Matthew Waugh
May 2002
This article was prepared in support of a discussion at a Wings Of Carolina Flying Club Safety Meeting where the author was tasked with discussing common landing errors.
Any comments or feedback please e-mail me.
Landing Errors
In this article we’re going to discuss various types of landing errors. Some errors lead to other errors, and we’ll attempt to help make those links as we discuss the different errors. However, before we discuss errors let’s first of take a look at the one sure-fire solution for a landing error, the go-around.
Go-Arounds
We don’t perform the go-around maneuver enough. You don’t, I don’t, none of us do. Oh sure, you’ve walked away from every landing you’ve ever made, but how many times have you needed to use your marginal skills to salvage your poor judgment in continuing a bad approach or landing? Next time you’re out practicing landings, practice not landing a few times, or even every time. Practice some go-arounds on short final, over the threshold and in the flare. Take an instructor along if it’s been a few months or years since you practiced a series of last minute go-arounds.
There are essentially three issues to address in a go-around. First of all you’re going to apply full power which will cause two of our issues to rear their ugly heads. The aircraft’s nose will rise as the elevator becomes more effective in the propeller slipstream and the aircraft will yaw and roll to the left as the aircraft’s left -turning tendencies. You’ll probably need to apply FORWARD control movement to control the pitch up and you’ll need plenty of right-rudder to maintain heading.
If your instructor hasn’t demonstrated a trim stall, ask them to do so, you may be surprised at the control forces needed to control the aircraft pitch. While you’re working at altitude trying setting the airplane up as if it was in the flare and apply full power and be late in applying rudder. Be careful. You’re close to the stall, the pitch up will get you closer and lat application of the rudder will alloow the plane to yaw. What have you got, stall plus yaw, ideal conditions for a spin. We’re not conducting spin training here, but we do want to review how the aircraft responds. Close to the ground you’ll never get the spin developed, you’ll have hit the ground long before then, but you’ll be out of control none the less.
The third issue is managing drag, especially if you start the go-around from the flare. You’ll be slow with the maximum amount of drag hanging out. You may need to use ground effect to help build up speed and give you the opportunity to bleed off some of the flaps before leaving ground effect and starting the climb. Oh yes, something we’ll cover later on, but in ground effect the elevators are less effective, so we’ve already discussed the pitch up of adding full power, leaving ground effect the elevators will be more effective, increasing any pitch up trend.
So review go-arounds, and make a pact with yourself, let’s turn marginal approaches and poor flares into superb go-arounds and survivable landings!
Ballooning
Ballooning occurs when the pilot increases the pitch attitude too rapidly and aircraft climbs instead of reducing the rate of descent or transitioning to level flight. In and of itself ballooning is not a huge problem, it’s the fact that as a result of the balloon we’re now nose high, low speed and higher than we want to be. This is when ballooning turns into a hard landing, the aircraft is slow and nose high and a rapid rate of descent builds up.
Bounce
A bounce can be result of a hard landing but more often is the result of landing with too much airspeed. Typically the aircraft is landing flat and too fast and skips off the runway. The result of the bounce is that the aircraft is left nose high, slow and too high off the runway. the same conditions we have from a balloon.
Porpoising
Porpoising is the worse case scenario for a bounce and occurs when the landing is so flat that the nosewheel touches down first at too high an airspeed. The nose wheel bounces off the runway, the main wheels touch down and bounce forcing the nose wheel down onto the runway and after about 3 oscillation the nose wheel touch down is so violent the nosewheel collapses and the propeller strikes the ground.
The porpoising happens so quickly that typically the pilot’s reactions are out of phase with the porpoise and instead of helping resolve the problem actually make it worse.
In aircraft which a short wheelbase, such as the Mooney, the porpoise can be so quick that pilot must either take immediate action or the event will be all over.
Wheelbarrowing
If you land with too much airspeed and force the plane onto the runway and are lucky enough not to start to porpoise then you may start to wheelbarrow in a tricycle gear airplane. Wheelbarrowing occurs when the weight of the aircraft is on the nose wheel and the pilot then loses directional control. Most often wheel barrowing occurs if the pilot releases back pressure or, worse, applies forward pressure, before the aircraft has slowed to taxi speed.
Recovery
If you balloon or bounce, give serious thought to conducting a go-around. The appropriate application of power may be able to save the landing, but it’s the appropriate power that’s hard to get right. You don’t need too much power, and if you do apply too much power now you’re eating up runway trying to sort out he landing.
If you porpoise you must go around. Don’t try to react to the porpoise, just hold the yoke back, apply full power and go-around. If you’re blessed with some luck and perhaps a little skill you may sal\vage a bounce or a balloon. You’re much less likely to recover a porpoise, go-around.
Landing Tips
Here are some tips for making good landings.
- Always trim the airplane for a stabilized approach speed.
- Avoid excessive airspeed.
- Don’t force the airplane onto the ground.
- Never move the yoke forward once the flare has started.
- Full back yoke until slowed to taxi speed.
- Don’t get distracted.
- Always be willing to go-around.