Most of the time, yes. Sometimes we might take a visual approach, but that's rare especially at the big airports who will guide you through radar vectors to an ILS under strict speed control, but even if we do carry out a rare visual approach, if the ILS is up and running we can still use that for extra guidance.

No, pilots do not use the Instrument Landing System (ILS) for every single landing, though it is the "gold standard" for precision approaches. In 2026, while the ILS remains the primary tool for landing in low visibility, fog, or heavy rain, pilots frequently perform visual approaches when the weather is clear (VFR conditions). Visual landings help maintain pilot proficiency and are often more efficient for air traffic control. However, even in clear weather, many airlines require pilots to "back up" their visual approach by tuning into the ILS frequencies as a safety redundancy to ensure they are on the correct glide path and centerline. In 2026, there is also an increasing shift toward RNAV (GPS-based) approaches, which allow for more flexible flight paths than the ground-based radio beams of the ILS. While the ILS is essential for the "Autoland" features used in the worst weather, it is just one of several tools in a modern pilot's navigation flight bag.