GA guys: Could you land an Airliner?

Badger

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Badger
As I found myself daydreaming in coach last week on the way home from a trip, I wondered 'if something terrible happened to the crew, and they asked if there was a pilot on board, could I actually land this bird?'

I know TV is all hyped up...but..... could it be done? With enough help from an experienced pilot on the radio to establish speeds, etc. maybe I could get it down safe with 20k of runway!

What about you, could you save 250 people?:dunno:
 
If nothing was wrong with the plane I would imagine I could.

I'd like not to find out for real though
 
I think you would have a MUCH MUCH MUCH better chance than someone that wasn't a pilot and didn't know the terms they would be using to talk you through it. I suspect you could do a better job of saving the people than saving the airplane though.
 
I think you would have a MUCH MUCH MUCH better chance than someone that wasn't a pilot and didn't know the terms they would be using to talk you through it. I suspect you could do a better job of saving the people than saving the airplane though.
I agree.
The result might also depend on the individual, how much self-control he/she would demonstrate in such situation.
However I don't think many of those FSX-simulator-only armchair pilots could do it even though they have good simulator skills.
 
I would hope that any of us could land it, at least to the point that everyone walks away. Whether or not the airplane is useable again is a nice-to-have at that point.

Personally, I think it would be terrifying.
 
Interesting point olasek: a GA pilot vs airliner simulator 'pilot'-who would you rather have at the controls?
I'll take the general aviation pilot.
 
I've landed a 777 twice by myself with no damage to the plane or passengers!:yes::yes: Of course, it was in the Delta sim and my student pilot son did a better job than I did! :dunno: I won't say an airplane is an airplane, but if the poop hits the fan, I think any competent private pilot could land one with some help from the ground. I'm not saying it would be pretty or the airplane would make the next flight without some attention, but it would be survivable. :D
 
I think any of us could, especially since we'd have the wherewithal to use the radio and call someone to tell us how to fly the stinking thing.
 
IFR (or one of the other Belvoir rags) did a test where they through three guys into a 737 sim to see how they did. One was a high time IFR pilot (Scott Hartwig, also was Rockford tower ATC at the time), one was a student pilot, and I can't remember what the third was.

Even the experienced pilots had some fun getting it down. Lots of overcontrol all around if I recall.
 
I've had the privilege of flying the 777 sim and the C-5 sim, and I'd like to think that with enough fuel on board and time to find the necessary buttons, etc... and catch someone on the radio, that we'd have a fighting chance.

Ryan
 
Um, I have a hard enough time landing a 172. :D
 
Sure..... let me land at Edwards AFB with a 10 mile runway and I bet I git r stopped..:yes:;)
 
Yes, Sir! :yes:


Badger: That's pretty arrogant, considering the company you're in


Yes Sir .
 
most of them today can land themselves - you merely would have to put the gear and flaps into the proper configuration at the right time and speed.

Did you know George Zip?
 
My retired airline pilot father tells me if I can land a 172, I can land a 747, but remember to flare 50 feet off the ground.
 
I suppose if you were so lucky as to have the flight director already programmed to do an approach at some airport, you could probably flare it out and land it relatively easy.
 
I would hope that any of us could land it, at least to the point that everyone walks away. Whether or not the airplane is useable again is a nice-to-have at that point.

:yeahthat:

Personally, I think it would be terrifying.

No more than first solo, in my opinion.

Another comparison in my own experience would be to the first time I flew a weight-shift ultralight. I had no dual time in type, so it was a matter of, "I know what I have to do to fly this thing, and now I just have to do it. Or die. One or the other."

-Rich
 
I think the first words out of my mouth once they got someone knowledgeable about the airplane on the other end of the radio would be "Does this plane have Cat III capability?"
 
Didn't MythBusters do this? In a pro-simulator, using non-pilots and verbal coaching, I think they were able to land. So I'm guessing a GA pilot, with similar coaching would stand a good chance.
 
Pre 9/11 I had some opportunities to fly airliner full motion sims belonging to a major airline. You need some time at the controls to get used to the difference in response time and get familiar with control locations. Then, with a pilot coaching you on the radio to give you target fuel flows and flap settings, you should be able to do it.
 
Yes, Sir! :yes:


Badger: That's pretty arrogant, considering the company you're in


Yes Sir .

Viper... :D

I think I could do it. Get on the horn and find out the speeds and procedures, do a few practice turns to get a feel for the controls and keep the pattern clear it would be doable.
 
I get first dibs on Bock.
 
At 250hrs, I landed a G650 sim :)

If I weren't born a short, overweight balding male, I'd probably have my type rating by now :D:D
 
I think that any private pilot who has a bit of knowledge about advanced systems and can keep himself level-headed could do it. I would bet that most of the serious flight sim enthusiasts could do it as well—the folks that have fly with yokes and pedals and buy aircraft for their sims that have all of the systems simulated.

That's all assuming a VFR day, plenty of fuel, someone on the radio, and a long runway. Take away any one of those things and the situation become much more dire.
 
I'd imagine the fundamentals are all the same...everything just happens at a higher speed. I'd say the GA pilot has a very high chance of getting the thing on the ground relatively safely.
 
Go to ATOP (www.b737.com) or another similar program and find out that:
Landing an airliner with everything working in decent weather is not that bad.
There are LOTS of things that make an airliner safe and easy, and when they go wrong it's a whole different ball game.

The impression I got from my experience is that the physical flying the airplane is a very small part of an airline pilot's overall skill set. Systems and procedural knowledge, good judgement, and the ability to command a multi-person crew are larger pieces.
 
I was able to take lots of PPL friends to fly the sim while teaching in the G-V. I have no doubt that a PPL can learn to land a bigger airplane, since I've seen them do it hundreds of times.

The problem with the scenario being discussed is that there's no go-around in the cards if he screws it up the first time. The odds are much less favorable when the pilot only gets one kiss at the pig.

PS: If by some stroke of luck you happen to get it on the runway, don't try to taxi to the ramp. You'll turn way to soon (assuming you find the little steering wheel), miss the taxiway and bury the whole landing gear assembly in the mud.
 
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I was able to take lots of PPL friends to fly the sim while teaching in the G-V. I have no doubt that a PPL can learn to land a bigger airplane, since I've seen them do it hundreds of times.

The problem with the scenario being discussed is that there's no go-around in the cards if he screws it up the first time. The odds are much less favorable when the pilot only gets one kiss at the pig.

Sure, an average PP could do it. In the Airbus he should need to know how to insert the approach into the MCDU, figure out whether the speed, altitude and nav/heading is either managed or selected, determine if they will overfly the decel point or have to manually insert the approach phase.

And remember the thrust levers don't move in flight, so when down to 20 feet above the runway when the annunciator starts yelling "Retard! Retard!" it's not commenting on your pilot skills but telling you to bring the thrust levers to idle.

Other than that, piece of cake. :rolleyes:
 
Define "landing" ??

I could get it to come in contact with the ground....
 
Maybe a better question is whether the average GA pilot get into the airliner's locked cockpit in time to try to land it if something terrible happened to the crew.
 
I'd imagine the fundamentals are all the same

They are.

My experience was in a 767-400 sim at a major airline when I had all of about 170 hrs in my log book. A friend who flies as captain was able to get us in....the only catch was that he wouldn't let us use the A/P and wouldn't give us any speeds or power settings. The emphasis was flying the large jet just like any other airplane. Had a blast....first time at the controls was a basic VFR traffic pattern. My impression was that it was a bit pitch sensitive, but otherwise not difficult at all. First landing was a little rough but passable. Second time was an ILS 28R at SFO. Hand flown within PTS standards. Then I got cocky and asked for the River Visual to DCA.....rolled out on short final high and took out too much power trying to get down. Hit the runway with a way high sink rate. We probably would have survived, but the airplane would not have been usable again. Even got to try the Sully approach to the Hudson, although without having to dodge the bridges (they weren't modeled) it wasn't too challenging (when you see it from the air, it was pretty obvious why he chose to set it down in the river).

Important thing was that three non jet GA pilots all took turns doing this without any reference to power settings or air speeds. Just standard pilot stuff. Granted, we didn't have to mess with any systems or failures.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
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\__[Ô]__/;1122920 said:
Maybe a better question is whether the average GA pilot get into the airliner's locked cockpit in time to try to land it if something terrible happened to the crew.


Define " something terrible":dunno:
 
Define " something terrible":dunno:

I have no idea. Ask the OP, those were his words.

edit: Lets say they are dead or incapacitated, basically the same assumption as the whole thread, i think.
 
Should I start the "Can an airline pilot land a Single Engine Piston?" thread now?
 
What did the FO say to the FA when the Captain slumped over and died during a trip?
 
Should I start the "Can an airline pilot land a Single Engine Piston?" thread now?
:rofl::rofl:

Good point, I was reading years ago about an airline pilot who crashed a Cessna (he did not receive proper endorsement) because his flare was way too high.
 
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