Did a passenger actually land a plane?

Last spring, a pilot became incapacitated on a flight from the Bahamas and a passenger with no prior flying experience, Darren Harrison, stepped up. He safely landed the plane with guidance from Air Traffic Control, in what's known as a talk-down landing.



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In an incident in April 2009, a passenger took over control of a twin-engine turboprop Beechcraft King Air after the pilot died, and managed to land the plane safely.

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Takeoff is always achieved manually. However, depending on the aircraft type and airport approach facilities, they can be landed automatically using an instrument landing system coupled with onboard equipment. However, given a choice, most pilots prefer to perform a manual landing.

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It is perfectly possible to do the climb, cruise, and approach phases under instruments without any visibility. You look out the window, but all you see is fog, or black night plus fog. This is instrument flying, done under Instrument Flight Rules.

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Landing a plane is generally considered to be more difficult than taking off. This is because the pilot has to slow the plane down to a safe landing speed while also keeping it aligned with the runway. If the pilot does not do this correctly, the plane could crash.

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The simple answer is yes, pilots do, and are allowed to sleep during flight but there are strict rules controlling this practice. Pilots would only normally sleep on long haul flights, although sleep on short haul flights is permitted to avoid the effects of fatigue.

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All takeoffs and most landing are done manually. In reduced visibility conditions, many airliners utilize auto land where the autopilot(s) perform the landing under the close monitoring of the pilots.

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In some situations, such as during a landing on a contaminated runway, the firm touchdown may have been intentional. As stated in the definition above, a hard landing is classified as the exceedance of a manufacturer limitation, which will vary by the category and purpose of the aircraft.

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Landing a plane is generally considered to be more difficult than taking off. This is because the pilot has to slow the plane down to a safe landing speed while also keeping it aligned with the runway. If the pilot does not do this correctly, the plane could crash.

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The truth is that pilots who fly at night will navigate using instruments instead of what they can see outside. This type of flying is conducted under instrument flight rules. Some ground features may be visible, but visual cues aren't normally as reliable in the darkness as in the daytime.

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Any pilot who says they've never been terrified in a cockpit or scrubbed a flight that “didn't feel right is a dirty liar. Everyone gets scared flying at some point. Little things start going wrong, weather starts moving in, or you get behind the aircraft for whatever reason.

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Whether someone has already passed away or their life hangs in the balance, a typical course of action will be to divert the flight in question. This allows the aircraft to get on the ground as quickly as possible, where more extensive medical care is available.

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(d) No pilot may fly more than 32 hours during any seven consecutive days, and each pilot must be relieved from all duty for at least 24 consecutive hours at least once during any seven consecutive days. (e) No pilot may fly as a member of a crew more than 100 hours during any one calendar month.

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Alaska Airlines Flight 261 was an Alaska Airlines flight of a McDonnell Douglas MD-83 plane that crashed into the Pacific Ocean on January 31, 2000, roughly 2.7 miles (4.3 km; 2.3 nmi) north of Anacapa Island, California, following a catastrophic loss of pitch control, killing all 88 on board: two pilots, three cabin ...

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