New year, same mistakes

This report analyzes accident data from general aviation accidents for 2022, and with this data we observe trends, see where we’re doing well regarding safety, and focus on areas where we can improve. The report covers the types of aircraft that account for 99 percent of GA flight activity—airplanes with maximum rated gross takeoff weight of 12,500 pounds or less and helicopters of all sizes.

Total accidents increased from 1,120 in 2021 to 1,152 in 2022, a slight change considering an increase in more than 500,000 more flight hours flown in 2022. The overall accident rate rose slightly (from 4.26 to 4.30 accidents per 100,000 flight hours), but the fatal accident rate continued to trend downward, lowering from 0.76 to 0.68 fatal accidents per 100,000 hours. Overall, this is good news for the industry.

One continuing trend is that the number of accidents during the landing phase of flight remains high.

Thankfully, these have a low fatality rate. But we can do more to reduce these accidents. The first two categorizations of accidents account for most noncommercial fixed-wing landing accidents and are causes from which we can learn the most. In first place with 136 total accidents, one fatal: loss of control on ground. And in second place, with 109 total accidents, all nonfatal: abnormal runway contact (ARC).

Loss of control on the ground is a broad category that can include any time the pilot loses control in a nonflight portion of operation. This includes loss of control because of runway contamination but is most often from pilot error (surprise, surprise).

With both these categories, trouble starts when the pilot is stagnant and fails to react to or preempt changing conditions appropriately. Landing is a dynamic process, and pilots will likely need to adjust the things they can control—power, and especially flight controls—often until the aircraft is safely stopped. When wheels meet pavement (or grass, or dirt, and so on), the flying is not over. The transition from controlling the airplane with the flight controls to being able to rely on the wheels and brakes is critical. With a lack of attention, the time right after touchdown can become a loss of control event. Believe it or not, even nosewheel airplanes can ground loop (though it is rare and much harder to do than in a taildragger). Don’t lock up on the controls. Keep making small adjustments through the rollout and remember these adjustments should increase as the aircraft slows and flight controls lose effectiveness. Don’t slam on the brakes or think the brakes will save you from a bad landing. Don’t get lazy with the rudders, and wear shoes that give you full rudder authority (sometimes heels on boots or slip-on shoes can interfere if you aren’t used to them), and make sure your seat is adjusted to give you full rudder control and full braking. By keeping crosswind controls in even during taxi, dancing on those rudders, and appropriately using wheel brakes and aerodynamic braking, you can help prevent loss of control accidents. 

The NTSB considers abnormal runway contact as “events such as hard/heavy landings, long/fast landings, off center landings, crabbed landings, nose wheel first touchdown, tail strikes, and wingtip/nacelle strikes …. Gear-up landings are also recorded here.”

With energy management, centerline discipline, and checklist usage, risks can be mitigated. If you’re going to land more than a third of the way down the runway, go around. Forcing the aircraft down will mean you’re landing with too much energy, which will be challenging or impossible to safely dissipate on the runway remaining. Land with too little energy, and you’ll slam it in. The throttle is there to help, and you can add a burst of power to smooth out (or save) a touchdown and to not get too slow on final.

If you’re unstable and your airspeed is off, fix it immediately and go around. Practice slow flight often to keep your skills proficient, and if you find your landings are consistently subpar, get some more instruction. As far as crabbed landings go, you probably have more rudder available to you than you are using. Test it out one of these days. If the wind exceeds your true crosswind component—the point where your rudder, even at maximum deflection, can’t keep you straight—you probably shouldn’t be in the air anyway, and you should divert to an airport with a more favorable runway for the wind.

To prevent nosewheel-first and tail strike landings, sight picture is key. If you can’t fly the same airplane every time, at least have a general idea of where you normally have the seat. Take note on rotation of the sight picture over the dash and keep that in mind for touchdown. Energy state plays a big role in tail/nose strikes. Proper management is key to avoiding the strike.

The key to all successful landings is a stable approach with an active, attentive pilot at the controls. Pay attention, and don’t consider the landing as assured until you’re well and fully stopped, or even better, back at the hangar. Recognize that practicing takeoffs and landings back-to-back has a threshold of learning and at some point they have a diminishing return. True proficiency is not banging out an hour and a half flight, instead it occurs over numerous flights with shorter duration practice. Complacency is the enemy here, and with vigilance and proficiency, we can reduce the number of landing accidents and improve the accident rate.

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