Landing in a field

[z987k]

Yes you can land in a field, you can land on a road, you can land lots of places. Local municipal laws might be a problem and naturally you cannot endanger others. Your average small single and even a lot of light twins can operate just fine off many unimproved surfaces.

However, if you're not running big soft tires, make sure you scout the surface and approach/departure paths first. Thick grass, ruts, gopher holes, and barbed wire fences can ruin your day really fast.

Our company flies King airs and lears off gravel dirt and grass snow. NAC and Alaska fly or flew 737's off of gravel. I can't think of too many airplanes that can't do it. Quite a few you probably shouldn't though.

 

[Dan208B]

As some that's done quite a bit of it, my biggest suggestion is that if the area is accessible from roads, go walk the landing site first. This will cover your butt in several ways - you can say you did it if something goes wrong, and you might see something that makes you decide not to. Fields look flat from the air, and almost never are - there are more often than not holes and bumps. And like someone else said - break a wheel, just get it fixed ASAP and don't tell anyone it happened. Off-airport landings can be a great deal of fun if done properly with the right safety considerations. I recently landed on a beach and got some of the best razor clams I've ever had. 45 minute flight from my house for a great dinner. Good luck!

 

[desertdog71]

We had an all-out discussion about this amongst pilots last season on the road. To solve the problem, I called the Kansas FSDO...

The guy's response?

"We can always get you for careless or reckless operation." It was like he was looking for that! But so as to not be had by a Fed, I prodded further. What about the pilots in Alaska taking off on roads?! What about crop-dusters landing for refueling on country roads?! By asking further, he said that it may NOT be illegal by the books. "BUT," he went on, "if ANYTHING happens (broken wheel, ANY type of property damage), we will surely go after you for careless or reckless operation. No doubt about it."

He said you can always request to have an airport approved on your property. But again, that was NOT what I was asking (I was relentless). So after more questioning, he went further about the crop-dusters. They have to (are supposed to) get the highway patrol involved in EVERY take-off and landing. The police have to block off both sides of the roads for every take-off and landing. Of course, someone will know someone where this is not the case. Exactly.

But he was pretty adamant about not doing the field landing (my grandpa has a farm, and that's what I wanted to do!). Even if it wasn't illegal by the books, if ANYTHING happened, then I could get a lil' record on my flying!

Part 2

At a pilot's request, I called up the New York FSDO.

The answer? "Absolutely, positively NO WAY that you can land in a field, outside of an EMERGENCY." They wouldn't budge one bit. It's always dangerous up there for some reason???

I kid you not.

Did I never take you over to Mike Reed's place and land next to the abandoned railroad tracks by his house? I thought I took all my students over there at one time or another.

 

[Deleted member 21509]

Landed at an abandoned farm in a citabria when I was doing my PPL. Probably some of the most fun I have had in an airplane. It was a learning experience to actually NEED to use short field technique.

 

[Oxman]

And even then.... I heard from one of my CFI's in AZ that he had a friend land on a highway after an engine failure, and the AZ Highway Patrol cited him for an unregistered vehicle on a public road.

Probably in Wickenburg where I got a ticket years ago.