Forward Slip to Landing Tutorial

Intro: I decided to complete my second how-to tutorial for different flying maneuvers. This one will be covering the forward slip to landing. This maneuver is great for if you need to lose a lot of altitude fast without gaining airspeed.

Forward Slip: If you have read my crosswind landing tutorial, I covered the crab maneuver for crosswind landings. Crabbing looks just like a forward slip, but a crab doesn't require any pilot input other than to point the plane into the wind and from there the plane will be pointed at an angle away from the runway but retain original track over the ground. The forward slip is the same idea, but it requires full pilot input to do it. The input is simple; give full rudder input either right or left (sometimes a little less than full input depending on the sensitvity of the rudder on different aircraft), and opposite aileron to keep the plane tracking in the right direction over the ground and prevent it from continuing to yaw away from the runway (left rudder with right aileron, or right rudder with left aileron).

In other words, the aileron holds the bank, and the opposite rudder keeps the nose of the airplane in the opposite direction. The plane is moving straight ahead, but is angled sideways. In a sense, while in a forward slip, the side of the fuselage that is facing forward is acting as an air brake. It keeps the plane slowed down and allows the pilot to dive without gaining airspeed.

Once you are at the threshold and are ready to flare and land, remove the forward slip to prevent the plane from landing sideways and causing excessive side-loading on the landing gear to touch down normally. That's all there is to it!

Video: Now, take a look at my forward slip video. If there is any confusion in my explanations, my hope is that the video will clear it up, but if not, please feel free to ask away. I hope this tutorial helps!