Crosswind landing

Have any of the pilot mentors been in a position where they had to execute a crosswind landing? Can you recount the event.

Clinton,

Not sure if you’re kidding but most pilots perform crosswind landings almost every time we fly since the wind is seldom right down the runway.

Adam

Clinton,

We do crosswind landings all the time. Airports like SAN, SNA, DFW, ORD, EWR, etc either have one runway or runways that mostly all go in the same direction. When the wind blows at an angle to the runway we just have to deal with it.

Jets are landed with a different crosswind technique than smaller airplanes are. We let the aircraft crab into the wind and then at the last minute use the rudder to take the crab out.

Chris

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Thanks for answering this Chris. I was always wondering if you make the plane straight at the last minute because it must be horrible for the landing gear to land crabbed. Will we be able to practice these crosswind landings on the sims a lot before actually doing it in the plane? I don’t want to ruin landing gear while I’m still learning.

And you think ATP or the airlines do? :wink:

Adam

Lol, so I take that as a yes, we will spend a lot of time on the sim before they unleash us to practice in the planes?

You can practice in the sim if you want. We aren’t going to let you hop in the plane and try to land with a 10 knot crosswind your first go, but once you get the hang of landing the plane on calm days, crosswind landings only have a couple extra steps involved.

Cody,

The best way to practice crosswind landings is in the airplane. The instructor is there to teach you and keep you out of danger. If the landing doesn’t look safe the instructor will command you to do a go-around, or just take over the plane if necessary. As you get better, you will be able to recognize an unsafe landing and execute a go-around without instructor input.

Tory

Cody,

You will practice plenty in the sims. The airlines don’t want you ruining their landing gear either.

Chris

10kts? Ahhh I remember the days when 10kts was a crosswind. Now anything less than 20 is “calm” :slight_smile:

Adam

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Is global warming making it windier?

Not that I have noticed.

:slight_smile: