When was the last time you went and practiced landings? Have you ever spent the day doing touch and goes? I have a friend that upon receiving his pilot’s license spent the next couple of months doing circuits, landings and takeoffs. His practice included crosswind landings, three-point stall landings, wheel landings, any and everything that would help him to get to know his new plane better. I remember when I started flying, going to Hillman’s field where I hangered at the time and just doing circuits to try and get my new skills honed. I didn’t look at it as practice; I just thought it was fun. Of course, at the time I could not figure out how to get the plane to land smoothly but I kept trying and it finally came. I think that is the way most of us start and progress as recreational pilots. But if you have been flying for some time, when was the last time you went out and took the time to just practice landings.

Many say that any landing you can walk away from is a good landing, one you can use the plane again is a great one. Not really a great way to judge your skills. Recently a pilot crashed a taildragger in the BC interior. The story is a cross-wind gust caught the plane on touch down and pushed it off the runway. I was not there, and this is not meant to judge but I wonder if he wished he had taken more time for practice.

Do you know the numbers for your plane and check to see how close you are on downwind, base, approach, short final and touchdown? The better you know your plane and numbers the better you will be able to handle any emergency that may arise. Another thought, do you know how your plane performs with the motor off. If you originally started with ultralights you may have shut of the motor at altitude and then flown your ride to touchdown without the help of the motor. I don’t think this is a recommended practice if you are flying a quick sport plane but if you are flying a two stroke you may want to consider this as a practice technique.

When was the last time you did a check ride with an instructor? If you have had your license for a number of years you may have let some bad habits creep in that you are unaware of. This can happen to any of us, and we sometimes become complacent about flying because we fly so much. If you can’t find an instructor, maybe take a fellow club member for a ride and allow comments. In fact, tell the fellow pilots you want comments that may help you improve. Remember to stay safe it may take more than hop in the plane and go. Take some time and go out and practice.