Cross-Wind Landings

[PIC]

Hi all,

I am a 19 year old wannabe and just curious to know that when carrying out a cross-wind landing in a civil jet, is the nose of the a/c yawed back on the centreline after or before the main-gear has touched down.

Any information will be well appreciated.

[AYLGR]

The nosewheel is centred before it is landed, but often after the main gear has touched down. In a big jet you have to carry out two landings! First the mains, then the nose. Bear in mind the nosegear can take very little in the way of side forces (unlike the main gear) and so drift must be taken off before you plant that front tyre!
Bob

[BN2A]

Do any bigjet pilots out there use the 'wingdown' method?

[static]

Yes, even on 744.
Works well, I understand it`s not very popular in England, is it?

[pesket]

or with Korean in Hong Kong

[L J R]

Watch your 'wing-down' all the way to touch-down, as an engine pod strike may be embarrasing if you exceed 8 degrees AOB on the ground.

Personally, flying crab until [very] shortly prior to touch-down is easier during the flying phase, until a correct response is required in the last few feet [well inside Ground Effect]. The maneouvre to right the crab must be performed at the exact time using the exact amount of rudder - Porking it in timing or rate of rudder input can be embarassing.

You may have difficulty judging the correct angle of bank uising the wing low approach to maintain the C/L, where as 'the Crab' C/L is simpler to maintain.

[scroggs]

LJR,
'fraid I have to totally disagree with you - I reckon wing down on the 747 is far easier (see the thread on Tech Log - I think - about two weeks ago). In the final few seconds of the crab technique you have to effectively adopt the wing down technique as the mains touch, which has more potential for problems than using the wing down option from, say, a mile or so out. Just my opinion - but I've tried it both ways!

[RAFAT]

Having flown the F-27 out of Leeds in the past, my colleagues and I became rather expert at crosswind landings, mainly because of the F-27's desperate struggle to cope with the crosswinds Leeds is famous for, meaning that you had to be spot on every time.

Of the 2 techniques I tried, I found the best and most comfortable method for the passengers was as per LJR's suggestion, ie. application of rudder to correct the crab and simultaneous into wind aileron applied just before touch down. Applying these corrections further up the slope achieves the same touch down result, but is not at all comfortable for the pax.

Obviously with a big jet which is less responsive and needs to be stabilised earlier than a light twin, (as you big boys would probably class the F-27) the latter technique may be the necessary option, I can't really comment on this one.

I don't think however, that I would be happy to land the mainwheels of any size of aeroplane in a crabbed condition as AYLGR suggests, is this really necessary?

[This message has been edited by RAFAT (edited 12 January 2001).]

[AYLGR]

LJR, max roll until you scrape the pod on a 744 is only 5.5 degrees. Not enough to cope with a 30kt xwind. The autopilot does a good job of a combo of wing down/crab where it kicks off the drift below about 500 feet.
RAFAT - landing like this on a wet runway with a stiff crosswind is the Boeing approved method! Get too fancy with straightening things up and you'll find with the wide track of the 747, the outboard bogies will start looking at the grass. Better a slight bit of wing down though, so the upwind gear touches first and intertia swings the beast straight for the balance of the landing!
Bob

[Paddington]

On a short-haul twin jet I crab in until just before the flare, then push some rudder in to straighten up. Then I put in full into wind aileron as soon as I touchdown to prevent that wing lifting. Seems to work.

[scroggs]

AYLGR, I'm with you. The combined wing down/crab is probably a better description of the technique I use. Certainly, there is still some drift on as the body gear touches, but I aim to have it straight by the time that the weight is beginning to settle on all four bogies. In the conditions at LHR just before Christmas (when a BA Classic was unfortunate enough to leave a taxiway), there was no way that either technique on its own would have worked - we'd have either scraped a pod, or left the runway stage right!