Turnback Failure

A lot of ink and pixels have been spilled over the years about turning back to the departure runway if a singles engine quits right after takeoff. The maneuver is usually referred to as a turnback, and was the topic of our January 2006 article, Turnbacks Reconsidered.

Joseph E. (Jeb) Burnside

Thursday, August 10, 2017 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

The Equator Aircraft team includes the company’s chief designer and CEO, Tomas Brødreskift along with pilot Rein Inge Hoff and team leader Øystein Solheim-Aune. Equator Aircraft

Key Takeaways:

A simulator-based study found that pilots attempting a turnback to the departure runway after an engine failure shortly after takeoff had significantly lower success rates (43% to 80%) compared to straight-ahead landings (100%).
A fatal accident involving a pilot attempting a turnback after a perceived emergency reinforced these findings, with the NTSB determining the cause was failure to maintain airspeed during the turn, leading to a stall and spin.
The investigation found no mechanical malfunctions or fire in the accident aircraft, despite the pilot's report.
Both the study and the accident case conclude that maintaining control and landing straight ahead in favorable terrain is the more survivable option during an emergency shortly after takeoff.

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A lot of ink and pixels have been spilled over the years about turning back to the departure runway if a single’s engine quits right after takeoff. The maneuver is usually referred to as a turnback, and was the topic of our January 2006 article, “Turnbacks Reconsidered”.

In it, Rich Stowell related the results of a simulator-based study of 20 pilots flying scenarios calling for engine failure shortly after takeoff. Successfully handing the emergency meant, among other parameters, the rate of descent at touchdown could not exceed 500 fpm, and bank angle had to be within five degrees of wings-level below 100 feet agl.