Emergency Landing Procedures

Objectives

• Understand the process of managing engine out emergencies

• Learn proper priorities for actions taken

• Manage the approach to an emergency landing site

Session Details

Engines rarely fail, and when they do the pilot often has options. This session starts with a white-board discussion of the ABCDE checklist, and engine out flight strategy. The session then proceeds to the aircraft and a session to exercise the new skills.

The ABCDE checklist is a memory-flow checklist designed to cover all the tasks needed in this particular emergency, as well as do them in critical priority order. The items of the checklist are :

• A : Airspeed - Pitch for the best-glide airspeed and hold it (trim)

• B : Best Field - Pick a landing location. Remember the best field may be behind you.

• C : Cockpit Checks - Use a flow to attempt to identify a way to restart power.

• D : Declare Emergency - Broadcast in the blind your emergency. Enter 7700 on the transponder.

• E : Egress - Think about the end game, and how you get out of the aircraft when on the ground.

Additionally, detail a strategy for actually getting into the selected field successfully. This strategy is summarized by the following steps, some being done in concert with the execution of the memory checklist above :

Determine landing direction, and navigate to a point which represents a "downwind, abeam the numbers" key position.

Once over that position, establish a spiral descent which passes over the threshold of the landing site and then returns the aircraft to the key downwind position.

Note the rate of altitude loss, and manage the descent such that the aircraft ends up at 1000 foot AGL at the key downwind position.

From the 1000 foot AGL downwind position fly a roughly normal downwind, base, and final pattern, though closer than usual to avoid getting too low and not making it into the field.

The approach is designed to give the pilot a reasonable strategy to follow which can help insure they place the aircraft on a final to the identified emergency landing field at a position where a successful landing can be accomplished. It requires making a few strategic decisions then flying with a degree of discipline. But if followed the strategy sets the pilot up for the best possible outcome.

Note, also, that it isn’t always possible to execute every step in as tidy a manner as is described above. For instance, if the instructor pulls the power simulating an engine failure at 2000 feet AGL near the runway, or does so in the pattern itself, you very quickly have to transition to simply managing the flight path to insure you land on the runway.

Simulated engine out exercises will happen more than once, and often as a total surprise.

Resources/References

Lesson Plans

These are individual lesson plans, keyed to the ACS, which discuss the topics included in this flight lesson. Each of the references below will have further references to additional FAA documents which address the individual topics in depth.

13.A : Emergency Approach and Landing