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> it would be an emergency, and the call would be "MAYDAY". Came here to say this. An untrained person in control of an aircraft most definitely justifies decl

> it would be an emergency, and the call would be "MAYDAY". Came here to say this. An untrained person in control of an aircraft most definitely justifies declaring an emergency. I didn't really like the article. Honestly, if you're in a light aircraft and the pilot conks out you're going to get badly hurt if you survive at all. Landing a plane feels very weird for a very long time. In a big jet you'd have a far better chance: your controller can talk you through setting the autopilot to take you to a big airport, and then have you set autoland. (Of course, that scenario is pure movie fantasy, whereas the first is actually quite likely!) If anyone is interested in this sort of preparation, I'd recommend taking a $50 intro flying lesson or - better - signing up for the AOPA's "Pinch Hitter" course, which is designed to teach non-flying spouses of pilots how to do just this. It's saved a surprising (alarming) number of lives - a lot of private pilots are fat old men who get heart attacks.

FireBeyond 14y ago
"I didn't really like the article. Honestly, if you're in a light aircraft and the pilot conks out you're going to get badly hurt if you survive at all. Landing a plane feels very weird for a very long time. In a big jet you'd have a far better chance: your controller can talk you through setting the autopilot to take you to a big airport, and then have you set autoland. (Of course, that scenario is pure movie fantasy, whereas the first is actually quite likely!)" That, and a commercial jet is going to have a co-pilot in the cabin, and possibly at least one person more familiar with a cockpit than you flying in a jumpseat. If it's an international flight, then there's usually going to be another flight crew on board, too.
- scrumper 14y ago
  Yep, hence why it's movie fantasy only.
vacri 14y ago
I've done only a couple of hours past first solo a long time ago (money ran out...), but as a neophyte pilot reading this article, the two things that stood out in my experience in inexperience were the PANPAN/MAYDAY thing already mentioned (besides, what layperson will remember PANPAN?), and that landing a plane is hard. Taking off is trivial, flying straight and level is easy, almost easier than finding the radio comms to the tower, but landing is really difficult for an untrained or inexperienced person - there's a lot of things that need to be done at the right time in the right order. I did find the comment about stalling somewhat amusing. Non-pilots really have no idea what pilots mean when they say 'stall'. When I intentionally stalled in training, I thought the plane would roller-coaster like a paper aeroplane does. Some people think it means the engine loses power. An actual stall is much more subtle and you have to know what you're looking for to notice it. I did like the comment about the subtle touch needed for the controls though - in my limited time, I never really mastered this.
- robterrell 14y ago
  Sam here, ran out of money midway, but did attempt landings, and it's stupidly hard. So hard, in fact, that if you're in a Cirrus just pull back on the throttle and deploy the ballistic chute, I bet your odds are better.
artmageddon 14y ago
>If anyone is interested in this sort of preparation, I'd recommend taking a $50 intro flying lesson or - better - signing up for the AOPA's "Pinch Hitter" course, which is designed to teach non-flying spouses of pilots how to do just this. It's saved a surprising (alarming) number of lives - a lot of private pilots are fat old men who get heart attacks. I suggested this in another comment, but I wanted to thank you for mentioning it as it should get more visibility.
jff 14y ago
Well, it depends on the light aircraft. A small, 2-person airplane, the kind flown by fat old private pilots? If you can get it coming down toward the ground at a slow enough rate and get the nose up as you're just about to touch down (flaring), you're in pretty good shape. They're light, they can handle a rough landing, and you're just trying to get down without dying.
frenchman_in_ny 14y ago
There's a significant amount of work involved in an autolanding [1], and unlikely that a non-pilot would be able to land a big jet successfully. [1] http://www.askthepilot.com/questionanswers/automation-myths/ http://www.askthepilot.com/questionanswers/automation-myths/

FireBeyond 14y ago

"I didn't really like the article. Honestly, if you're in a light aircraft and the pilot conks out you're going to get badly hurt if you survive at all. Landing a plane feels very weird for a very long time. In a big jet you'd have a far better chance: your controller can talk you through setting the autopilot to take you to a big airport, and then have you set autoland. (Of course, that scenario is pure movie fantasy, whereas the first is actually quite likely!)" That, and a commercial jet is going to have a co-pilot in the cabin, and possibly at least one person more familiar with a cockpit than you flying in a jumpseat. If it's an international flight, then there's usually going to be another flight crew on board, too.

scrumper 14y ago
Yep, hence why it's movie fantasy only.

vacri 14y ago

I've done only a couple of hours past first solo a long time ago (money ran out...), but as a neophyte pilot reading this article, the two things that stood out in my experience in inexperience were the PANPAN/MAYDAY thing already mentioned (besides, what layperson will remember PANPAN?), and that landing a plane is hard. Taking off is trivial, flying straight and level is easy, almost easier than finding the radio comms to the tower, but landing is really difficult for an untrained or inexperienced person - there's a lot of things that need to be done at the right time in the right order. I did find the comment about stalling somewhat amusing. Non-pilots really have no idea what pilots mean when they say 'stall'. When I intentionally stalled in training, I thought the plane would roller-coaster like a paper aeroplane does. Some people think it means the engine loses power. An actual stall is much more subtle and you have to know what you're looking for to notice it. I did like the comment about the subtle touch needed for the controls though - in my limited time, I never really mastered this.

robterrell 14y ago
Sam here, ran out of money midway, but did attempt landings, and it's stupidly hard. So hard, in fact, that if you're in a Cirrus just pull back on the throttle and deploy the ballistic chute, I bet your odds are better.

artmageddon 14y ago

>If anyone is interested in this sort of preparation, I'd recommend taking a $50 intro flying lesson or - better - signing up for the AOPA's "Pinch Hitter" course, which is designed to teach non-flying spouses of pilots how to do just this. It's saved a surprising (alarming) number of lives - a lot of private pilots are fat old men who get heart attacks. I suggested this in another comment, but I wanted to thank you for mentioning it as it should get more visibility.

jff 14y ago

Well, it depends on the light aircraft. A small, 2-person airplane, the kind flown by fat old private pilots? If you can get it coming down toward the ground at a slow enough rate and get the nose up as you're just about to touch down (flaring), you're in pretty good shape. They're light, they can handle a rough landing, and you're just trying to get down without dying.

frenchman_in_ny 14y ago

There's a significant amount of work involved in an autolanding [1], and unlikely that a non-pilot would be able to land a big jet successfully. [1] http://www.askthepilot.com/questionanswers/automation-myths/ http://www.askthepilot.com/questionanswers/automation-myths/