Perfect Landings by Thomas Hytten, CAA Norway

Perfect Landings

Thomas Hytten, CAA Norway

A good landing is one you can walk away from, as the saying goes. Spring is often the time to brush off the rust from our skills, and landings are something we all need to refresh to master well. Especially if you're flying to an unfamiliar airstrip, preparation is crucial to ensure a good landing.

 

If you are used to operating at an airport with a long runway, you might be surprised when landing on a shorter one. In such cases, meticulous flight preparation, the right approach, and a well prepared landing are particularly important. Use "threat and error management" before the flight to mentally prepare yourself to indentify and handle risks.

 

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5 tips for a good landing

1. Study Available Information

Familiarize yourself thoroughly with the information about the landing site. If information is available, study it as comprehensively as possible. Use "Google Maps" or other map sources. Contact local pilots to get the latest and greatest information.



Wind significantly impacts your landing. It is important to find good indicators to predict what to expect. Often, this is something you need to observe when over the landing site. Use flags, streamers, tree movement, or water as indicators if a windsock or information from air traffic services is not available.

2. Study the Aircraft Manual

The aircraft manual provides information on the speeds and standard procedures to be used. Make sure to follow these.

3. Use Standard Approach Patterns

Many airports have established landing patterns. These may vary due to local conditions, but ensure you can handle the aircraft in accordance with the expected landing pattern. Here you can find information on VFR approaches to landing sites without air traffic services.

4. Maintain Parameters for a Stabilized Approach

This primarily involves establishing an approach with certain values for maximum vertical descent rate, direction, speed, and proper configuration of the aircraft. If these values are not within what you expect, a "go around" may be an alternative to make another landing attempt.

5. Visual Aids

You should have a predetermined mark on the runway where you expect to touch down. Whether flying to a short or long runway, it is crucial to have such a point. This practice helps you train and land where expected. If you glide far past the mark, there might not be enough runway left to stop. In many cases, it's better to make another approach and try again.



Larger airports often have VASI or PAPI systems. These systems are usually calibrated for larger aircraft but provide a rough indication of whether you are too high or too low on the approach.

Please check out the Norwegian VFR guide. Here you find more information about operations on short runways



Poor Landing

A poor landing is often what you and your passengers remember most after a flight. If you feel rusty, it might be wise to contact an instructor for some extra training. Although the requirement is 3 takeoffs and landings in the last 90 days to carry passengers, this is a minimum requirement. You must ensure you train sufficiently to fly safely. Remember, the landing and flight are not over until the aircraft is moored or parked in the hangar.

Each year, the CAA Norway receives about 50 reports of abnormal runway contact.

This primarily includes hard landings, nosewheel landings, tail strikes, or landings far down the runway. Don't hesitate to report a landing that didn't go as planned.