hairs, with a benefit of smoother landings.
Thanks for sharing - lots of different ways to teach landings and some people disagree with my approach in this video. But it's just the one that has worked the best for me!
I looked at the comments and seem to be odd man out. I was taught by a B-17 pilot. He told me that you can control the plane all the way to the ground with trim and should not be doing major power adjustments. He also taught me to look at the runway. With practice you will see a spot that is not moving. That is where the plane will land if you are not making adjustments and fly it to the ground. That advise helped me to bring my antique tail dragger across the country without incident, even in high winds. Try to watch that spot on the runway. It helps. Energy management is only a part. Power is altitude. Trim will take care of speed. The navy pilot's comment is correct when he referenced angle of attack.
Landing a jet and landing a small plane are different. Small planes are typically held off until the stall speed; a jet is just basically flown down to the ground, with a slight reduction in decent rate just above the runway until touchdown, spoilers are then activated to prevent floating and to "dump" the lift for efficient wheel braking..
Deciding how far back your aiming point should be from the touchdown point is something I’ve found very critical to be able to touch down at the desired spot. I feel like I’m always trying to fine tune the distance between these two points and has found needing to recalibrate if conditions are too different from my home airport. I haven’t had to land on a real short field yet but if I do, I’ll definitely be going around at least once to make sure I know all the bumps and sinks to expect on short approach before touching down.
On again, off again flight training - I've had several flight instructors. I recall some early ones did not want to hear the stall warning horn during landing. Later an instructor said he always wanted to hear the stall warning horn right before touchdown. My landings improved with the stall warning horn audible just before the wheels touch the ground (a foot or so). Still no PPL but I enjoying flying now and then.
Thanks for the comment - yeah it's one of the pros and cons of having a handful of instructors, that you get different perspectives and techniques. I agree mine are better with the stall warning screaming at me at touchdown.
I fly a Thorp experimental taildragger with essentially solid main gear. The trick with this plane is to ensure that I have enough energy so that I have time to coax it down softly to a wheel landing, because if I run out b4 I am at the sweet spot my options are either a hard landing, or a go around.
Makes perfect sense to me, I just sold my Vans RV12 and bought a Cessna 182Q. Looking forward to more videos.👍
I am a glider pilot myself and bringing down a glider with higher speed than your recommended approach speed can really get dangerous because of the high-performance glide ratio, compared with the ground effect. Our huge disadvantage is we can not go around...
A clean and stabilized traffic pattern is the base of a successful landing in every subcategory in aviation.
Totally agree with the video 💯👌👍
Thank you! I haven't yet flown a glider, it's on my list! People I know that fly them LOVE them so I'd like to give it a shot someday.
I am looking forward to this day!
Greetings from Germany 🇩🇪!
spoiler alert
My instructor has me pull the power just before we’re over the runway at 65-70 knots. Usually results in me having to pitch down more for air-speed and by the time I’ve flared, I’ve lost a lot of energy - resulting in a hard landing.
Once I learned to fly the entire approach (downwind, base and final) at proper landing speed and then use pitch for airspeed and throttle for altitude, all of landings just seemed to “click” for me.
Did they not teach you the power curve before you even started flying?
@@gavinphares1939 just because you know what power curve is doesn't mean you can apply it correctly. Specially when you begin flying
@@alper7797 I completely agree, it just depends on the instructor and such, there are so many variables
It might sound weird but on my final, I'll blip throttle to pull nose up if I know I don't have the airspeed to pitch up with stick without stalling. It's a small shift in my thinking but it's smooth for me to just blip that throttle and when I see the nose start to rise I bring throttle back down. This helps raise the nose and give you a little more float time if needed or you can just keep descending and flare to touchdown. Sometimes, I'll pull back on stick to get the tailwheel down first and kill flaps then when the mains touch I pull full back on stick and full brakes to stop within a few feet... for stol landings.
But I'm far from pro. Just flying by the seat of my pants.
That’s exactly how gliders land:) (switch the throttle with speedbrakes)
Agree with what you said. A tip that has worked for me, Instead of thinking about moving the yoke use a constant light back pressure
Agreed! No see-sawing.
Great topic and advice. Every aircraft is different on approach... example in my Cessna 180 for a short field . identify landing point ... Set up @ 1000ft AGL ... 60 knots ..500fpm decent RPM 1500.... stabilised with all flap out.. 500ftagl. Get the nose up a little bit ... now 50 knots ..stall warning coming on ... apply power to prevent excessive sink rate, and prevent stall. You're on the back of the drag curve. . ( just like Douglas Binder below Airspeed with pitch, rate of descent with power) Last 10 feet bleed power off ...pull back and trade that speed for a 3 pointer .. Of course this is simplified its hours and hours of practise... in the end the plane flies itself ... after you've been bouncing it all over the paddock getting it sorted takes time. Nail those benchmarks in your plane.
In my Mooney M20E speed management is critical it is not as "forgiving" as Cessnas on speed management. On final you have to be at or near the numbers or you really float. I'm working on finding the exact approach speeds that work well as I roll speed back slower and slower. Mooneys tend to quit flying when they want to (and really drop) so you have to be careful how slow you go in the pattern. However, because of this many Mooney pilots come in too fast I've heard. That thin wing really affects stall/spin speeds in banks etc so they tend to get flown extra fast to prevent issues.
Good analysis - it sounds like you're close to having it down!
Great points. I noticed myself playing with the power too much on final approach when first learning the 182. After finding the appropriate power setting I was then able to more accurately pinpoint my landings to within 10 feet of my touchdown point. As always, great video!
Thanks for the comment! That's awesome. I did some air work over the last week to better understand my power settings for slow slight, pattern work, final, etc... having some target power settings definitely helps me in the pattern and I wish I would have done that sooner vs. kind of winging it.
I currently fly a Grumman tiger but I did have a considerable amount of time in a 182. Also flew with a number of other pilots and they were generally looking at an approach speed of 75-78. The lower air speed of 60 kn and using the power to control the rate of dissent and the altitude is a perfect idea. Perhaps one other suggestion that made a world of difference for me. Once you’re in the flare make a super conscious effort to take your eyes off the cowling of the airplane and look down at the end of the runway. It just made a big difference for me.great video. But I also have a question. Do you get to 60 kn using pitch for air speed in power for descent when you are on final or do you use 60 kn all the way around the pattern?
I currently fly a Grumman tiger but I did have a considerable amount of time in a 182. Also flew with a number of other pilots and they were generally looking at an approach speed of 75-78. The lower air speed of 60 kn and using the power to control the rate of dissent and the altitude is a perfect idea. Perhaps one other suggestion that made a world of difference for me. Once you’re in the flare make a super conscious effort to take your eyes off the cowling of the airplane and look down at the end of the runway. It just made a big difference for me.great video. But I also have a question. Do you get to 60 kn using pitch for air speed in power for descent when you are on final or do you use 60 kn all the way around the pattern?
My tip: Directional control is everything. Spinner and tail in line with the runway, regardless of bank angle required compensate for crosswind. A crosswind landing is a sideslip to neutral as opposed by wind. My two cents. Especially for taildraggers :-)
As a student pilot, it blows my mind that a landing can seem like anything but a flight maneuver. I have to engage 120% of my brain whenever I land
With a stabilized approach and proper use of thrust I was taught to aim short level long. Short are the numbers on the close end of the runway and long is the numbers at the far end of the runway.
I’ve never heard of that. Could you please elaborate.
Opposite for me, I learned to fly on tailwheel, took me a long time to get used to a Cessna 172. Kept landing flat.
I am in Addison for a CE course that is right by KADS, and I’m wanting to fly down next time in January from KCFO near Denver. I am a freshly minted Instrument Rated PPL, with about 400 hrs, but This Dallas Metroplex is so dang big it’s got me wondering if I can spot the dang Airport!! Of course, filing IFR would solve that problem, and I’ve watched you do it VFR, but I would love to discuss it with you sometime...
It's a really fun place to fly! And don't feel bad, KADS can be super hard to find sometimes, it's tucked in between so much stuff.
@@AirplaneAcademy Trying to find Addison at night made me think the GPS in the plane was broken and I was somewhere else. I was on top of damn place and couldn't see it. It's nuts.
yep.. agree any mug can land with a nice steady head wind ..try gusty strong winds, I find no flap and nose down trim helps heaps.(in light rec aircraft)
Wow! This is invaluable information. Perfectly explained. I’m currently taking lessons and this will help for sure when I start to execute landings. Thanks for posting!
Great video, I used to come in high and then when I flare it would balloon, so I just came in a little lower. Your advice is also great, thanks!
Thanks and glad you found it useful!
High is not the problem, you should be able to do steep approaches all day without ballooning, control of the round-out is the issue. Being at or below the minimum drag speed, which is a bit slower than the best L/D ratio speed (best glide distance), will help and maybe start the round-out a touch higher but less aggressive.
The same is true for crosswind landings. Touch the upwind wheel, keep flying until you can no longer keep the downwind wheel from touching.
Fun fact, you can groundloop some trikes. My instructor demo'd why we try to stay off the brakes and how to actually brake if needed so that the wheels don't dig. Feeling the plane almost bounce on the grass was an experience.
What did it for me - I realized the the language being used by my instructor and my study guides was confusing. Landing isn't a 2-step process - approach, then flare - it's a 3-step process - approach, level (like you said, a flight maneuver), then flare.
Another great video!
Most pilots have an overriding fear of the stall, due to this understandably being drilled into them by their instructors. The result is that most approaches are executed slightly too fast. If the training continued to reference angles of attack and airspeed, the length of the final approach and height when turning onto final would be better computed. Short field landings are a scary time for the lower hours pilot, and they highlight the need for continued training after qualifying. We all learn at airfields that are ideal for training, but I recommend booking half a dozen lessons every season, just to focus on your specific aspirations- short field, unusual attitude etc etc.
So..... everyone seems to agree on “airspeed Is KING”. It’s called or spoken a few different ways but...speed or energy or however you describe it.... it’s the (main) key or at least, the biggest “key” to a landing that makes you smile,or sit a little taller in your seat. And boy oh boy how fast you can “loose” that skill. As a 10 year PP and still low time (
Thanks Scott. Keep in mind that a small aircraft WILL fly differently without an extra 200lbs in the right seat. So there could be some of that in terms of if your landings are considerably different solo vs with an instructor, but it shouldn't make a huge difference. Comes down to practice as you've said! My instructor would always ask on the approach "high, low, fast, or slow, and what are you gonna do about it?" I still say that to myself today in the cockpit.
I'm just in a 152 Cessna Sim, and have very few hours practicing landings and I think my problem right now is judging the distance of the wheels to how far the runway is away from the wheels. Also getting lined up, lol, had the same problem in Golf!! But I'm getting better. I was doing better landing at night or early when it's still dark, except this morning. Not so hot. I have noticed that pilots landing still have power and aren't deadstick landing like I was first doing, now I still have some energy or power left while landing. Anyway thanks for the video!!
If you want to judge your height above rwy look with your left eye for second or two at the 10 hours if the the longitudinal axis of the cessna is 12 hours - this is what what the Jason Miller from the YT Finer Points Channel calls in his videos the "Lindbergh Reference"
Thanks for the comment - another thing to practice is to really try to take in the sight picture when you're sitting on the ground, how far above the ground your eye is. Over time that can help you land better because you memorize the reference point.
I do what my instructor tells me..maintain airspeed and cut to idle right during transition. Once, I didn't go to full idle until after the round-out...smoothest landing I can remember.
Depends a bit on what you're flying. In a Cessna this works but I'm not sure my Mooney wouldn't float to the end of the runway. I normally have to cut power idle when I know I have runway made (ie usually before the threshold or right over it)
@@gringoloco8576 Identical to my Van's RV-12. Throttle at idle once runway is made, aim for just below the numbers, trim up to keep airspeed at 60 to 65 Kt's depending on if the bird weighs close to 1100 or max gross near 1320. When the runway gets really wide, increase back pressure and add a bit more as the plane gets slower and slower, add some more back pressure. Nose will come up some, blocking my view a little bit, sometimes the main tires just kiss the runway, waiting and waiting for the plane to get from 60 kts, down to 41 kts where the wings with flaperons will stall out. Going that slow, it feels like a waiting game of seconds, for the mains to touch down.
Hope to use this knowledge in the near future. Thinking about getting my private pilot liscense
Awesome!! Keep me posted!
That is very helpful to me - I always stress about landing in the right spot or coming in too fast. Thanks for the mindset shift.
Great video! Energy management is key and it is one of the most important concepts in any maneuvering phase. Tailwheel flying is such a refining experience for basic stick and rudder skills.
Totally agree! Learning to fly a 182 is one thing, but hopping in the super cub will really keep you honest ha!
Best landing advice is airspeed is non negotiable. You can have a steep approach or a shallow one, but airspeed must remain constant. 90mph on downwind, 80mph on base, 70mph on final
Truth!
My flight instructor once told me that one way or another the plane is going to end up on the ground, either I can get it there or gravity can.
i bought a cessna 140 my approch to landing was to drag the tail wheel first fly down to 1 foot off the runway and hold it there
I’m 64 years old and a student pilot. I’m also the co-owner of a 1975 Bellanca Decathlon. I split my training flights between a Cessna 152 and the Decathlon. To be honest, I have been scared to death of the Decathlon. I’m finally learning how to maintain the centerline on takeoff. The 180 HP O-320 teaches a lot about left turning tendency. I think I have those adventurous takeoffs cured after more than a few saves by my instructor on the back.
As of my most recent lesson, I think I about have landings down. I just need to master the last one foot. Flaring too high has been my biggest flaw. I did finally learn to arrest the decent with just a touch of power and then let her down more smoothly. A few more like that and maybe I’ll finally stop being intimidated by my own airplane!
Thanks for sharing and being honest. I completely understand where you're at with the Decathlon. Like I said, I was pretty nervous for the first good 50 hours in the super cub.... I promise it's doable! Biggest thing when landing was realizing that it's a maneuver to gently put the wheels on the ground but fly it all the way to the runway, don't flare and hold it off hold it off like you might in a tricycle gear. Put the mains gently on the pavement and keep flying the airplane (you're on the ground but as you well know it doesn't stop flying until the prop stops haha). There's a short book called "taming the taildragger" that I felt was useful also especially for landings.
Doing power off landings to a point really helped me understand how everything relates in landing. We close the throttle abeam touchdown point, and don't touch it again till we're on the ground. Pick a point, we used a line across the runway, and land as close to it as possible, measured in feet, with no slips, no bouncing, and no floating. You learn about pitch and drag and how to control those things, you learn about ground effect and how much it contributes to extending your landing and to what extent based on where you are in the flight envelope and how to combat that, and the difference between your aim point and your touchdown point. That was huge for me. Doing these type of landings really really teach you the full extent of how different maneuvers, approach speeds, unstable approaches, weather conditions, wind, gusts, and ground effect influence how your airplane lands.
Besides that, the two most crucial things I learned were pitch for speed, drag (power or thrust is the opposite of this, and when you have no engine, drag is what you can control) for descent rate; and put your aim point before your touchdown point, and if it rises in the windshield you'll undershoot, if it falls, you'll overshoot. Drag is what controls that. Speed determines how long you'll float in ground effect.
In power offs, if you're too high, you don't push forward. You pull back. That slows you down, increasing your induced drag dramatically, and you'll drop like a stone. If you hold that speed though, you'll plow through ground effect with no cushion at all and land hard. Airplanes have been damaged doing that. To prevent that, right above ground effect, about 50ft up, you dive for the runway, increase your speed, and ground effect will give you a "cushion" with which you can pull hard against, arresting your decent, and greasing it on.
It is alarming the first time you ride with someone doing that, intimidating when you do it, yet fascinating that it works. It isn't a regular maneuver by any means, as it is very unforgiving. Yet, it works, and the aerodynamics that make it work are fascinating, and it really really teaches you how all this stuff works together to create a good landing. Don't go do this on your own. You'll bend your landing gear, or worse.
I've got the "plops". It's like I'm scared of the ground. Thanks for your help. I appreciate you and Angle of Attack.
The thing about the 73 and all jets is that the power doesn't come on instantly, especially from idle, so keeping the engines spinning is critical for go around capability. That is more about keeping their 'outs' open than it being the ideal way to land.
Interesting point
Thank you for posting this. It was very helpful along with the excellent comments. Doing more practice low approaches and finding the throttle setting to float along the runway at minimum speed without stalling and landing was useful.
It’s like Mindfulness; being in tune with whatever you’re doing with a much
deeper awareness & level of consciousness. I heard an SAS pilot refer to the 777 he was about to fly as his backpack - an extension of your body. One with his machine.
Jacobson Flare technique helped a lot for me, wasn't really getting it until that point. Technique by a guy in Australia, some other TH-camrs used modification of it. Main thing it allowed for me was to work out a way to "slow down" the final approach and time it out nice.
Great discussion. I learned to fly in Piper Warriors and Archers, then transitioned to Turbo Arrows and Mooneys for my Commercial. All low wing aircraft. Then some years ago, sold my Archer started flying the high wing 172. Horrible. I had a total of maybe 3 hours in high wing airplanes at that point and I had to learn to land all over again. Little/no ground effect. I would sometimes hit the nose first. A humbling experience. Like you, I became obsessed with mastering the perfect landing. I see the way instructors teach landings, and it is not the way you describe. I believe your technique is superior, although perhaps less so for students. Instructors always teach the same way. Descend to within 2 feet of the runway, chop power, yank the stick back just enough to stop the descent at exactly zero v/s, then let it stop flying and allow it to settle on the runway. Right? Seems simple enough, but if it is that good, why isn’t anyone doing it that way (i.e. your 727 pilot!)? There are two challenges to this: (1) You have to know exactly how much “yank” on the yoke you need to stop the descent and achieve zero v/s. Too little and you land hard. Too much and you balloon. (2) Even without turbulence, the aerobatic skills needed to hold an airplane 1-2 feet off the ground while managing its dwindling energy and continuously changing attitude require constant stick and rudder. Students are at a disadvantage because their stick and rudder skills are still developing (although this is one way to help improve those!). One theory I have regarding why instructors teach it that way is that they fear that if their student misjudges the approach and stall too high, they might not react quickly enough to avoid a crash. However, if they are only two feet off the runway, the “arrival” might be embarrassing, but not dangerous (that’s just my theory). But what you describe is better and it works in any airplane. It is pretty much how I land a plane, except for one critical component that I thought you missed: the sight picture. Agreed, you “bleed” the energy down and “feel” for the touchdown, but you didn’t tell them how. What I’ve learned to do is establish and maintain the same sight picture throughout the landing. One of your viewers mentioned something about “…looking at the end of the runway,” which is close. But I've learned that maintaining a consistent sight picture throughout the flare is a critical factor regarding the “how.” I put together a TH-cam video to demonstrate using the P3d simulator (“A Reliable Technique for Landing Airplanes”). I made this to help a friend who was learning to fly, so it isn't nearly as professional as your video above, but I went to some lengths to demonstrate the concept and I'd be curious to hear what you think.
Thanks for the comment and for your advice. I would add that getting the "sight picture" also involves taking a mental snapshot on the ground of how far you are above the ground when the wheels are touching. Over time in the same airplane you will develop a feel for how high off the ground you are. Thanks for taking the time to leave lengthy advice for me and others!
I thought to mention that, but my reply was already long. Yes, there is a component of timing -- that last few seconds in the flare after you chop power where you need to slowly raise the nose to change v/s from a few hundred fpm to as close to zero just as the wheels touch. The TIME it takes to get to zero v/s and that perfect touchdown is managed by the RATE at which you raise the nose during the flare, and that RATE is determined by how close you are to optimum airspeed and how far you are from the runway when you enter the flare. Managing that with the techniques you recommend does not require entering the flare at exactly the same airspeed (although it helps, of course!). But you can mitigate by adjusting when to chop power. A little slow? Wait a little later to chop power. A little fast? Chop power sooner. I agree, you certainly need that mental snapshot of the ground to know where that zero v/s point is you are shooting for. But it isn't about watching the ground rise up so much as how quickly you need to reduce the sink rate from a few hundred fpm to zero throughout the flare using a consistent sight picture down the runway. The plane is changing attitude around you as you flare, the sink rate is slowing, and the airspeed is dropping, but the sight picture doesn’t change. The video I posted focuses almost exclusively on that. Flying a different plane every flight from a rental club complicates a little. How high the airplane sits above the ground (e.g. Mooney vs 172), seat position, etc. I try, but don’t always remember to take a mental snapshot of the cowling and how high I am sitting above the ground before starting my taxi. My tendency to micro-analyze this sort of thing comes from ski instructing. Trust me, you really don't want to ask me to describe the details of the perfect Wedel turn unless we are on a really long chair lift!
Good tip man. For sure. Helps with putting the wheel down in a cross wind as well
My first instructors (almost exactly 60 years ago) were a WW2-era AAF heavy transport pilot and a Korean conflict-era USMC Corsair driver. They agreed that the perfect landing was on the centerline, both moving and pointed that way, in the first third of the runway; at the exact moment you run out of flying speed, altitude, and nose-up elevator, all at the same time.
That, and "never carry a package by the string".
Great advice!
THIS is always a great discussion topic! There are still WAAAY too many long landings - mostly in GA - which end up in an over run rather than a go-around. Net result: insurance premiums go up for everyone and everyone has to wait while the wreckage and bodies are cleared: none of which is very pleasant or necessary. Going around is - at the vast majority of government run airfields - never not an option so long as the fan is turning.
Good Energy Management (in the landing flare) is best achieved by following the Stable Approach philosophy: typically, that requires following an approach configuration / speed profile so as to achieve Vref when crossing the threshold at 50ft. Thereafter the landing ‘process’ is type/weight/DA/runway slope dependent as to when power is reduced; and therein lies the skill some of us are lucky enough to be paid for the pleasure of practising... and practicing ;)
Well said. I like your point about DA and runway slope etc.... for example the landing flare and power reduction will look different when landing at a high altitude unpaved strip with a steep gradient vs. a flat paved runway at sea level. That's why learning to manage energy vs. just "let the plane stop flying" was way more helpful to me in improving my landings.
My aircraft is hangered at a farm in a valley, with lots of rotors and chaotic wind, it took me a while after getting my certificate to stop landing with minimum energy. Landings are all different, we need to learn to assess the appropriate amount of energy, pitch and descent rate for the wind and strip conditions we encounter at each landing. In my case I needed to learn to carry more energy to safely land on a short, rough strip battered with squirly wind. Landing repetitively on a training strip in laminar air flow can teach you how to vary the inputs of pitch and throttle to vary point of contact and speed with the ground but I think the most important considerations are how much is the wind gusting, how much drag or flaps am I going to use in relation to my sink rate to accommodate for the short periods of tailwind and crosswind I will experience on short final.
When landing at a new strip with plenty of runway why not use a little more energy until one becomes familiar with the wind conditions? Start safe but when familiar, practice tailwind landings and crosswind landings, video your landings and critically review them, talk to the video when landing tell yourself what you think you are doing wrong, many a time I tell myself 'well you're walking away from this one but it caught you by surprise' or 'you pulled that and dropped it'' I'm always capable of a bad landing, I have to concentrate on downwind to see if I can see the sock swinging, stay a couple of hundred feet high if it is go full flaps drop the nose be ready on the throttle in case I drop five hundred feet and flare forcefully to pull up and stall onto the strip, this is not how I was trained on a long strip in mostly laminar flow.
Thanks for sharing, Ralf. I think this is really great advice. I agree for windy conditions, carrying more speed for energy management is super important. In fact I'll land with just 20 degrees of flaps in the 182 if it's crazy windy. You bring up some excellent points here.
It's all about airspeed that begins with a good pattern. You should find yourself at final with the right speed and glide slope. The problems begin with wind that requires corrections
Not a good pattern...a good approach. I have not flown a pattern in 10 years. All landings are under ATC control and straight in or vectored in.
The PA18 super Cub is a very simple aircrat to take-off and land.The Cub has plenty of elevator power and plenty of rudder control.Most Cub pilots I see in trouble simple can't round the aircraft out ,thus flaring the aircraft out and it becomes prepaired for landing. flare and waiit for it to settle into the landing mode.
My instructor tells me over and over 1800 rpms 70 airspeed on final. Tends to work pretty well for me, I’m also a very early on into flight training.
I was taught three keys to landings.
1- proper energy management
2- proper spatial relationship to the runway in all phases of approach
3- the nose of the airplane MUST BE POINTED IN EXACTLY THE DIRECTION YOU ARE TRAVELING.
Number three sounds overly simple to many people, but anyone with significant tail wheel time will instantly recognize the importance and nuance of this statement.
Landing planes i've never flown before in the sim, i often bleed off too much speed and pretty much stall the plane onto the 1000-foot markers. After half an hour in the pattern i start to learn the planes and how they behave.
Looking good man, thank you for inspiring me. The smoke has impeded on my ability to solo on my birthday but hopefully this Thursday will work.
Thank you and I'm glad to hear it's helping with motivation! And I flew this weekend and the smoke was horrible!! Couldn't see a thing.... I was going to film a video and realized people wouldn't be able to see anything haha so had to audible. Keep us posted on your solo!
Airplane Academy during my stage check, I got a taste of IFR when I was trying to do steep turns without a horizon. As I came in to do some pattern work, the visibility was 3sm, and the tower ended up closing up the pattern. Keep pushing out content; I need it lol.
I think this is a good example why every pilot that intends to fly regularly should get an instrument rating.... conditions like these or especially nighttime rural VFR can necessitate the use of instruments very quickly.
Airplane Academy my instructor set up the localizer for me, I am DEFINITELY getting my IR. Do you have an Instagram account?
Awesome! I can't recommend it enough. And no IG yet, I will get around to it at some point!
Good stuff. Unless you are flying something with a swept wing, stick with power for glidepath control and pitch for airspeed, I would say.
You are spot on with airspeed. Too much is downright dangerous, but today sadly, many instructors are so terrified of stalling they tell students to add some extra knots, for 'safety'.
I wad taught to stall the aircraft with the wheels 6 inches above the runway.
Cheers
I basically do the same as you. First off, approach speed is the first factor, getting that speed set on final is important and the first thing I do. Then it's the decent rate, but I can't do that power for decent and pitch for speed, I adjust both as needed once I'm on that glide. Crossing the threshold at the correct speed, 55 to 60 in the 172 but I keep that last power setting until I've round out and then I close the power and then control my sink, keeping that nose up, pulling back all the way till my main wheels are firmly on the ground and then lower the nose, except in soft field landings, then I will keep that nose up until it almost doesn't want to stay up anymore and then lower it, but not too long so that the nose wheel drops in.
I always found the flare difficult to explain due to the continuous judgement and adjustment as the a/c decelerates. “Pretend the runway is your sibling- get as annoyingly close as you can without touching it”. “Hehe, I’m not touching you”
4:09 I am likely the only person to have landed a SU-25 Flanker Land based jet fighter in DCS World on an old super carrier. And when I did I had a pretty landing just like that so yes 100% you are right a pretty landing is the same for any plane.