CFI Central Pilot Proficiency

Practice Crosswind Landings Whenever You Can

Since most airports are designed with runways aligned into prevailing winds, many pilots don’t get much work with crosswind takeoffs and landings.

Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 08:38 PM ET

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A red and white windsock. [Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

Crosswind landings pose a significant challenge in aviation, frequently contributing to accidents due to pilots' limited practice and the decreased effectiveness of flight controls at lower speeds.
Pilots typically employ either the crab method (maintaining a wind-corrected ground track until just before touchdown) or the sideslip method (aligning the aircraft with the runway and banking into the wind) to counteract drift, often utilizing a combination of both.
It is crucial for pilots to determine the crosswind component, understand their aircraft's demonstrated crosswind capabilities, and be prepared to execute a go-around if control cannot be maintained safely through the approach and landing.

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“How are your crosswind landings?”

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Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.