How to Land an Airliner
by David Barth, written June 14, 2008
From page 50 of May 2008 issue of Wired.
Imagine the unlikely scenario where a flight attendant announces that both pilots have food poisoning, are not capable of
flying the plane, and he or she asks if there is anyone on board who is willing to try to land it? The chances are
excellent that there will be a current or former airline pilot on board who can handle this emergency. However,
if that is not the case, these are suggestions for getting the plane down.
The article in Wired magazine lists the following actions for a non-pilot to land an airliner. However, in my opinion, some
of these ideas are over-simplified, and I point out these areas. My opinions, in brackets, are derived from
more that 25 years and 3,000 flight hours. My experience includes teaching as a flight instructor with commercial,
instrument, and advanced ground instructor licenses.
- Wired says to call for help. Put on your headset and switch on the radio.
[Switch on the radio? It should
already be turned on and set to an Air Traffic Control (ATC) frequency as per regulations. Besides, where would the
on/off switch be located among the hundreds of switches and buttons in the cockpit of an airliner? If the radio isn't
already turned on, this is a big problem. The suggestion to "switch on the radio" is probably easier said than done. I
can't think of one instance where the radio would not be turned on and set to an ATC frequency. That's the law with
airliners. If you don't have radio contact, you have a bigger problem.]
- Wired's instructions say to tune the radio to the emergency frequency, 121.5.
[To ask a non-pilot to remember the
emergency radio frequency, to find the radio setting dials, and to reset the frequency is asking for trouble,
especially in the unfamiliar environment of the cockpit and the maze of buttons, switches, and knobs. The best you
can do is to hope the pilots have not turned the radio off.
After putting on a headset, listen and wait for any other
conversations over the radio to stop, push the button on the yoke, and as calmy as possible, say something like, "This
is an airliner with incapacitated pilots. This is an emergency. I need help." Saying anything along these lines will get
everyone's attention.
ATC will probably ask you to confirm that you have an emergency. If the controller is astute, he
won't ask you to do things you might not know how to do, such as squawk a discrete transponder code or switch to a
different radio frequency. He won't want to lose communications with you if you goof up the radio messing with changing
the frequency.
He will sound very calm as he asks you for the current status of the aircraft - is it in level flight? If so, he can
breathe a silent sigh of relief that you're not going to crash immediately.
He will start dumping all other aircraft off of the radio frequency you are on so that he and you can talk without any
interruptions. And those other aircraft? No way are they going to stop listening to the frequency you're on. Sure,
they'll switch to the new frequency they've been given and check in with the other controller, but bet your bottom
dollar, they're also listening to you because you are in a tight spot, and they want to hear everything.
Some air space control authority will request that the Air Force launch
at least two fighters to intercept and follow your plane. If you don't obey the
routing instructions you are given, or if you head toward a city without permission, the fighters will probably be
ordered to shoot you down. Hey, things are a lot different since 9/11].
- Wired's next suggestion is to set the autopilot.
[This action is too early to consider at this stage of the
flight. Wired is correct in saying that they will call someone to guide you down, but do what that person says. Don't
second-guess what you're going to be told what to do. Place yourself in his or her hands and let them tell you what to
do.
In the beginning, they will be asking you all sorts of questions so that they can determine the status of the
aircraft, like is it already on autopilot (a definite possibility), is it flying level, what is the speed of the plane,
etc. In addition, they will be checking you out by asking personal details so that
they can verify who you really are.
The answers to these questions will tell them if there are any immediate corrections they need to have you make
before heading for an airport. They will probably guide you to a large airport in the general vicinity of your plane.
Unless you are close to your destination airport, and it is a large airport, you'll probably be sent to another airport
with long runways and lots of emergency equipment.
Expect that if the autopilot is not already on, the guy on the radio will tell you how
to turn it on. After that, to change course, you'll simply dial in a number on the panel instead of working the yoke.
There are advantages to spending a bit of time in level flight. It helps get your nerves settled, it uses up fuel you
don't need (or want), and it allows the emergency services to go into high gear for the place you'll be
heading.
Hospitals will be alerted, ambulances will be dispatched, hospital helicopters will be on standby, emergency operating
rooms at hospitals will be reserved, teams of doctors and surgeons will be called in to duty, and fire, police, and
rescue units will be rushed to the scene. This is no small deal. It is big, and you'll be in the middle of
it.]
- Wired's third item on the list is to program your approach with advice from the instructor talking to you
on the radio.
[The big assumption is that the aircraft has Auto Land, a computer that will automatically land the plane. A lot of
airliners have it, but many do not. If the plane you're in does not have Auto Land, you'll be given instructions on
how to land the plane, and everyone on the ground will be sweating bullets. Landing a plane manually isn't like driving
a car. Flying is a three dimensional activity, unlike driving, which is done in only two dimensions. If you are lucky
enough to be on a plane that has Auto Land, and the guy on the radio can guide you through the process of setting it up,
you're almost home free.]
- Wired's guide suggests you'll have to monitor the speed of the aircraft and lower the flaps and gear at the
appropriate times.
[If you have Auto Land, that system will probably do all of that for you. If you don't have Auto Land,
your hands will be full trying to guide the plane down to the runway. All sorts of emergency equipment will be ready and
waiting for your arrival, but if they've been told that a non-airline pilot is flying, they will probably be positioned
way back from the runway, just in case you're a bit off, left or right, when you touch down. The guy talking you down to
the runway will try to get your plane on what they call a "stabilized approach" whereby the plane is heading for the
runway without the nose bobbing up and down much, and without having to make many adjustments to the left or
right.
What are the odds that a non-pilot can set up a stabilized approach with the help of a guy on the radio? Perhaps luck
plays a part in this. He will advise you when and how to lower the flaps and the gear.
And what if you are told that your approach is botched and you'll have to go around? That, in itself, is a
tricky maneuver for someone not familiar with the aircraft. But let's assume that you are coming down the approach path,
more or less stabilized.
When you reach a certain altitude above the runway (it varies with the type of aircraft you are
in), you'll be told over the radio to pull the nose up slightly. What the heck does "slightly" mean? Generally speaking,
you'll be asked to pull back on the yoke slightly so that the plane flies level over the runway. You'll probably bobble
the nose up and down a bit as you try to fly level over the runway. Then you'll be asked to grab the big, throttle knobs
on the center console, and pull them all the way back. This will reduce engine thrust and the plane will settle to the
runway or whatever surface you are over at the time.
While all this is going on, you'll be using the rudder pedals to keep the plane over the runway and moving the yoke
slightly, fore and aft, to keep the nose level. Sound difficult? It is for someone not familiar with the aircraft. I have
no idea what your chances are of getting the aircraft down in one piece.]
- Wired suggests that you "brake carefully."
[Well, if you have Auto Land installed in the plane, it will take
care of braking and even turn off the runway onto a taxiway before rolling to a stop. But if you don't have Auto Land,
blowing tires isn't the issue. The issue is just getting the big beast on the runway without pancaking it in. Simply
blowing the tires is no big deal. In fact, blowing the tires will help slow the plane, but it could cause the plane
to depart the runway, assuming you actually put it down on the runway.]
This is the end of Wired's instructions on how to land a plane, but they left out one very important point. When a flight
attendant is assigned to work on an aircraft, he or she must be checked out in the safety systems, doors, slides, and
other items on that plane. In addition, they are given basic instructions on how to communicate and control the aircraft.
This means that in the very unlikely event that both (or all) the pilots are incapacitated, and there are no other airline
pilots on board (the flight attendants will know), it is most likely that two flight attendants will go to the cockpit to fly the
plane. Naturally, ATC, the airline, and all aviation authorities on the ground would prefer to work with a bonafide
airline employee than with an unknown passenger. Of course, the transition of control from incapacitated pilots to
flight attendants will be accomplished as quietly as possible so that the passengers are not alarmed.
When a flight attendant asks if anyone on board can fly the plane, you should hope that there is an airline pilot, from
any airline, on board. If not, and you're the only hope for survival, go for it. Remember to take a flight attendant up
to the cockpit with you. They know enough to be extremely helpful.