I have been having this discussion with my powered airplane flight instructor. In Arizona. Is the desert with shrubs or a plowed field preferred for an emergency off airport landing?
Land on desert or fields in Arizona
- Thread starter PeterNSteinmetz
- Start date
My first inclination is to go with a plowed field, ideally parallel to the plowed direction. A plowed field will have had rocks removed and be evened out for tractors to move over. None of that is true of virgin terrain having shrubs, even when the shrubs are not collision hazards.
fcalbright
New member
IMO it's difficult to have a firm answer to this one. A plowed field should be rock-free and reasonably flat (i.e., no arroyos). However, plowed fields are softer which could lead to landing gears digging in and going inverted. Open desert will probably provide a firmer surface. However, there can be obstacles unseen from altitude. And, arroyos or washes could be disastrous. On the whole, I'd prefer landing parallel to the furrows on a plowed field. I guess the underlying question is what's within gliding distance?
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