Landing a B-29

Landing visually, hand flying, is not all that difficult. One crosses the fence at a reasonable speed, reduces power, flares, and lets the plane settle.

However, it is a perishable skill. If one does not do it regularly, you can get rusty. The danger today, with so many instrument approach aids is that a pilot may become real rusty at doing it all by eyeball and the seat of his pants. This sometimes is required and there have been accidents in commercial planes because the pilot was very rusty at actually hand flying the plane.
 
Landing is easy, ....... landing so you can use the plane again is more difficult. In 50 years of flying, I never left one "up there."
 
Landing visually, hand flying, is not all that difficult. One crosses the fence at a reasonable speed, reduces power, flares, and lets the plane settle.

However, it is a perishable skill. If one does not do it regularly, you can get rusty. The danger today, with so many instrument approach aids is that a pilot may become real rusty at doing it all by eyeball and the seat of his pants. This sometimes is required and there have been accidents in commercial planes because the pilot was very rusty at actually hand flying the plane.

Asiana 214 was a case in point. I suspect the captain never did clean any rust out of his pants since parking his behind in the big iron...
 
One has to wonder how they managed that without them in this day and age. :)

Grizz

It's why any professional airman worth his salt will use his spare time soaring, doing aerobatics, and/or bouncing in the bush so they keep that keen sense of what the air does around them.
Marvin Renslow didn't have that innate sense, and should not have been allowed to captain Colgan 3407.
Lloyd Sims was my neighbour when he was chief pilot at Barrick Gold. He'd fly a Gulfstream G4 all over the world.
But when he got off shift, he'd hop in his Pitts S1A and treat me to an early evening air show at least twice a week.
A true, consummate airman.
 
Asiana 214 was a case in point. I suspect the captain never did clean any rust out of his pants since parking his behind in the big iron...

As with any major accident there are many factors contributing to the outcome. Such as...

"The PM was an experienced 777 captain who was on his first flight as an instructor pilot supervising a trainee captain gaining operating experience."

Looking out the window and hand flying a 777 is still manageable by mere humans. However, some cultures do better than others in these tasks.

Marvin Renslow didn't have that innate sense, and should not have been allowed to captain Colgan 3407.

The Colgan crew was simply incompetent.

It's why any professional airman worth his salt will use his spare time soaring, doing aerobatics, and/or bouncing in the bush so they keep that keen sense of what the air does around them.

There are many professional airman who choose not to go to an airport and get in an airplane on their days off.

The B29 is a neat little show.
 
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