What's the best way to lose altitude over tree tops if the landing zone is a small clearing?

Answer 1

I'm not a pilot but I'd have to say aside from basics like flaps and landing gear down, decrease speed as if you were going to land on the trees.. but obivously keep a safe distance from the treetops...once you pass the last tree..tip the nose forward for a sec to lose the altitude thats about equal to the trees height..drop the throttle..and nose up slightly..land as usual..stop as fast as you can.. without tippingthe plane over..(small plane)..if i felt like i wouldn't be able to make it..i'd make a few passes... practicing making a"scoop" path..once i feel i have a feeling for how much th plane will drop.. I'd try.. also..keep in mind an escape plan..like.. rough landing.. or how you will hit the throttle and pull up. if something doesn't feel right..

Answer 2

The best way to lose altitude fast is to create as much drag as possible.

In a landing situation, and in a Cessna, it's with flaps full DOWN, not up, and idle power. You want to stay on profile and maintain a stabilized approach. Make a short field approach as the descent angle is steeper which will help clear the trees.

If you have to do some crazy maneuvering to get the airplane in the zone, I probably wouldn't land there.

By the way, professional pilots don't slip airplanes to lose altitude when you are so close to the runway that you are worried about clearing the tree tops.

A slip destroys a lot of lift thereby rapidly decreasing your rate of descent versus distance traveled over the ground which affects your glideslope. Orographic lifting may be present at the tree line which will abruptly stop once you clear the trees. If you're in a slip when you lose that lift your rate of descent will increase sharply and you'll probably land short of the runway.

A slip is a great tool to use if you know what you're doing. But it is a risky maneuver to employ so close to the ground that you need it to clear the tree line.

Answer 3

I would try to make the descent so that I would have the flare completed at the threshold of the clearing, at altitude of the tree tops, after passing the trees I would push a bit and loose the rest of the altitude. /this is not necesarilly the best way to do it/
Caution of wind shear and sufficient take off distance available.

another way could be a steep glide slope, at the maximum allowed by the flight manual. However this would require more precise piloting due to the bigger vertical speed. it would also have slightly bigger airspeed over the threshold and a longer landing distance. Positive would be you would see the clearing from apart /the first option mentioned prevents you from seeing the strip - you are landing "blind - unless you are able to see through the nose of your plane/

Answer 4

slip, blip...
speed control is the key it it taught to all pilots very early in their training. This scenario calls for a text book short field landing.
Doing so, losing altitude will take care of its self.
Straight from the POH of an 1985 Cessna 172N
1.Airspeed...65-75 KIAS (flaps up)
2.Wing Flaps..Full Down (30 Degrees)
3. Airspeed...61 kias (until flare )
4. Power..reduce to idle after clearing obstacle (trees)
5. Touchdown.. Main Wheels First
6. Brakes..APPLY HEAVILY
7. Wing flaps retract.

Answer 5

In a small plane and as long as it is permitted on the aircraft operating hand book, you can do a forward slip by lowering the wing that would have a cross wind or if wind is calm it doesn't matter, just lower a wing and apply opposite rudder and be shure to lower the nose to prevent stalling, this sets up a high rate of decent losing altitude rapidly. This does not apply to all aircraft especially swept wing aircraft.

Answer 6

well try to decrease your throtthe by upto 20 to 50 percent then deploy spoilers apply 20 degrees flaps as a safety measure so you'll not crash by the way if you have a S flight Sim Program. By the way heres a safer way:

get your present altitude and then multiply it by 3 thus you have to get the altitude as to when yopu are to descend. for example at a pressure Altitude of 330 (FL 330) is 99 thus 99miles away from your Airport you should have descended at around 10 thousand feet.

Answer 7

A" pancake" landing.
Hard to do w/ modern airplanes that have high stall speeds.
Older planes that had high lift wings & low stall speeds could get away with it whether they had flaps or not.
Come in low & slow &, cut power nose up to "stall" then ...splat.
Same principle w/ more modern types ,only scarier.

Answer 8

The forward slip has been used to steepen descent long before flaps were installed on aircraft. Simply add rudder one way and aileron the other way, the more you add, the steeper the descent.

Answer 9

Getting close to stalling it would help lose altitude and I also think my dad turned the rudder to one side to lose speed also

Answer 10

Well depends on the aircraft. would loose to much until i know i was clear of the last treeline. But you show have your
flaps already extend throttle idle and drop..

Ive seen 727,s land and take of on dirt on the side of mountains on very short runways