Terrain Types

Since an emergency landing on suitable terrain resembles a situation in which the pilot should be familiar through training, only the more unusual situations are discussed.

Confined Areas

The natural preference to set the airplane down on the ground should not lead to the selection of an open spot between trees or obstacles where the ground cannot be reached without making a steep descent.

Once the intended touchdown point is reached, and the remaining open and unobstructed space is very limited, it may be better to force the airplane down on the ground than to delay touchdown until it stalls (settles). An airplane decelerates faster after it is on the ground than while airborne. Thought may also be given to the desirability of ground-looping or retracting the landing gear in certain conditions.

A river or creek can be an inviting alternative in otherwise rugged terrain. The pilot should ensure that the water or creek bed can be reached without snagging the wings. The same concept applies to road landings with one additional reason for caution: manmade obstacles on either side of a road may not be visible until the final portion of the approach.

When planning the approach across a road, it should be remembered that most highways and even rural dirt roads are paralleled by power or telephone lines. Only a sharp lookout for the supporting structures or poles may provide timely warning.

Trees (Forest)

Although a tree landing is not an attractive prospect, the following general guidelines help to make the experience survivable.

• Use the normal landing configuration (full flaps, gear down).
• Keep the groundspeed low by heading into the wind.
• Make contact at minimum indicated airspeed, but not below stall speed, and “hang” the airplane in the tree branches in a nose-high landing attitude. Involving the underside of the fuselage and both wings in the initial tree contact provides a more even and positive cushioning effect, while preventing penetration of the windshield. [Figure 17-4]
• Avoid direct contact of the fuselage with heavy tree trunks.
• Low, closely spaced trees with wide, dense crowns (branches) close to the ground are much better than tall trees with thin tops; the latter allow too much free fall height (a free fall from 75 feet results in an impact speed of about 40 knots, or about 4,000 fpm).
• Ideally, initial tree contact should be symmetrical; that is, both wings should meet equal resistance in the tree branches. This distribution of the load helps to maintain proper airplane attitude. It may also preclude the loss of one wing, which invariably leads to a more rapid and less predictable descent to the ground.
• If heavy tree trunk contact is unavoidable once the airplane is on the ground, it is best to involve both wings simultaneously by directing the airplane between two properly spaced trees. Do not attempt this maneuver, however, while still airborne.

Water (Ditching) and Snow

A well-executed water landing normally involves less deceleration violence than a poor tree landing or a touchdown on extremely rough terrain. Also, an airplane that is ditched at minimum speed and in a normal landing attitude does not immediately sink upon touchdown. Intact wings and fuel tanks (especially when empty) provide flotation for at least several minutes, even if the cabin may be just below the water line in a high-wing airplane.

Loss of depth perception may occur when landing on a wide expanse of smooth water with the risk of flying into the water or stalling in from excessive altitude. To avoid this hazard, the airplane should be “dragged in” when possible. Use no more than intermediate flaps on low-wing airplanes. The water resistance of fully extended flaps may result in asymmetrical flap failure and slowing of the airplane. Keep a retractable gear up unless the AFM/POH advises otherwise.

A landing in snow should be executed like a ditching, in the same configuration and with the same regard for loss of depth perception (white out) in reduced visibility and on wide-open terrain.

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