Most lessons learned in this column arise from personal experiences in airplanes weighing less than 12,500 pounds. But every once in a while, pilots flying big airplanes weighing 870,000 pounds or more have embarrassing moments that are worth sharing too.
My two first officers and I were flying a routine leg in a Boeing 747-400 from Honolulu to Tokyo’s Narita International Airport. It was a pretty day westbound over the Pacific chasing the afternoon sun. Upon arrival in the Narita terminal area, we were assigned Runway 16L, which is significantly shorter than 16R but more than adequate for a relatively light 747. The first officer occupying the right seat was the flying pilot and made a routine, albeit slightly firm, landing in consideration of the runway length.
