Safely landing a large commercial passenger jet without training is virtually impossible, according

Safely landing a large commercial passenger jet without training is virtually impossible, according to Ruud Stegers, chairman of the Vereniging Nederlandse Verkeersvliegers (VNV), following an incident last week on a Flydubai flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv where the copilot attacked the pilot. While YouGov data from 2023 shows that 50 percent of American men and 20 percent of women believe they could land a passenger plane in an emergency, aviation experts emphasize that manual landings by untrained individuals are completely unfeasible.

The Complex Mechanics of a Commercial Aircraft Landing

The situation in the cockpit shifted dramatically last week during the Flydubai flight when passengers had to overpower an attacking copilot before two off-duty pilots intervened to land the aircraft safely. Yet, VNV chairman Ruud Stegers stated that a safe landing requires far more than simply pointing an aircraft toward a runway. A landing represents the exact moment where altitude, speed, and approach angle must align simultaneously.

Commercial jets approach runways at speeds around 250 kilometers per hour. Runways for large passenger aircraft are about 45 to 60 meters in width. Piloting the aircraft down requires precise control over flaps and the landing gear, each bound by speed limits. Pilot Dennis Hooijenga explained that everything converges during the final descent, making manual landings volstrekt kansloos for anyone without professional preparation.

Automated Landings Require Multiple Actions and Ground Support

Modern commercial aircraft possess the technical capability to perform automatic landings under the right conditions, provided the aircraft remains intact and both onboard and ground infrastructure function properly. Stegers noted that a passenger might manage a landing with good instructions. Air traffic control could theoretically guide a novice through the sequence step by step over the radio.

Executing an automated landing involves far more than pushing a single button. Hooijenga pointed out that roughly ten actions must be performed. Assuming an untrained passenger can simply trigger an automated landing system is a misconception.

Survival Depends on Contact with Air Traffic Control

When an untrained person ends up alone in a cockpit during a crisis, survival depends on a specific sequence of actions. Stegers outlined the necessary steps starting with asking if anyone on board has flight experience. The next priority involves trying to establish contact with air traffic control. The individual must rely on ground controllers to talk them through reducing speed, selecting flaps, and managing the landing gear.

Training cabin crew to land commercial aircraft is not a realistic solution, according to Stegers, due to the complexity of flight operations. Instead, the primary safeguard remains the presence of two pilots in the cockpit to ensure redundancy if one becomes incapacitated.

Looking toward future technical developments, Hooijenga pointed to small aviation where emergency buttons can automate multiple flight tasks. These systems can autonomously contact air traffic control, assess conditions, and locate a suitable airport. Integrating this type of automated emergency button into larger commercial fleets offers a more realistic path forward for handling extreme cockpit incapacitation events.