What is the likelihood that a GA pilot could.....

Ventucky Red

Ventucky Red

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safely land a 737 or similar aircraft in an emergency... This came up in a conversation over the weekend, that is should something happen would I be able to strap into to the left seat and be talked down to the runway while controlling a piece of big iron...

Thoughts?
 
My uncle used to be an instructor for United and back in 2000 he took me to their simulator facility here in Denver. He talked me down from 35,000' over Reno to a pretty good landing at SFO. This was in the 747 simulator. I think it can be done and I think your odds are much better if you're instrument rated, which I was.
 
Depends on the pilot, some could... especially if instrument rated/complex and knew how to fly by the numbers and was talked through it...


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Mythbusters or one of those shows did that scenario. They made it down alive. Of course it was a simulator.
 
TommyG said:
Mythbusters or one of those shows did that scenario. They made it down alive. Of course it was a simulator.
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And that was with two people that were completely untrained. With help they were able to do it. The key was having an experienced pilot on the radio.

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I could do it, while finishing my margarita, watching an episode of Big Bang Theory, and harassing a couple of the stews. Just push a couple buttons and bada bing, your on the ground.
 
If you know the speeds and where to deploy the flaps and gear, I'd say success would be pretty good.

I've flown the H-53 and F-18 sims as a GA pilot and could land them with some basic coaching. The IP running the F-18 sim could actually tell I had flight experience and let me fly a second period, including a carrier attempt...which didn't end well.
 
Ironically this came up at work a couple of weeks ago while riding on a 737 for work. Our GM asked me, "Could you land this thing if you had to?" I said well, it probably wouldn't be very smooth but I'd like to think with a long enough runway I could keep from killing us all"
 
Velocity173 said:
If you know the speeds and where to deploy the flaps and gear, I'd say success would be pretty good.

I've flown the H-53 and F-18 sims as a GA pilot and could land them with some basic coaching. The IP running the F-18 sim could actually tell I had flight experience and let me fly a second period, including a carrier attempt...which didn't end well.
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Hey Velocity... similar experience but in a S-3 Viking... but all I got to do was sit in it... lots of gauges and buttons to push... The LTJG running the sim lab informed my cousin (Lt Cmdr) that I did have the right badge on to be in the area and had to leave... turns out some of the stuff in that plane/simulator was top secret at the time.. so I was told.

Did you crash into the fan tail of the ship?
 
"Help, help!" squeals the stewardess. "Both pilots are unconcious. Does anyone know how to fly an airplane?"
"Why, yes ma'am. I have 450 hours in a Supercub" says I.
"Oh, please come up and save us" the stewardess pleads.

And that is how our story begins...
 
Suddenly the poor guy who flies the ugly turbo t tailed lance is looking good


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Ventucky Red said:
Hey Velocity... similar experience but in a S-3 Viking... but all I got to do was sit in it... lots of gauges and buttons to push... The LTJG running the sim lab informed my cousin (Lt Cmdr) that I did have the right badge on to be in the area and had to leave... turns out some of the stuff in that plane/simulator was top secret at the time.. so I was told.

Did you crash into the fan tail of the ship?
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Oh I crashed everywhere on the ship. I left no stone unturned in areas to crash. There were also some things with the radar that they couldn't show based on our lack of security clearance.

The H-53 was actually more fun. I tried to land on ship with that one also. I had it nailed but forgot the ship is moving forward and it drifted out in front of me. Crashed into the fan tail.
 
I got a Level D, or whatever the military designation is, for a helo simulator safely down. Not where I wanted to land, and if it had been real, I doubt it would have ended as well.

But a fixed wing airliner? Maybe??? Like everyone else said, if someone gives you the target air speeds, and you can get a long, stabilized approach established? With an IP talking to you? Walk you trough the configuration changes? Maybe. . .but dang, if something breaks. . .
 
Velocity173 said:
If you know the speeds and where to deploy the flaps and gear, I'd say success would be pretty good.

I've flown the H-53 and F-18 sims as a GA pilot and could land them with some basic coaching. The IP running the F-18 sim could actually tell I had flight experience and let me fly a second period, including a carrier attempt...which didn't end well.
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I actually found the Hornet sim to be a lot easier to land on the boat than the E-2.

I was able to get one trap in the E-2C flying a long straight in approach. I never did get it down doing the day VFR pattern.
 
gsengle said:
A 737 cockpit is pretty unfamiliar if you've only ever flown a 172


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True but the audio control panels are very simple as are the tuning panels. Not all that different than in a 172. Plus if you had to take over for a crew that was suddenly incapacitated, you would most likely find VHF 1 tuned to the ATC that you need and VHF 2 tuned to 121.5.

Just be sure that you don't accidentally disconnect the autopilot if it's engaged when fiddling around for the PTT.
 
Flew the F-14 Sim fairly well to a couple of bolters and some OK 3's. Then we went to night pitching deck. VERY ugly.

737 day VFR, no problem but CAT II or III would be a serious problem IMHO.

Cheers
 
It's easy. I do it every time I fly. Then we land, I get my bag from overhead storage and get off the plane.
 
Depends. If they sat me in coach I'd land that sucka! If they sat me in First I'd be over 0.04.
 
Most GA pilots might do a credible job. But I wouldn't want to subject a Cirrus pilot to that test..."WTF, there's no parachute handle to pull?"
 
I have flown both an ATR and MD-11 in sims at an airline once, and was able to hand fly and land both fairly easily.
 
Velocity173 said:
Oh I crashed everywhere on the ship. I left no stone unturned in areas to crash. There were also some things with the radar that they couldn't show based on our lack of security clearance.

The H-53 was actually more fun. I tried to land on ship with that one also. I had it nailed but forgot the ship is moving forward and it drifted out in front of me. Crashed into the fan tail.
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I had a friend who was a dentist in the Navy and he wanted to go fly the sims. I got him into the F-14D sim and he immediately wanted to set it up behind the boat and try for a trap. I encouraged him to fly around and go land at the field because if he crashed they would have to reset the sim, but he insisted. He flew it straight into a 3-wire with little difficulty. I was a little peeved since I had built it up as being almost impossible. I guess he was a video gamer and he just treated it like a big video game. I'm not sure if he could do it again, but he had some bragging rights after that one.
 
It has been done in a King Air


On a related side note we had an incident visiting NASA in Titusville that my wife keeps ragging me over. A friend of mine who is a NASA enthusiast had been accompanying us and of course when I saw the space shuttle landing "simulators" I had to give it a try. I grumbled immediately at the fake non-moving non functional rudder pedals but soldiered on. The simulator started you out pretty much lined up with the runway and it had a HUD with... forgive my lack of proper terms but something like an HSI/glideslope indicator which seemed fairly straightforward. I just made a few gentle corrections and guided the "shuttle" in to land... as I tensed up trying to figure out where to flare it, the simulator just skipped that part and put me down on the runway when I was over it. I somewhat irritatedly complained this was too easy and tried it again noting a more difficult mode requiring a turn.... and that was it, you just had to make a turn to line up with the runway. I again apparently a bit too loudly complained that this thing had been set up way too easy and anyone would be able to do this.

I was apparently oblivious to everyone around me, including my friend, being completely unable to land the simulated shuttle.
 
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