Landing flare
Encyclopedia
The landing flare is a maneuver or stage during the landing
Landing
thumb|A [[Mute Swan]] alighting. Note the ruffled feathers on top of the wings indicate that the swan is flying at the [[Stall |stall]]ing speed...

 of an aircraft. The nose of the plane is raised, slowing the descent rate, and the proper attitude is set to prepare for touchdown. In parachuting
Parachuting
Parachuting, also known as skydiving, is the action of exiting an aircraft and returning to earth with the aid of a parachute. It may or may not involve a certain amount of free-fall, a time during which the parachute has not been deployed and the body gradually accelerates to terminal...

, the landing flare is the part of the parachute landing fall
Parachute Landing Fall
A parachute landing fall is a safety technique that allows a parachutist to land safely and without injury. The technique is performed by paratroopers and novice recreational parachutists when using round parachutes deployed by static line....

 preceding ground contact, and is executed about 15 feet (5 m) above ground. For a helicopter
Helicopter
A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by one or more engine-driven rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forwards, backwards, and laterally...

 landing, the landing flare is a maneuver or stage in which rotation speed and lift are increased just prior to touchdown.

Use of the term

In 1922, a "landing flare" was an aerial candle
Candle
A candle is a solid block or cylinder of wax with an embedded wick, which is lit to provide light, and sometimes heat.Today, most candles are made from paraffin. Candles can also be made from beeswax, soy, other plant waxes, and tallow...

 attached to a parachute and used for landing an airplane in the dark. The flare burned for less than 4 minutes and the candle power was about 40,000.

In 1942, the U.S. National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics
The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics was a U.S. federal agency founded on March 3, 1915 to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958 the agency was dissolved, and its assets and personnel transferred to the newly created National Aeronautics and...

 stated about a pilot and the landing flare, "...his task is to achieve, if possible, zero vertical velocity at
ground contact by choosing some instant at which to start the landing flare..."

Jet airplane landing flare

The Airplane Flying Handbook (2011) written by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
Federal Aviation Administration
The Federal Aviation Administration is the national aviation authority of the United States. An agency of the United States Department of Transportation, it has authority to regulate and oversee all aspects of civil aviation in the U.S...

, in describing the landing flare for jet airplanes, says:

"The flare is initiated by
increasing the pitch attitude just enough to reduce the
sink rate to 100 – 200 feet per minute when the landing
gear is approximately 15 feet above the runway
surface. In most jet airplanes, this will require a pitch
attitude increase of only 1° to 3°. The thrust is
smoothly reduced to idle as the flare progresses."

External links

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