It always works for me

I personally tend to fly in diagonal to the runway, use side slip effect to take me into ground effect where i straighten and role into the wing down approach and fly wheel on before flaring. This said that is a very generalised statement there and also in an aircraft with a massive amount of aileron and rudder authority.

I think it can be a dangerous head space to get in, the attitude of "this is THE way to do it".

There is a massive amount of collected knowlage and experience here, try a bit of what everyone has to say, and then when it comes to a crosswind landing, use whatever method feels right for the situation. Dont fly a method to the ground, fly the plane

porterjet wrote:After a lifetime of sitting at the end of the runway waiting for a 737 to land I'm convinced most new airline pilots use the "oh Jesus" method of landing. Starting at about 30 feet the Captain retards the throttles to idle, pulls back on the yoke 3 inches and closes his/her eyes. When the Co-pilot yells "oh Jesus" pull the yoke back another 3 inches. Other exclamations may be used in lieu of "oh Jesus".

I'm Jewish, don't know if that would help. I'm more likely to yell "OH SHIT"

I think "oh shit" is the time-honored pilot's prayer, regardless whether Christian, Jew, or what have you. That's certainly what I said when my engine threw a rod 10 years ago at low altitude. But I've never had to use that for crosswind landings, and here's why.

When I passed my private checkride 41 years ago, the only real complaint that the DE had was my lack of any noticeable crosswind technique. Several of my landings were on 7 at Merrill Field, and there was a monster crosswind component of maybe 3-4 knots. (that's 3 to 4) Every single landing was whopper jawed, testing the strength of the 150's gear. He knew I was leaving the USAF soon, going home to Laramie, and he told me to get some good crosswind training when I got there.

Within days of arriving at Laramie in July, I was paired with an instructor. I confessed my failings, and we started working on it--but believe it or not, there was hardly any wind for the next few weeks. Shocker! Then one Sunday with the wind noticeably howling, my instructor called and asked if I was free that day--he said it was a perfect day to learn crosswinds. I asked,
"Why, what's the wind doing?"
"It's blowing straight down 21 at 25 gusting to 30."
"How's that going to help me learn crosswinds?"
"We're not going to use 21, only 12 and 30."
Gulp!

We took off on 21, then turned downwind for 30. As I came around on base and turned final, I was so far off of being able to land that I knew it couldn't be done. So my instructor took control, and he brought it around. First, he did a wider downwind, and then instead of a squared base, he barely lifted the wing before turning final. He crabbed down final, transitioned to a slip, and landed. He set it down on the centerline, brought it to a stop, and said, "Now it's your turn."

To make a long story short, we did about a dozen landings that day, half on 30, half on 12. There was no one else flying that day--no one that crazy. By the end of the day, I was dog-tired, but I knew how to land a C-172 in a 30 knot direct crosswind.

The basic technique I was taught, and what I later taught as a CFI and CFII, is first to be aware of the effect of the wind on the size of the pattern. It's not good to be blown past the extended centerline of the runway--too easy to get into a dangerous attempt at lining up again. So if the wind is blowing from the pattern side, widen the downwind to give yourself more room to make the base to final turn. It's not nearly as critical if the wind is blowing from the non-pattern side.

Then minimize the use of flaps. If the runway is long enough, use no flaps at all. If you need to slow down a little because the runway is short, use 10 or 20 but not full flaps.

Let the airplane crab down final. With practice, you'll learn what it looks like as you are getting close to the maximum capability of the airplane for when you transition to a slip. Slipping all the way down final is uncomfortable for passengers, it's hard to maintain a consistent pitch and airspeed even if properly trimmed, and it doesn't prove anything, since the wind at 3 or 400' AGL won't be the same as it is at 5 or 10' AGL.

Use the same airspeed that you normally should use (1.3 Vso), plus half the gust factor (e.g., if it's 25G30, the gust factor is 5, so add roughly 2 or 3 knots, no more).

When you are about where you normally flare, start the flare and straighten out the crab at the same time, and at the same time add sufficient aileron that the airplane stays lined up with the runway. If it's gusty, the wind direction will also change some, so you must be quick on both the yoke and the rudder pedals, to keep the airplane from drifting sideways and still aligned longitudinally with the runway. It's a job, for sure.

Expect to touch down on the upwind tire, and only moments later both the other main and the nose gear will be down. Plant the airplane solidly much like you do for a short field landing--not hard, but this is not a time to grease it and hold the nose wheel off, but you still don't want to put the nose gear down first.

As you slow after touching down, add in full aileron into the wind and use enough downwind rudder to stay straight. It may take a little downwind brake as well. Once slowed to taxi speed, I routinely push forward on the yoke during taxiing into the wind, to put more weight on the nosegear, which makes it less likely to weathervane while taxiing. And take it slow, really slow.

If you must taxi downwind, keep the yoke forward--position the controls as the diagram is shown in the Cessna POH. I can think of many winds which were so strong that I avoided taxiing downwind by taking off from an intersection.

FWIW, done properly, a slant tail 172 will run out of rudder at about a 30 knot direct crosswind; a slant tail 182 can handle maybe 3-4 knots more, but that's about it, without skidding on the runway. Both have pretty strong main gear, but they're not designed for much sideload, so don't push it beyond your own capabilities. I saw a 172 at FNL a few years ago which was landed in a crab, and one of the main gear folded--and it wasn't supposed to be a retractable.

All this seems like a lot, but as you do it more and more, it becomes as automatic as most of the other things you already do well.

Cary

I use the slip method most of the way down final. I like to get established early to test how much rudder is available and to confirm I have enough. Often I won't have enough rudder to maintain centerline at 100' AGL. But as I come down through the gradient I get enough to land. This way I have plenty of time to estimate just how close to unlandable the wind is before I touch down. When it is dicey I get on the brakes hard as soon as I have both mains on the ground. During the initial side load on the down wind wheel I take advantage of the increased braking force to slow down and control weather vaning. If something doesn't work out I have most of the energy dissipated quickly. Mike

Bounce all you want, just keep it straight.

Bounce all you want, just keep it straight.