This ONE Technique Instantly Improved My Landings

Landings can be the most exciting or sometimes most troublesome part of flying... everything comes together in a few VERY important moments. But with some practice and the right approach (literal and mental) they can be the easiest part of flying and certainly the most fun.

In this video I share one incredible piece of advice I got from a longtime friend, instructor, and mentor that immediately changed the way I look at landings. My technique got better and my ability to go out and practice them also improved significantly as well. I hope this video helps you make softer and more accurate landings! I'm confident it will.

[ESFun]

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.

[vargapa]

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.

[fatalamplitude]

As a pilot i find i can improve my landings by letting the co pilot land lol

[streptokokke]

This ONE Technique is: Land with the appropriate speed.

[maxbray]

I am glad I watched this, I have always closed my eyes about treetop high and hope for the best

[Chrisovideos]

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.

[kurtmcl]

in my experience (only 100 hours) a good landing usually follows a good approach

[saider]

"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.

[dsinha]

Very good advice. "Don't be a passenger in your own cockpit and let the plane fly itself to the tarmac".

[ericcoleson]

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.

[paddyj]

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.

[argonwheatbelly]

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!!

[archerpiperii]

"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.

[blanewampler]

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.

[jimpinkowski]

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!!!

[gordonfeliciano]

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!

[davesmith]

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.

[Markr]

Best YouTube aviation presentation - very earnest, genuine, relatable delivery. Stay with it, your numbers are going to grow significantly!

[madameblueberry]

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!

[smflyboy]

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!