Can someone be talked through landing a plane?

It’s possible, but it would be extremely challenging. Without expert guidance, a panicky, untrained person could easily doom an aircraft with one wrong move.

Could an untrained person land a plane?

For a completely untrained person it would be hard and would take hours of practice, so a lot would depend how much fuel the plane had. In theory it is possible, as long as you have a long runway, because you can land it on a really shallow glide slope, which takes a lot of potential problems out the equation.

How difficult is it to land a commercial plane?

Landing an aeroplane would be very hard for a complete novice, he says. A longer runway would give the pilot a better chance of a successful landing, he says. “Humberside has quite a long runway, which is important. Anything shorter than a kilometre would be difficult for a novice.”

Can a modern airliner land itself?

Can a passenger jet land by itself? Yes a plane can land by itself using a system that is often referred to as “autoland”. The pilots can program the auto-pilot to carry out the landing automatically whilst the pilots monitor the aircraft. However there are limitations as to when the autoland system can be used.

Can a passenger land a commercial plane?

There is no record of a talk-down landing of a large commercial aircraft. There have, however, been incidents where qualified pilots travelling as passengers or flight attendants on commercial flights have taken the co-pilot’s seat to assist the pilot.

Do planes have autoland?

Yes a plane can land by itself using a system that is often referred to as “autoland”. The pilots can program the auto-pilot to carry out the landing automatically whilst the pilots monitor the aircraft. Automatic landings probably account for less then 1\% of all landings on commercial flights.

Why do airline pilots have to talk to people on the ground?

That is part of their duties, actually, and some airlines even give them basic training so they have a fair chance when they are in contact with someone on the ground who can talk them through all steps. Edit: Thanks to some commenters for pointing out that the question also includes GA traffic.

How hard is it to land a plane with a new pilot?

Much depends on the constitution of the new pilot: Some people will simply panic and not be able to follow even the best remote help. But if they keep their cool, a good landing (meaning one you can walk away from) should be possible. I had been in the right seat of a Lancair once and the pilot turned the plane over to me on final.

How hard is it to learn to fly a plane alone?

Landing an aeroplane would be very hard for a complete novice, he says. Normally, a learner pilot would spend at least 20 hours before attempting to fly solo, and even then, the first time a student goes out alone is nerve-racking for the teacher.

Why do airplanes turn off their engines before landing?

Stables says that as a final precaution he would instruct the pilot to use the mixture lever to shut off the plane’s engine just before landing. This is to lessen the risk of fire. If a fuel line is broken on impact with the ground, the plane is less likely to ignite if the engine is empty.