Some Interesting Things to Know about Plane Landing
Have you ever thought that how tricky it is to land an aircraft safely?
Everyone finds a great level of comfort in air travel but there are a lot of technicalities that yet remain unknown to us. For example, we yet don’t know the logic behind the dimming lights of the flights while takeoff or landing. We are also not aware that why we pull down the window screens.
Aren’t these questions already made you curious about reasons behind some of these rules followed on the aircraft? Get introduced to some facts about flight and just blow your mind away.
Planes May Point Upwards while Actually Flying Downwards
The nose of a plane always points upwards despite the aircraft is in level flight. This why; walking towards the front of the plane is harder than walking its back. As per a report, the nose of the airplanes is higher than the tail while landing. It is so because their back wheels are usually closer to the runway.
Runways have Incredibly Complex Illuminations
The lighting system of the runway creates a unique pattern. In fact, they can start hundreds of meters prior to the runway itself. The red and white lights that you see are known as Precision Approach Path Indicators that indicate the pilots about their position with respect to the perfect vertical path from the sky to the runway. 3 white lights and 1 red light indicate that the aircraft is somewhat above the ideal path while 3 red lights and one white show that the plane is a little below it. Two red and two white lights indicate that it is the ideal path.
Just Seconds Prior to Landing, Planes Go through Decision Process
Immediately when an aircraft is going to land, pilots go through the tem called ''decision altitude'' or ''decision height.'' On this point, if they can see the runway and its lights, they can continue the landing. Otherwise, they start preparing to go up again and perform a go-around.
Did You Feel Resting on the Ground Just before Landing?
This phenomenon is known as the ''ground effect'', which is generated by the wings of aircraft when they are close to the surface. Pilots feel many times that they are floating above the ground surface. It is mainly witnessed when the ground disrupts the wingtip vortices (circular patterns of rotating air left behind a wing as it generates lift). The result is a lower induced drag occurring due to a moving object redirecting the airflow coming to it.
