Plane landing

[Atadconfussed]

Trigger warning flying for those that may not be keen … x

Am I being unreasonable to think that the below was a bit concerning / any pilots want to enlighten me?!
have flown a lot when younger / pre children but felt this was different

budget airline flight, approx 300 passengers Boeing 737
landing very wobbly on approach ( think close to runway)
huge bang on landing / touch down landing gear
worst bit!!! Very very intense what felt like attempts to break without slowing …. Loudest reverse thrust noise ever and the cabin shaking so so much
I felt pinned back in my seat and awaited a huge issue!
afterwards everyone was studded … one women crying and a few choice words heard through the cabin….
Thoughts please

I'm afraid I'll have try to de-identify things bit if that's OK.

Started in the RAF a long long time back (so far back the first trainer I flew was the Chipmunk -( that ring a bell?), through training and eventually for some time onto a fighter type that was originally designed for carriers - we didn't do carrier work ourselves but we had some USN carrier folks on exchange so heard all their stories. There was instructing in there at some point and my final job in the mil was instructing instructors how to instruct ....🤔

At that point I finally grew up...🙄went civvie, Long haul, big four engined machine just in time to see Kai Tak a few times before it closed...last job was on one of the big twins...

Hung up the headset a few years back...have to admit professional life was kind - I managed to avoid flying civvie short haul....😄

At Gibraltar the rate is 1 go-around for every 20 approaches. A short runway with only basic approaches available next to a massive rock with weather coming in from the Atlantic…. so it has its challenges 😄

@notimagain Fascinating. Bet you have some amazing stories to tell. (I was also on the big 4 engine thing if QOTS and RHS then but post Kai Tak.)

And V impressive that you were training the trainers in the navy. 😯🎉🥂
Enjoy your retirement. 🏝

@MummyFliesAeroplanes interesting about Innsbruck being captain only and special training. I don’t/can’t/will never fly a plane myself so all my experience is as a slightly nerdy passenger so I am really enjoying all the stories from those who have actually been pilots. I watched a video of landings into Courchevel and apparently that has no go around because of the mountains so that will go on the bucket list should I ever have enough money to get on a private jet! I only really fly to ski so always slightly awkward alpine airports. I have to say though I’ve never flown into/out of there, every year I read about weather causing chaos at Chambery and wonder if it does actually get worse weather than places like Innsbruck or GVA/ZRH or whether it’s just got crap tech in comparison and so can’t manage like they do.

Thanks @TeresaCrowd I’ve had an interesting read about Courchevel. I’d need about 3 times the runway length to land there safely 😆.

Thanks @MummyFliesAeroplanes, really interesting. 1 in 20! 😳

Interesting thread all round. I know a bit more than the norm about flying due to my occupation in a related field, but nowhere near as much as some contributors here.

worst airfield for me was wideawake airfiled, the fellow mil posters should know which one that is!

My worst landing was Orlando in an August storm. Pilot said we he was going to attempt it but we may have to divert.

Landed - hurrah. Then sat on the tarmac for nearly 3 hours with the A/C off with no ground staff allowed out to us because of the lightning. Very uncomfortable with lots of crying children and cabin crew trying to appease 300 hot grumpy pax with limited amounts of water.

@Inyournightgarden ”boeing and airbus (and other manufacturers too but they’re probably the only two you’ve heard of)” to notimagain? 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I have no idea if I actually know her, possibly I do but I don’t need to know that. But from even vague snippets I know that she has probably flown more different types than I ever will. I have flown everything from paragliders to some of the biggest passenger jets btw, with over 25 years experience and well over 10000 hours flying commercial airliners.

Anyway. Who was asking about Chambery? It’s been a long time since I had the dubious pleasure, but from memory it has high terrain on all sides that gives a number of challenges. The approach paths are steeper than for most other airports, and if the weather favours the southerly runway it’s easier to land but because of high terrain at the take off end there is a complex manoeuvre that pilots must be aware of if they encounter a problem on take off in order to avoid crashing into a mountain. The northerly runway allows for an easier departure out over the lake, but there is not a normal Instrument Landing System on this runway because - you guessed it! - the high terrain, so a circling approach is carried out. Both the steeper final approaches and the circling approach require good visibility, which is an issue when most people go to chambery airport in search of snow! The lake and surrounding mountains can also give rise to some strange and difficult weather conditions, including fog in still weather or windshear on windy days. There is a whole lot more stuff going on on even a simple Chambery approach which makes it a decent possibility that you end up in a different airport altogether. For this reason, when I am going skiing, I won’t pick a holiday that flies into Chambery. Not because I don’t have faith in the pilots’ ability, but because I just want to get on holiday without drama! 😆 I’d happily fly there for work, when I just go where I’m told to go. (Within reason!)

@MrJollyLivesNextDoor Orlando can be quite badly affected by storms in the summer. I did a check flight there once, and we wondered if we would end up diverting.

And Oslo Torp!!

You’re not being unreasonable. I absolutely hate flying…. That landing would’ve had me scared out of my mind!

My dad used to have to go on a plane twice a week on business for years - almost always uneventful, just the odd bad weather tale. Except for the one time when there must (I assume) have been something wrong as although they landed they didn’t end up on the runway. He said it was a bit scary but they all were fine and it’s an interesting memory now.

LOL, that's not just an RAF saying...every pilot I've ever known has said it at one point or another (although it may well have originated with the RAF). Goodness knows, my father said it many times. He was Chief Flight Instructor for what was then one of the top 10 private flight schools in the USA. I am sure I said it at least a dozen times back when I had my license.

Rough landings happen. They happen for a LOT of reasons. Bad weather, wind shear, even very high heat can cause rising hot air off of the tarmac, buffeting a plane to some extent....and that's just three reasons out of a couple of dozens.

I'd find it a bit disconcerting but if feels like nothing compared to a flight to Bilbao 30 years ago. At the last minute the plane shot back up in the air and circled the whole airport before re-attempting the landing and did this 3 times before we eventually got down. There was a lot of low cloud in a mountainous area... it was pretty scary.

I know you're all going to take the p* of me, but I have to admit I hate flying. I don't like planes, simples! I've flown once to Portugal and once to New York, and as far as I'm concerned that's enough - this bird is staying firmly on the ground!!

@Jillybloop393

Do you wish you felt more confident about flying? How about doing a fear of flying course?

www.fearlessflyer.easyjet.com/

www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/travel-assistance/flying-with-confidence

flywith.virginatlantic.com/il/en/wellbeing-and-health/flying-without-fear.html

It’s been super interesting reading the comments. I enjoy looking at www.flightradar24.com/50.29,-0.17/4

and planefinder.net

and www.deeside.com/squawk-codes/

and the live arrivals and departures on YouTube 🤓

Hi, MummyFliesAeroplanes. Thanks for the suggestions ..... but no - I haven't any wish in the slightest to feel more confident. That must sound really odd to most of you, but I really don't feel the need. I've got a holiday home in the UK which I use regularly, and just don't feel the need to put myself through the problems of flying. I suppose if a friend was having a hen party abroad, or my new(ish) partner wanted to go away on holiday, I'd probably go ..... but I hope neither situation arises, to be honest 😀

We were glued to Big Jet TV at work that day! My most exciting landing was into Kai Tak, steep and angled approach in between apartment blocks.

I find most planes land heavily and bumpy but I was on a flight from where I live to Edinburgh flying foreign and this particular pilot landed so smoothly. No bumps at all. Never repeated. I wear my seat belt the whole flight.

I'm not a great flyer. I know how it all works but I do know the pilots are there because they pass all the tests and they want to go home as well. Dutch pilot girl on YT Is always a good watch.

Thanks for starting this thread OP. It's been really interesting.