Can you fly with landing gear down?

In its simplest form, flying with the gear down is not much of a problem. We do the very same for several minutes on the approach to landing. As a result, there's no immediate rush to deal with it. But by flying around with the gear down, the aircraft is far less aerodynamic.



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Passenger lands plane without landing gear after pilot suffers medical emergency. A pilot of a small plane suffered a medical emergency in the air, prompting a passenger to take over controls and make a crash landing with no landing gear at Martha's Vineyard Airport, authorities said.

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At the higher speeds flown at cruising altitude, having the gear down would potentially subject it to extreme stress, not to mention affecting the aircraft's aerodynamic properties. Similarly, flaps are only deployed at lower altitudes and speeds.

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The most common cause of gear-up landings is the pilot simply forgetting to extend the landing gear before touchdown. On any retractable gear aircraft, lowering the landing gear is part of the pilot's landing checklist, which also includes items such as setting the flaps, propeller and mixture controls for landing.

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If the wheels do not retract completely but protrude partially exposed to the airstream, it is called a semi-retractable gear. Most retractable gear is hydraulically operated, though some is electrically operated or even manually operated on very light aircraft.

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Five miles usually is considered the outer marker for the final approach fix. At that point, landing gear and flaps will be down. Anywhere from about 1,500 feet to 1,000 feet of altitude, the aircraft will have flaps down and will be on autopilot on the 3 degree glide slope.

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The most common reason for an aborted approach or landing is insufficient visibility due to rain, snow, fog, or low clouds. Here are some other reasons (my experience): The airplane was not stabilized at 1,000 feet above the runway.

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So that leaves the final descent and landing. They take up about 4% of the average flight, lasting twice as long as takeoff and initial climb. But a whopping 49% of fatal accidents occur in this short window, making the final descent and landing the deadliest part of an average flight.

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During a belly landing, there is normally extensive damage to the airplane. Belly landings carry the risk that the aircraft may flip over, disintegrate, or catch fire if it lands too fast or too hard.

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Hard landings can cause extensive damage to aircraft if not carried out safely or properly.

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A runway of at least 6,000 ft (1,829 m) in length is usually adequate for aircraft weights below approximately 200,000 lb (90,718 kg). Larger aircraft including widebodies will usually require at least 8,000 ft (2,438 m) at sea level and somewhat more at higher altitude airports.

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Pilots do NOT land their airplane when they cannot see the runway! However, Instrument Landing System (ILS) is a set of radio signals that will allow a pilot to line up on a runway that he cannot see. It will direct the aircraft to the end of the runway.

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Landing. While landing, speed is largely affected by the aircrafts current weight, commercial airplanes typically land between 130 and 160 mph (112 to 156 knots).

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According to USA Today, the common cruising altitude for most commercial airplanes is between 33,000 and 42,000 feet, or between about six and nearly eight miles above sea level. Typically, aircraft fly around 35,000 or 36,000 feet in the air.

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On landing, pilots should use aerodynamic braking by applying extra back-pressure on the stick or yoke. Extreme caution should be used when applying brakes at any significant speed, and only when the end of the runway is quickly approaching. Never step on the brakes to make a runway exit.

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