Could you land a REAL plane?

[ardypilot]

This poll springed from this topic: http://z11.invisionfree.com/nzff/index. ... topic=1947

I'm sure the thought has crossed your mind at least once as a simmer, do you think you could land an airliner in an emergency situation if you had to? Say the pilot and co-pilot both had a heart attack in flight, and the cabin crew called out to the passengers, 'does anyone know how to fly a plane?' Would you step up to the challenge? How confident are you that with your knowledge of your flight simulation hobby, that you would successfully be able to land an airliner?

Your thoughts?

[Zöltuger]

i'm pretty sure i could. maybe not dead down the centre of the runway, and maybe not damage free. but with all the modern technology in ILS and autopilot, providing there's not a 30kt crosswind in the dark and no lights, it should be a survivable landing.

[bardos]

Two years ago I got an instruction flight in a Cessna 172. I had a 500 Fshours at that moment, and spent three evenings at Rod's lessons in Fs9 before.
It was quit easy to fly and to land (the most important thing isn't it.)
But an airliner with lots of people behind you and the stress behind your eyes...

I go for nr. 2 in the poll : sit down and pray is not my style...

Bardos.

[creator2003]

last one ofcourse ,got the feeling for it yup , already install in the brain ,realworld is always the next step,747 last man to do the job ,"im up to it " maybe? life and death ,yup ill make it ....

[AlisterC]

I voted "I expect so"... though I'm not just a simulator Cessna pilot, I think myself quite capable in the hands of a Level D 763, and all across the PMDG, plus I'm an instructor at Flight Experience so feel pretty comfortable in the cockpit compared to the usual click of a mouse on a screen. I think the hardest thing would be the 'seat of your pants' feeling, and the view out the window (ie how high from the ground are we really going to hit the deck, when do I initiate my flare?).
That and your possible impending death would be the hardest things to overcome. Flight simmers know the theory better than anyone other than the real pilots, but putting it into practice in a completely unfamiliar aircraft, under completely stressful circumstances, even then I don't know how I'd stack up. And that's exactly what I tell my flight experience customers when they are surprised how much I know despite not even having a PPL

As for autolands James, very few aircraft have them, and from memory, I believe not every airport is capable. Maybe even only a few airports are of the correct category to allow aircraft to auto land on them. Otherwise we'd have no problems when Auckland is fogged out as the aircraft landing there are capable (eg Emirates B773 or Thai A346 etc)
The runway isn't qualified Perhaps Towerguy might know a little about this?

[firefly]

Give it a shot, though best warn the passengers it may not be the smoothest landing

[brownbox]

Maybbe I could do it if it was a last resort...

[Charl]

As for autolands James, very few aircraft have them, and from memory, I believe not every airport is capable.

Sheesh! Y'mean my 737-200 with the big red AL button on the dash isn't 100% accurate after all??
(Shakes head) maybe I should enable crash detection too, then.
But I just know I can grease a real A380 in to NZOX on a hot summer's day, no question.
Anyone wanna argue??

[SUBS17]

I think most people here are probably capable of landing a airliner in an emergency. Of course it also depends on where you are in relation to the airfield and if you could find it. What are the chances though of both pilot and copilot having a heart attack? Most air crew are also trained in flying so its more likely now days that they would be able to land the aircraft.

[Jimmy]

Youl find on most airline flights there will be a pilot whos jsut "passengering" or even some old retired ones lol

Simmers should have no trouble with the aircraft systems, its just the feal of the controls, personly if I was in the situation were a autolan d wasn't possible and had to hand fly i'd shot a couple of missed approachs first just to get used to the weight of the controls. anyway tahs provided I can see over the dash!

[ZK-KAG]

Ive often thought about this scenario, in fact almost everytime I go up I think, "I could manage a landing" (Not that I wish anything upon anyone)...

Ive done a lot of observing and even a bit of reading on boeing cockpit systems, and combined with many fs hours and lotsa scanner listening and of course my limited real world experience, I believe I could do it rather comfortably. Id still crap myself but I reckon I could do it.

[Alex]

I think the second option says it all for me, I am not 100% confident. I might be able to, but more probably not.

Alex

[Tartanaviation]

There is one major note for simmers in this general question. If you are basing your answer on the basis of FS default airliners then you are very mislead in your own self beliefs of being able to land one in a real life emergency situation. Unless you have used something like the PMDG with a full FMC or some other program that offers an EFIS, then you will probably not know how to take control of the aircraft.

[HardCorePawn]

to be honest... given some of the shady landings (on fair weather days) i have experienced that were flown by the 'proper' flight crew, I think the poll should have been something like 'Could you perform a controlled crash in a real plane?'

Having some light plane experience and the basics of flight dynamics, I think I could maneuver a heavy around the sky but would be scared stiff on finals.

Especially after reading posts like this one over at pprune... heavy's dont fly like light planes and the discussion about attitude for speed, power for height vs. power for speed and attitude for height is quite interesting.

considering i was taught attitude for speed and power for height... I would probably plow a heavy into the ground as ChimbuChuckles points out directly underneath

[chopper_nut]

I have a fair amount of time in a PA38 and I have done the flight experience 737 sim in Wellington. The basics of flight are the same but that is about it. Things happen really quickly in an airliner and the modern pilots are more IT experts than pilots!! The main difference in the flying is the flare and landing. A 737 doesnt flare like a light aircraft, they land almost flat. I would say for myself that I could put it on the ground but wether it would be in one piece when it stopped is quite another issue!

[ardypilot]

Considering you may have someone over the radio telling you what to do may actually help- if they tell you all the controls you need to change etc.

I have a friend who's father is an ATC controller at London Gatwick. Before he worked there, he was an ATC controller at a small airport in Wales- one day he saved two mens lifes. A pilot was taking his son-in-law up for a flight in his Cessna when he really did have a heart attack, and the son-in-law had no idea how to fly. John Hibbard, the ATC controller explained to him how to fly the plane and guided them in for a safe landing! He became a local hero and had a book written about him- mind you, this was a Cessna he explained how to fly to a compleate noob, not a 747 to a sim pilot...

[AlisterC]

haha no the 737-200 doesn't have autoland Charl
But in a sim, I definately believe what you can probably do that in an A380

[G-HEVN]

Now, if there was a training captain on the other end of the radio to do a touch-drill walkthrough first, it'd be a doddle!

Thing is, I'd probably try and flare it at the normal flare height for a GA plane, which would be just slightly after the crunching noise! (just like airline pilots instinctively flare a small Cessna about 50 feet to high...)

[ZK-Brock]

I replied "Maybe, I might crash though". Airliners are VERY different to GA aeroplanes. Just because you have 100 or more hours in the PMDG 1900, doesn't mean you could handle one IRL! IMO, I'd have enough trouble getting a Cessna 'Van or even a C185 down safely, let alone a flippin multi-engine airliner!!!!!! Also remember that in the sim, many of us fly the ILS in reasonable weather- we know where the airfield is VISUALLY. What would happen if you were in cloud? Would you trust your instruments?

I don't think it'd be very likely me getting a 737 down, even at a long runwayed airfield like NZAA.

[Bluebird]

I could do it as long as i could land outside the Aircraft.. as on flight sim i have never landed inside the flightdeck