Finding Right Approach Speed Is Essential for Pilots

Hardly a one-speed-fits-all, the correct one to fly varies with landing weight.

Douglas Boyd

Wednesday, July 16, 2025 at 08:00 AM ET

Verified

Edited By:

Travis Tingle

Stable approaches begin by flying the precise speed for the conditions and configurations. [Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

Many general aviation (GA) pilots, including instrument pilots, habitually make "high-energy" approaches with excessive speed, often failing to adjust for lighter aircraft weight, despite stabilized approach training.
This widespread practice significantly increases the risk of landing accidents, aircraft damage, and severe injuries or fatalities, as evidenced by NTSB data showing high-energy landings are a major cause of incidents.
Pilots are encouraged to prioritize flying at appropriate, weight-adjusted approach speeds, practice slow flight to build comfort with lower airspeeds, and consider using angle-of-attack indicators to enhance safety.

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Our training for the instrument ticket focused on flying by reference to instruments, how to shoot approaches, holds, etc. By that point pilots were presumed to have mastered the art of landing, so who needed any more instruction on that? (Or, so the argument goes.).

Your approach speed is an essential precursor to a good landing, even—or, perhaps, especially—for an instrument pilot. More specifically, fast (aka high-energy) approaches, can be requested by ATC and become a trap and possibly lead to a bent airplane or, worse still, a fatal outcome. Let’s start by looking at that trap.