✈️ Aviation Brief — Issue #69
Weekly insights for student pilots and the instructors who train them.
THIS WEEK'S TOPIC
IA.V.E — Landing from Approach (Instrument Rating ACS)
1. ACS STANDARDS SUMMARY
The ACS requires the applicant to demonstrate a safe transition from an instrument approach to landing, including timely configuration changes, checklist completion, and a stabilized approach. The pilot must maintain coordination and positive aircraft control while transitioning from instruments to visual references, touch down within the first third of the runway or the designated touchdown zone, and use proper crosswind correction. If the landing cannot be made safely, the pilot must promptly execute a missed approach as published or directed.
2. THREE COMMON STUDENT MISTAKES
- Continuing the approach with an unstable airspeed or descent rate below 500 feet AGL instead of going around, often due to “get-there-itis” or fixation on completing the approach.
- Late or abrupt configuration changes (flaps or trim) after breaking out, causing ballooning or floating that results in landing long or hard.
- Poor or delayed transition from instruments to outside visual references, leading to either over-controlling or drifting off centerline in the final 200 feet.
3. CFI PRO TIP
Teach students to verbalize a “stabilization check” at 500 feet AGL on every approach: “Airspeed ___ , descent rate ___ , config set, runway aligned.” If any item is off, they must immediately call “going around.” This habit builds the discipline examiners want to see and prevents the most common unstabilized approaches.
4. SAFETY SPOTLIGHT
NTSB and FAA data continue to show that approach-and-landing accidents account for roughly 30–35 % of all general aviation fatalities. Many involve continued flight below minimums or unstabilized approaches in instrument conditions followed by a rushed transition to visual cues—exactly the scenario this ACS task is designed to prevent.
5. DID YOU KNOW
Even in visual conditions, the FAA recommends treating every approach as a stabilized instrument approach until you are within 500 feet of the runway; this single habit dramatically reduces the risk of the most common landing-phase errors.
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