Learn how to make an emergency landing in a flight simulator: control, glide speed, site choice, checks, ATC, approach and touchdown.
To perform an emergency landing in a flight simulator, keep control, set the aircraft’s published glide or safe speed, select the nearest suitable landing area, run the emergency checklist, declare the emergency, configure only when landing is assured, then touch down under control and stop. Aircraft control always comes before troubleshooting.
In our Aviation & Real-World Flying guidance, we use the same priority taught in actual flying: aviate, navigate, communicate. The exact speeds, memory actions and switch positions must come from the checklist or operating handbook for the simulated aircraft; a generic restart flow can make the situation worse.
This sequence primarily covers fixed-wing aircraft. A helicopter power loss requires prompt entry into the manufacturer’s autorotation procedure rather than establishing a fixed-wing best glide.
What changes with the type of emergency?
The nature of the failure determines whether you should glide, divert with power or land immediately.
| Emergency | Immediate priority | Landing decision |
|---|---|---|
| Total engine failure | Lower the nose as required and establish published best-glide speed | Choose a site comfortably within glide range |
| Partial power or rough running | Maintain a controllable speed and use the aircraft checklist | Prefer the nearest suitable airport, but keep an off-airport option |
| Fire or serious smoke | Run the fire checklist without losing control | Land as soon as possible; time matters more than airport convenience |
| Gear or flap problem | Confirm the indication and avoid repeated, distracting troubleshooting | Use a long runway and the abnormal-landing procedure |
| Medical or precautionary diversion | Keep the aircraft stable and reduce workload | Divert early to a suitable airport rather than waiting for the situation to deteriorate |
Multi-engine aircraft need type-specific handling. Maintain directional control and the published single-engine speed; identify, verify and secure an engine only through the proper procedure. Applying a single-engine piston restart flow to every aircraft is unsafe.
Emergency landing procedure
- Control the aircraft. Disconnect an unhelpful autopilot, correct excessive bank and set the appropriate pitch attitude. After complete power loss, trim for the published best-glide speed. Do not pull up to preserve altitude: that trades the remaining airspeed for a possible stall.
- Turn towards a reachable landing area. Consider altitude, wind, terrain and the aircraft’s actual glide performance. Moving-map distance alone can be misleading because an airport shown nearby may be upwind, behind high terrain or beyond the aircraft’s glide range.
- Run memory actions, then the checklist. Attempt a restart only if altitude and the nature of the emergency allow it. Fuel selectors, pumps, ignition controls and propeller actions vary substantially between aircraft, so use the checklist supplied with that model.
- Declare the emergency. Contact ATC when doing so will not interfere with control or site selection. Set transponder code
7700if appropriate and time permits. - Plan a simple approach. Keep the landing area in sight and use a recognisable circuit or constant visual reference. Avoid tight, low-level turns; increased load factor raises stall speed and leaves little room for recovery.
- Delay drag until landing is assured. Extend flaps and landing gear according to the aircraft’s emergency checklist. Best-glide speed is not necessarily the correct final-approach speed, so transition to the published emergency or normal approach speed at the proper point.
- Touch down under control. Aim beyond the near boundary, keep the wings level and reduce speed without forcing the aircraft onto the surface. Use the appropriate braking and steering technique, then carry out any shutdown or evacuation actions required by the checklist.
For a focused Microsoft Flight Simulator exercise, our guide to setting up and handling an MSFS 2024 engine failure covers the failure-specific sequence in more detail.
How do you choose an emergency landing site?
Choose the safest site you can reach with a margin, not the most attractive site that requires stretching the glide.
- An airport is normally best when it is clearly within range and does not require crossing hazardous terrain. Prefer a longer runway with a favourable wind over a shorter runway chosen only because it is closer.
- An open field should be long, relatively level and free of buildings, trees, ditches and power lines. Landing into wind usually reduces groundspeed, although surface slope and major obstacles may outweigh a small wind disadvantage.
- A road is rarely as clear as it appears from altitude. Traffic, signs, wires, lamp posts, bridges and central barriers can make a field the safer choice.
- Water requires the aircraft’s ditching checklist. Gear position, flap setting and the best direction relative to wind and swell depend on the aircraft and conditions.
After an engine failure shortly after take-off, lower the nose immediately and select an area within the reachable sector ahead. A hurried 180-degree turn back to the runway can produce a stall or spin; attempt it only when adequate altitude and a practised, aircraft-specific turnback plan make it viable.
What should you tell ATC?
A useful emergency call gives ATC the problem, position and plan without becoming a long cockpit distraction.
Transmit on the frequency already in use, or use 121.5 if necessary: “MAYDAY” three times, callsign, nature of the emergency, position, altitude, intentions and number of people aboard. Simulator ATC may not recognise the full spoken format, but rehearsing it still builds the correct workload order. Our explanation of using the Microsoft Flight Simulator ATC panel and radio services covers the available in-sim controls.
Which mistakes ruin simulated emergency landings?
The most common failures happen before the flare, usually through lost airspeed or poor site selection.
- Fixating on the restart: pause troubleshooting long enough to confirm speed, attitude and landing-site position.
- Stretching the glide: lowering the nose preserves control; raising it below best-glide speed increases sink and stall risk.
- Adding flaps or gear too early: hold drag-producing configuration until the selected surface is assured.
- Changing sites repeatedly: reassess when new information demands it, but do not abandon a reachable field for a marginal airport.
- Forcing a normal circuit: adapt the pattern to the available altitude instead of flying away from a safe landing area to reproduce standard geometry.
- Ignoring the rollout: soft ground, crosswind and failed systems can make stopping harder than touching down. Review our braking and directional-control techniques after landing before practising confined sites.
How should you practise emergency landings?
Begin with a known failure in daylight, visual weather and ample altitude, then reduce the warning and available height as your control improves.
Practise the tasks separately before combining them: best-glide control, landing-site selection, checklist use, radio work and touchdown. Once the sequence is reliable, introduce wind, unfamiliar terrain, partial power and failures soon after take-off. Use real time for the final attempts; pausing hides workload and decision-making errors.
Check that assistance settings are not automatically managing the engine, mixture, rudder or landing configuration. Add-on aircraft may also model failures differently from the simulator’s general failure menu. For better results under pressure, first practise flare, centreline and touchdown control without the emergency workload.