I am 71 & have been flying since my teens. I even got a pilot's license in my 20s & flew my father's single engine Cessna. For me, take off has always been the best because that is the departure from the norm for our earthbound species. However, I learned that from the pilot's perspective (exempting today's highly automated planes that do almost everything for the pilot), landing was more challenging & therefore more satisfying. As far as commercial travel, I have flown all my life as a computer software consultant, covering just about every place from Hong Kong to Doha, Qatar. Flying was always great fun until Ronald Reagan began deregulating airlines. Today, flying is an ordeal, from the hours you spend getting to the airport & waiting in the security lines to planes with cramped seats, no meal or beverage service, the knowledge that, to save money, maintenance is less frequent & many parts are counterfeit. Airlines overload popular routes & ignore less profitable ones. You can spend hours at an airline's hub because most flights now are not non-stop, but go from departure place to hub to arrival place. One airline, which shall remain nameless, has a hub in the midwest. Because they control the great majority of flights into or out of the hub, a flight going from JFK to LAX not only stops in the hub, but charges more for people flying to the hub than for the full flight. You book through at the cheaper rate, but get off at the hub (with carry-on) to save money.
2
So Mark,
Beginning, Middle, Endings, and Wholeness. We are in Gestalt Theory territory.
Lovely piece. Thank you.
2
Loved this piece. Reflecting on beginnings and endings brought about fond memories encompassing the joys of living a life.
Thank you Mark.
2
What a wonderful article! my husband is in love with anything that flies, birds, butterflies, and yes airplanes. He builds model airplanes several times per year and flies them at local airfields with a local club. Yes, he never lowers the window covering on the plane, picks the window seat, and is always photographing as we either take off or land. I prefer taking off, it's always exciting, the feeling of elevating thousands of feet in such short period of time. I never had a bad experience with flying such as turbulence and such, my husband has, but that hasn't affected his enthusiasm for airplanes.
1
After reading this poetic essay, I turned to NOVA's documentary at PBS.com, "Apollo's Daring Mission: Apollo astronauts and engineers tell the inside story of the first manned mission to the moon."
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/apollos-daring-mission/
After Apollo 8 astronauts completed their first-ever orbits of the Moon, they faced “the critical moment that overshadows everything else: coming home."
The engine to the command ship had just endured eight orbits of the Moon, temps ranging from 250 above, to 250 below. Would the single, no-backup engine hold or crack when restart was attempted. Would the firing and thrust work to kick them back toward Earth, or would they remain in lunar orbit for—
The engine fired, and we all know they made it back, wherefore the Apollo 8 astros would surely vote with pilot-poet Mark Vanhoenacker: O yea, sure enough, the chief joy is coming home.
2
Thank you!
Your beautiful essay brought back so many precious memories of my own romance with flying.
From my first flight with my farmer-neighbor taking off in a Cessna from his grass airstrip, to my career as a US Navy carrier pilot the romance continued.
Now retired, I say that flying is easily the most demanding and rewarding activities I have ever experienced. The preflight planning, the apprehensions around night takeoffs, thrills of getting safely airborne, the flight to "feet dry" over enemy territory, getting in and getting out with a successful completion of flight objectives, the post-flight debriefings at the bar; it all added up to minute-by-minute memories that I still have today 47 years after my last cruise.
Finally, it is the camaraderie and lifelong friendships developed among our squadron pilots that is most meaningful to me.
Even though I had one more successful takeoff than I had landings!
And by the way, I gave my farmer-pilot friend a special flyby on one of my last flights in my Navy jet. I had to pay him back, afterall!
Thank you Mr. Vanhoenacker for your writings. You helped me express some long held and precious feelings about the joy and romance of flying.
53
Landings, definitely.
While never a licensed pilot (I washed out of the Navy's AVROC program back in the 80's - the Navy doesn't like high blood pressure), I've flown a lot of planes. I grew up near a grass strip runway in the woods of the Ozarks. I've flown more Cessnas and Beechcrafts than I can count. I once flew in an experimental re-build of a Piper-Cub that had no doors! My brief stint in a Navy T-34 Mentor was a blast. My first flight was in a Ford Tri-Motor!
Planes take off pretty much on their own. Keep 'em pointed straight, know V1 and V2, when to rotate, and they just do their thing. But landings? It is like moving into another dimension. As the author so succinctly put it, "...the sky is big and a runway is less so."
When I bought my apartment here in Queens, I was standing on the balcony with the agent when a 737 whooshed overhead at less than two thousand feet. She said, "You can underbid the asking price because of that."
So I did. My apartment is in a huge complex directly underneath the last phase of the LGA RWY 31 Expressway Visual Approach, which is a VERY difficult pattern.
And it is amazing. I always judge their approaches, taking note of their airspeed, pitch, and throttle application. Sometimes I do an LSO thing, guiding them onto what I think is the right flight path. It is fun to explain things like "yaw" to visitors.
My thanks to Mr. Vanhoenacker for his moving descriptions of the miracles of flight...
47
Taking off is sort of exciting, the obvious sheer energy expended to loft 300 tons of a machine and its cargo is awesome.
Landing, in the sense that it means the imminent termination of an experience which is at best irksome and at worst grindingly unpleasant, obviously has an even more upbeat quality to it.
I watch the takeoff progress carefully; the airplane is heavy and there's not much hope to stop it if some reason to abort appears.
On landing, unless the weather is right at minimums, I feel safer; the engines have been tested successfully for a few hours, the fuel tanks are nearly empty, the computer can handle it.
10
@SFS
On a fight - out of Minneapolis on some miserable wintery day, pilot communications with the tower were open for all to listen to if you wished to plug in. My friend and I gave each other a look after the pilot informed the tower that there was a truck had pulled onto the runway, the one were were moving down; the terse response was "he'll move." Apparently he did.
7
As a pilot for 42 years, I enjoyed reading Mr. Vanhoenacker’s article. I must be in the minority as I liked takeoffs and landings equally but for the different reasons stated. One place I enjoyed the landing process was on final approach to Ramstein AB in Germany. As we slowed down, I could watch the Porsches and Mercedes on the Autobahn pass us by.
4
From a very young age, I have led a very peripatetic existence by living, studying and working in different parts of the world. From my perspective, I found this article to be absolutely fascinating and so very accurate.
I have been flying ever since I was a little kid. Over 30 years ago, I still remember my very long flight from Perth Australia to New York via Mumbai and London. The take offs were exhilarating and I was full of excitement and the anticipation of going to the other side of the world.
My perspective has changed as I’m older now. I feel slightly nervous during the take offs, don’t really enjoy hurtling to the other side of the world being confined in a pressurized metallic cabin at a high altitude and oh yeah I love landings specially when the wheels touch the runways and the planes shake on impact. My recent trip back from Brussels to Newark is a good example of this feeling of relief.
Throughout my trips, I also realized that all over the world - people act the same when they are in planes or in the airports. Also from my vantage point, different airports have slightly different, almost imperceptible, smells e.g., Newark, London,Brussels, Dubai, New Delhi etc. or it just might be me lol
9
I've never flown except on commercial flights from airports.
Takeoff is preceded by a tedious and sometimes invasive security check followed by long waits: in the airport waiting to board, at the gate waiting for the stragglers and the stowing of stuff, sometimes long waits in the queue for takeoff...
So I definitely prefer landing and getting as far from the whole airport experience as possible as quickly as possible.
I would much rather drive to my destination...
The author, a pilot, is in love with flying.
I, a passenger, am not. I used to be until a very rough AirFrance flight over the alps with some of the most disturbing turbulence I'd ever experienced.
Now, a fearful flyer, I far prefer landings because you're getting closer to the ground. Takeoffs are also when, if there's something wrong with the plane, you'll find out fast. Once 8 minutes or so have passed, I finally relax, but oh how I hate the first few seconds of becoming airborne.
All this just drives home the power of perspective. I guess the same goes for many forms of transportation, whether one is a passenger or a driver/pilot, but the driving force behind enjoyment reflects one's emotional reaction to the vehicle in which one travels.
72
Me too. Had a similar experience with thunderstorms all the way on an evening flight from Denver to San Antonio years ago. Can never quite become completely relaxed now.
17
@ChristineMcM
I'm completely with you. My fear of flying just gets worse over the years, especially in anticipation of turbulence. I travel all over, but by train, car, or ship. I get sick before each flight, and can't relax while I'm away because I know I'll have to do it again on the other end. I will never get on a plane unless it's an emergency or there is no other way to get there.
5
@ChristineMcM Teach yourself to overcome your fear. Flying is magical. I have had it all-- an engine failure, air pockets, horrid turbulence. But I taught myself to learn to love flying. I don't like turbulence, but it doesn't scare me as much now. And I love travel itself.
6
Way way back during my training to be a flight attendant for Trans World Airlines, I remember being told that there are 11 critical minutes to every flight, the first three and the final eight. During those times, most accidents happen.
I took my safety related responsibilities seriously so landings were more stressful for me because I knew that there was more time for something to go wrong. I also knew that the slower speeds required for landing made it more risky.
But the joy of a great, smooth landing feels so good! While most take-offs feel similar, there is a vast variety of how landings feel, depending on aircraft, weather, length of runway and pilot technique. There was a belief among many TWA flight attendants that Air Force trained pilots made the smoothest landings, the ones that felt the best.
But, of course, any safe landing is a good landing.
126
@Mary Ann Donahue: I've been told by pilots that the safest landings are those that have a strong vertical component, a definite hitting of the ground, not the silky smooth ones.
I don't know if this is true, but it's counter-intuitive, and it seems like most true things are these days.
5
@Mary Ann Donahue
And we know the ones who had landed on aircraft carriers; always looking for that imaginary Tailhook.
Glad to read a comment from another TWA-er. (Breech Training Academy & "Off The Line"-630 News).
2
@Charlie B -
Your point may be well taken since ex Navy pilots tended to hit the runway a bit harder, most likely due to their aircraft carrier landing experience. The ultimate short runway.
3
Definitely the takeoff - the increasing speed of the plane, the sudden almost a drop when the plane takes off, the plane cabin at a steep angle, the sight of the earth dropping away, the clouds approaching, the excitement of a long-awaited vacation, the thrill of going to explore someplace new, the total freedom and thrill of being on a plane and going someplace.
76
I flew from Albany to Boston once on a small propeller-driven plane. There were storms during the day, and by the time I got to the airport there were very strong wind gusts. I walked out to the plane to board via stairs. As I approached the plane, the pilot was standing by the door holding the propeller blade to prevent it from spinning. I looked at him and said, "This is going to a bumpy ride, isn't it." He replied, "Yep." Sure enough, from takeoff to landing, it was a roller coaster ride. Neither takeoff, nor landing, nor the flight itself was very enjoyable.
4
That is beautiful!
I’m a take off guy. That sudden lurch when the wheels leave, as opposed to the tedium of having to wait 20 minutes descending. That bump, and, I beg to differ, find applauding a landing weird, except for the time I landed in a CAAC plane at Kai Tek in Hong Kong in the eye of a typhoon where I could see what people were watching on their TVs out the window on final approach, and the over head compartments banging open on a hard landing. After many of the ceiling panels fell.
Takeoffs are fun, with something of the sensation I experienced as a child on a swing. Landings just give me excruciating earaches.
I hate them both!! The most dangerous part of flying is the takeoff and landings. The only good thing about flying is that I can go from point A to point B in a reasonable amount of time to be in a place I want to be. I'm flying to Ireland in November, and am dreading the flight.
Beautiful writing.
2
Balance in all things.
Just got back from the Dominican Republic. Flew from Portland to SF, onto Newark, and then Santo Domingo. Bus from there to Baoruco Province, a 7 hours ride. The flights were delayed, canceled, rescheduled, and late. But we got there. Los Rios, in Baoruco is right on the border with Haiti. Lush and tropical but desperately hot and humid. Luckily three magical freshwater river flow through town. Were it not for them no one could live there. We built the basketball court we went to build...400 bags of concrete. And the kids now have another court to play on....so...landing or taking off? It was worth it. Travel makes you live...
Neither.
I'm an 'Are we there yet?' flyer.
Terror in mid flight?
Take off eh!
I love flying through the clouds. Period.
Being a USAF veteran, I flew frequently during my time. My 1st flt. on A/A was to the old Dallas,Tx. a/p then onto SanAntonio for basic training. Survived that 8wks then off to SeymourJohnson AFB,N.C. for OJT as a cook even though my score was up in the 90s in mechanical field(whatever the A.F. needed @ that time). Took an 'old' Piedmont Airlines Martin404 from CVG to Kinston,N.C. & taxi back to Goldsboro since Piedmont didn't land @ S.J.A.F.B. at night(security reasons as this was a SAC-TAC-ADC @ the time). I took Piedmont several times while stationed there, but had to take a Greyhound bus or hitch-hike from CVG to INDPLS where I was raised, since Piedmont didn't fly to IND. Loved the take-offs from S.J.A.F.B. as one could see the flight-line below with all the fighters and bombers lined up for duty. Only time I've been scared of flying, was in CVG during a snow storm, taking off the #2 engine was spitting FIRE!! Pilot came on P/A and announced "We have a slight mechanical issue & have to return to CVG on 1 engine so sit back and enjoy the ride". Stranded there for 2 days due to WX(snow storm). Served my time @S.J.A.F.B. after cross-training to heavy equip. mechanic then got orders for the 'Nam' leaving from TravisA.F.B., Ca. on commercial gov. contract flt. circa April,'65. One fuel stop in Hawaii and another at Guam then onto Saigon(HoChiMienCity now). So to wrap up,, I enjoy both take-offs and landings, 60% take-offs tho, love the whine of those turbines, music 2 me.
All flights are not so joyful as I traversed the world for business and pleasure. Once, I was on the Friday night Eastern Airlines shuttle from Logan to EWR in Janurary and during a thunder snow storm. Next to me was a young woman who was the Senior Resident at Brigham's and Women's Hospital (OBGYN) somewhat terrified due to the outrageous turbulence. I was argumentative with her about the surgical use of heparin in hopes of distracting her during the bouncing, tossing and dipping. Finally. she said, I know what you're trying to do but I'm only upset because I've worked too (#%#@) hard to die in this airplane.
1
I've been asked "what phase of flight i enjoyed most?"(former active pilot here) I answered the taxi for takeoff....because, along with anticipation, planes are clumsy and awkward on the ground and it takes some finese to operate them gracefully there.
1
What poetry!
2
Much as John Le Carre is not a former spy who wrote some books, but rather a writer who spent some time in British Intelligence, Mark Vanhoenacker is a writer who flew 747s.
His "Skyfaring" is an absolute delight, as is this piece.
To answer the question: Both, along with the middle bit (removing shoes, not so much).
1
Takeoffs are my favorite, especially my first one when i was doing the flying with my Instructor in the seat to my right and all this done in a small airplane. I did it and it was incredible!
Landings not so much. One time flying into Mexico City it seemed like forever flying low and slow and why can't the pilots find the damn runway? I knew Mexico City was big but this was ridiculous.
Landings mean you’ve arrived!
1
With TSA fondling me when a have to fly and Immigration lines that take 3 hours, at times to get through to enter the USA, my question would be "What do you prefer fondling or waiting?"
1
Landing.
Keep writing please! As for me-- landings. The takeoff is the culmination of a series of high stress experiences: driving to the airport, often in traffic; parking my car or turning in a rental--both fraught; making my way to the terminal and then being subjected to obnoxious TSA staff; often learning my flight is delayed; waiting to board in crowded, dirty, loud areas; squeezing into my seat in ridiculously tight settings, fitting my compact self beside super-sized passengers; feeling a brief moment of gratitude as the plane finally takes off, usually late. So the landing is a relief, though sometimes quite lovely as others have said. For me landing means OFF this miserable plane, at least till the return flight. Wherever I land is better than the hell that commercial flights for peons has degraded to.
1
Fools travel, polluting & eviscerating as they go. Cultivate your garden. By contrast w/divers universes, the kosmos waiting there has no outside & thus no choice but to exist [vide: Lee Smolin, Arkhiv fizica. Lecta et cogna...
I don’t really know which one I prefer.
I have a 2-hour drive to FSD and an almost 3-hour drive to MSP. It doesn’t matter what time my flights depart; I’m tired when I board the plane.
I’m frequently asleep before the plane takes off... then I’m up for a while... and back asleep before landing which wakes me up with the jolt of tires hitting the runway. This isn’t just due to me being older; I’ve been like this for many years. Like a baby that quickly falls asleep to the hum of an automobile, I spend most of my flight time zonked out.
very nice article. though, it reminds me of how sad it is that people keep their windowshades down the entire flight....it's such a gift to see the earth from above! look out the window!
12
As the aging private pilot who's flown a lot of little airplanes all over the United States I believe Vanhoenacker's "Skyfaring" is one of the best flying books, for pilots (and/or anybody else who loves to fly) ever written. It's on par with Ernest K. Gann's "Fate is the Hunter." So, here's a summertime idea: spare yourself the agony of watching American politics for a while and spend time lifting your spirits by reading both of these wonderful books.
4
My father was an air traffic controller. His version of the old pilots' joke was " Take-offs are optional; landings are compulsory."
2
I love landing. It means i am getting OUT of the airplane!
The Wright Brothers - Orville and Wilbur - agreed that landing a plane was a wee bit more difficult than getting it airborne … of course their flights lasted, on average, 59 seconds over a distance of 852 feet.
2
I have done all the flying I ever want to do. Several hundred thousand miles. Yes, it was fun for the first three times. After that, not so much. Being now 82, I prefer terra firma. The more firma the less terra. (And I live in one of the more seismically active places on the planet.)
Re: Tim Clark: I think the greatest achievement of mankind is the extension of life through medicine and that life is way more healthy than it was just a century ago. Nobody got hip replacements in 1920. Nobody today fears polio except those nitwits who don't get vaccinated or immunized. Only 3 countries in the world still have it. Great leaps are being made every decade. And more great leaps need to be made. And, we will make them.
1
Take offs are a rush, look around at all the grins.
Landings are more serious, until wheels down.
What a beautiful essay!
1
Way back in the '50s I was a USAF navigator in a troop carrier unit. We dropped lots of paratroopers and every once in a while, some making their first jump. And once in a while a new trooper would balk at jumping. We had one young pilot there who had a method for making sure they all got out in a hurry. After the whole stick of 40 troopers was on board and strapped in, Jerry would get in and go back to speak to the jump master. Soon the co-pilot would get on board and go introduce himself to Jerry, as if he were a stranger. Still standing there in front of the troops, Jerry would brief him about the mission (usually flying to a drop zone about twelve minutes away) and casually tell the co-pilot, "Then you'll land back here", to which the co-pilot would reply, "No, no, I'm a takeoff pilot; I haven't made a landing since flight school." Jerry would say, "Wait, I'm a takeoff pilot too. Who's gonna land this thing?" They would go through a you do it, no you do it routine, then sit down on the floor, as if the paratroopers weren't there, and get out the Dash One manual for the C-119F, which said PILOT'S OPERATING INSTRUCTIONS on the cover, leaf through it and pretend to figure out how to land, all while worrying aloud about how difficult it would be. By the time they got to the DZ, those gullible kids couldn't jump out of that plane fast enough.
Myself, I prefer takeoffs, because it's always a kind of miracle to go up in the sky in a big heavier-than-air flying machine..
1
Lovely writing. Thank you !
I like both takeoffs and landings — they each hold a different promise — so I have no preference. Is that a cop out?!
2
Takeoffs, one thousand percent. The reason: Check my address.
1
For my whole life I have never been able to stop worrying that the tail is going to scrape the runway when we take off. I know the plane's tail is designed to prevent this from happening. Even so, it still it feels like we're going to take off leaving a few dents in Mom's car.
I used to enjoy the experience of flying, after we got into the air with the tail undented. But now the seats are too close together, etc etc etc. I'm happy now when the whole experience is over.
American flying has become such an exhausting, humiliating experience that I favour landings---the feeling like cattle, and the chance for tempers flaring and unruly behaviour are just about to end.
1
This article has been such a pleasant break from the awfulness of the news. Thank you.
2
Back on the ground. Safe. It’s a no brainer.
Flying is a cattle call nightmare. When I land I know the nightmare is ending.
I'm neither. I prefer soaring endlessly through the wild blue yonder.
Definitely the take-off. Best time of any trip.
I used to fly regularly from Philadelphia to Boston and graded pilots on the landings in Boston. Worst was a pilot,who was, I am convinced, not fully in control until the plane squealed to a stop at the gate. The best, quiet and smooth, was by a grey haired pilot near retirement.
My take-off song for decades was the very start of “Burn Rubber” by The Gap Band. A drum attack followed by excited, synthy keyboards. Check it out.
I was always psyched to be literally blasting off. Still am, but after 1M miles in the air and a lotttt of years, the thrill in more attenuated.
My ex, a weekend pilot of dinky single-engines, said that pilots always describe landings as controlled crashes. I just want to stand up and walk so I suppose I prefer landings because it means I can get off the bloody plane.
The difference, I think, is takeoffs are all more or less the same, but landings are all different. Experienced travelers can tell how smooth they are, or aren't immediately. And there's always some surprise. If you take SAS from Copenhagen or Stockholm to Newark, the first thing you see on landing is IKEA. OMG, you can see people thinking, we went the wrong way!
4
I have travelled most of my adult life both for work and pleasure and I now no longer enjoy it, dare I say I really dislike it.
Between the rigamarole at the airports, the security lines, the rude fellow passengers, the rude airport and airline employees, the cramped seats, the awful food when available, the same torment at the airport upon arrival, being home in my own city is a pleasure. Nothing (at least for now) will induce me to take another flight unless absolutely necessary. I have come to think of flying as taking the subway in Manhattan: you know, crowded, dirty, uncomfortable, unsavory, all of those uns. Who needs it? Not me.
3
I prefer takeoffs, I live that moment when you feel the plane lifting. Landings are in reality controlled crashes. LaGuardia’s runway that begins and ends with water is particularly anxiety producing. You just know the pilots are standing on the brakes!
That said, I can’t help but feel excited during the descent. I love to have that vantage point of someplace I’m visiting for the first time and I will always love the descent over NYC on a beautiful evening.
4
I absolutely love takeoff. The acceleration, the loud and visceral rumblings of the plane, the trees and greenery whizzing past and then this sudden moment when this huge metallic beast becomes light and is *flying* — what??? It never fails to blow my mind. It feels like magic.
I also enjoy the landing, getting closer and being able to see the destination, but it doesn’t feel anywhere near as impressive — and especially not if it’s a bumpy landing!
5
A wise old man once pointed to the scars on his face and said, "Let me tell you something about that motorcycle you just bought. Sooner or later you're going to think you know how to ride it. Then it's going to get up and ride you."
Two years and a few close calls later, I sold that bike and never rode again. But that old man's advice has always been on my mind and steadily matured into a realization that the belief that "everything is under control" is subject to the envelope of statistical variables described in Chaos Theory.
Bottom line: complex systems require that all conditions, procedures and components perform as expected ...every time. They don't.
So, after 50 years of walking away from military, commercial and recreational flight operations (with some close calls) I simply refused to fly again. Because that old man was right.
Compare NASA's performance record with manned space flight to its spectacular success with robotic exploration of Mars and deep space.
I am always exhilarated to land at Orly or CDG in Paris and always a bit saddened to take off, even after a visit of a few days or a few months. Whether one enjoys take offs or landings depends on whether for work or leisure and on the venue.
2
For me I like both take offs and landing but it depends on what direction I'm going. Generally going to the new destination is my preference. The take off means I'm leaving home for an adventure the landing is the start of my adventure. Return trips mean the adventure has ended.
1
My favorite takeoffs.
LGA Whitestone climb off runway 13.
Northbound DCA up the Potomac on a clear day.
SFO punching through the low level see fog to clear skies above and seeing the buildings and bridges reaching up through the clouds.
Favorite landings.
Anything in LGA.
SXM. St Maartin.
The smooth accurate and on time ones.
Favorite destination
Home.
Loved the story.
4
@DA my favorite landing pattern at LGA is the one that takes the plane down the Hudson River and around the tip of Manhattan. As a born and bred NYer, it takes my breath away each and every time.
2
@DA
I can’t tell if your experience is up front looking, or in the back watching. But..landing rwy27 Boston at night ( cockpit view). Coming over the harbor with the Boston skyline straight ahead. Absolutely wonderful, and this opinion from a New Yorker!
I love flying. For me, to air is human. Takeoff or Landing? Depends. When the flight itself is a chance to "escape" from the ground I'm a takeoff person. When the purpose of the flight is to get to a destination that I'm eagerly looking forward to, I'm a landing person,
By the way, in conducting the poll did you take into account the degree to which any of the respondents who preferred landings have a fear of flying?
2
Wonderful piece of writing. Pilots seem to have an inherent knack for poetry. Perhaps because they live in an ever changing environment full of sensations and experiences. This aviator author has certainly landed this piece beautifully.
4
Lovely piece.
I enjoy both but particularly love landing at night in Washington's National Airport. There is something so inspiring seeing the night lights of Washington and Alexandria from the air.
As for Islamabad I wonder what that is like these days. I lived there some 30 years ago when the airport was in Rawalpindi and have never seen Islamabad from the air. It was a small rather sleepy city then.
2
Love the acceleration and “Flight attendants, prepare for takeoff” from the pilot, especially when we’ve been delayed on the ground for too long. When I started taking business trips early in my career, I used to jump and grab a seat mate’s arm at every bump or weird noise the plane made on takeoff and landing, even the pull up and drop of the landing gear. As I became a more experienced traveler, I took to joking with the flight attendants as I entered the plane, and peeking into the cockpit pretending to “interview” the pilots about their qualifications, especially the ones who looked as seasoned in their career as I was, who would joke back with me.
Of course, this was all before 9/11, when it became a life-saving move to protect and isolate the wonderful pilots to whom we entrust our lives in the air, and we gratefully defer to the flight attendants for our comfort and safety. As others have pointed out, it is the prelude to the plane that is the worst, the rudeness of the screeners, and the cost-cutting greed that squeezes us into tiny seats as we juggle junk food and mobile devices. Takeoff and landing are both exhilarating.
I like takeoffs.I like landings.
but i really like time travel.
It's as close as we can currently get to the star ship Enterprise's
Transporter station.
My first flight ,Portland Maine to San Antonio Texas,to go to basic training (USAF).When i got off the plane,i felt as if i could walk around the corner and i would see my home.But I couldn't.
It was disorienting and thrilling and as silly as it sounds,46 years later,to step off a plane and enter a whole new world,well it still just astounds me.
Now you see me,now you don't. Poof!
4
What a great story and it brought back a wave of nostalgia for me!
When I was a little boy, my Dad, would drive me to our local airport (some jets) and we’d stand by the chain link fence - I had to look through the openings. What a thrill it was for me.
Whenever we had a chance, LGA or JFK we’d head to the Observation Decks (do they even have those anymore) and watch planes taxi, land and takeoff.
I miss that.
6
To fly; per chance to dream, it's all a study in meditating isn't it? Flight is a rushing about, from one end to another, yet simultaneously you are confined to a singular moment. A path not entirely of your own choosing.
This thing we do, flying, is a wondrous thing isn't it? Even the most jaded pause when the engines spin up to commence the launching; and I suspect most everyone does a mental "whew" when the wheels first touch down even, and probably most especially, the pilot.
Because as confident as we have become in our ability to steal through the air all of us know that we mere mortals tempt the gods of chaos every time we choose to enter their domain.
John~
American Net'Zen
2
I read this author’s book “Skyfaring” on a flight from JFK to SFO, from the chapter “Lift” during takeoff to the chapter “Water” during descent among puffy clouds into the Bay Area. Between my lifelong low-grade nervousness about air travel, frequent motion sickness, and bad memories of 9/11, flying had long ago become an unpleasant experience for me—a necessary evil for getting where I wanted to be. That one trip, with this author as a guide, gave me back the beauty of flight. For that, I am deeply moved and profoundly grateful. Thank you, captain.
5
In this day of crowded planes, long lines, waits onto and off the plane, and cranky travelers, takeoff can indicate hours more of discomfort. Landing can indicate hours of discomfort coming to an end soon. It also depends where one sits. A business class seat... the journey is fairly pleasant. A middle seat at the back of the plane... not so much.
3
I've never heard anyone clap at takeoff, but landing? Yes people do still clap, I do it. Landing is difficult and when it's smooth and we're back on the ground safe, I applaud the pilot.
7
Thank you. This was a very enjoyable read.
I fly often - mostly long haul and often premium. I like both landings and take-offs, and almost every bit in between.
What I find disappointing is that many crews close the blinds even on dayflights, turning the whole cabin into a very drab cubicle. It also makes avoiding jetlag that much harder.
5
I didn't realize from the headline that this would literally be about taking off and landing. My answer is neither, and I don't like the bit in-between either (the flight, I mean). The part between the two flights is the only reason to ever get on an airplane for me, and if I can get there some other way in a timely way (say on the train between Boston & NYC) I'll do that instead in a minute. We all need to fly less for environmental reasons. For most of us, crammed into ever decreasing surroundings on the plane, flying has reached new heights of misery. Now is not the time to romanticize flight.
12
Takeoffs or landings? It depends.
Which direction are we going? Off on holiday, to a place I long to see, to see friends I haven't seen for years? Those takeoffs and landings are the best. Back home, to work and routine? Those are second best. (Maybe it's different if you're a frequent flyer and flying is itself part of your work and routine.)
Don't forget the bit in the middle. The unbelievable privilege, for a few fleeting hours, of just being up there, seeing deserts and mountains and forests and oceans, stars and city lights, places you can never see again. Landings mean it's all over.
Landings are good when everyone applauds. Landings are good when your external-camera seat video shows the ground crew guide the plane to the terminal and wave congratulations to the pilot on perfect positioning.
3
This is so interesting.....to learn about the perspective of the pilot. Thank you for sharing this. I absolutely love the takeoffs. For some reason, landings make me a little sad.
2
As a child I grew up flying around the country with my father in his Cessna 170.
We had some close calls like mistakenly flying through a thunder storm which is considered very unwise.
One time over the Grand Canyon my fathers friend was flying and saw a commercial airliner in front of us heading in our direction. John Lash panicked and went full right rudder and full right aileron. The plane shuddered and felt like it was going into a stall at only 1000 feet above the mountain tops.
Fortunately the plane stabilized and we went on safely.
My most dangerous commercial flight was on Aeroflot from Leningrad to Helsinki in violent crosswinds. The landing was very dangerous as the crosswind blew the plane off the glide path.
So all in all I don’t like takeoffs or landings or flying in general.
Considering the miserable experiences many people have in airports I recommend taking the train particularly if you have a high speed train available to you like the TGV.
4
I love taking off, but not for any poetic reasons. I love feeling the power. First, the partial spin-up of the engines to get them in sync, then the run-up to takeoff thrust and getting pushed back in my seat. I just love it. I always take a window seat.
2
This op-ed doesn't cover people like me: flying terrifies me, but for personal and professional reasons I have logged millions of miles and can't imagine slowing the pace. Though I know take-off is more dangerous than landing, every time my plane touches down, I must do everything I can to suppress a wave of panic.
2
Surprised how this got me thinking, here goes. There are typically four instances to consider. The takeoff from home to the destination, hopefully a desired one gives rise to anticipation and liberty or mission. The landing at the destination brings the adrenalin rush despite fatigue of the new venue opening like you are coming out of the dressing room and one is taking the field of play. The takeoff of the return to home segment provides a moment of reflection and distinction between what was the new locale adventure and the realization that soon one is to be transported back in a wondrous way to one’s land. The final landing is a sense of completion and resumption of the quotidian. That said, takeoffs and landings for hub connections and sorting out gates and security and being an ant in a mall-like maze of shops and restaurants aka today’s major airports is the worst intermediate purgatory.
6
Oh, this is a beautiful story. I've always wanted takeoffs too. And there's the underlying existential thing, about whether we prefer the beginnings or ends of journeys. The anticipation, or the fulfilment.
I think I'll always appreciate takeoffs best. And I'm old! But yes, the end of the journey. The lights coming on in the home after the months away. The fire in the hearth.
Yeah, we need all of those.
2
Reliably, there exist two occasions when my eyes well up with tears—saying goodbyes to dear friends and upon landings.
1
Pittsfield is where I grew up and saw my first airplane land and take off. At age 3, I was taken to the airport towards the end of WW2 when an AAF pilot friend of my father was delivering a fighter plane from Long Island (Farmingdale) to some base and flew in to say 'hello' to his family and friends. The roar of 18 cylinders with open exhausts and wind from the prop were overwhelming, enough to remain in lodged in my memory over seventy years, but what made a greater impression was the take-off, more noise, yes, but watching the plane get smaller and smaller as it rose circling above us and leaving me wondering if the pilot of this P-47 (as later I identified it) was not likewise getting smaller. In all, an event and experience that created perhaps my earliest memory but also instilled an interest in aviation that has lasted to this day.
3
If the landing is smooth I ALWAYS compliment the pilot. That is the test of an experienced flyer in whose hands I prefer to put my life.
5
Flying was such a wonderful experience. Now you are lucky to get off the plane alive. The seats are overpriced, delays are rapid. Customers are treated like animals. When you get a moment to appreciate the flight it is over.
Yes thrilling to arrive at your destination .
7
@Tony Try flying first class. I would not fly any other way and I have never found the experience to be anything but pleasant.
Gliding down into a city at twilight, I have to pinch myself: Yes, this is really happening. Not a dream, simply a miracle.
A hundred years ago we couldn't fly across the ocean, yet fifty years later we were flying to the moon and back. In my book, commercial aviation (not the Internet) is the most remarkable achievement in the past hundred years.
18
Thank you! It's been nineteen years since I was in the cockpit and this article brought back again the thrill of a takeoff, the touch of a cloud, the sound of tires again touching Mother Earth, the smell of the oxygen mask and yes the feeling of flight.
It just touches all your senses.
6
It’s hard to feel joy in flying commercial these days. I’m so relieved when we land and I can get out of that winged metal tube! But occasionally, when I’m flying in daytime and the sky is clear, and I have a window seat, and I can see the changing land below us, I think I understand the thrill of flight.
16
Beautifully written article. I felt like you took me on a journey, like a true pilot-writer
17
My favorite part is the flight, being "in the heavens," seemingly floating through billowy decks of clouds while traveling close to 600 Mph, seeing the sky, mountains, forests, city lights, plains--a view of the world that inspires me to contemplate the gift of life on this one planet in a vast solar system otherwise devoid of life. I guess I like the anticipation of take-off, especially the gradual climb to those delightful heavens. Landing is okay but signals the end of my adventure
8
@Steven Dunn Me too, but at night. I'll never forget looking out the window at 35,000 feet and seeing the Hale-Bopp comet.
For those many months it was visible, I always chose a window seat and took a thick black jacket to cloak off the cabin lights. At that elevation, the miles-long tail arced against the inky sky. It thrilled every single time.
7
When I was around 2 years old, I was so fascinated with toy planes and helicopters, especially planes.
There was this toy store and I vaguely remember it since I was very young, but my eyes caught on to these planes that they had displayed in the air on a string. Looking at these toy flying objects was so attractive to me. I am saw planes or helicopters as a whole. Our perspective towards certain things change as we grow older and we enjoy as we are much older the more details of just about anything.
When we are children we just look at the simplicity
Of anything than the complexity of what fascinates us when we are as adults.
1
I tend to prefer the takeoff, the old cliche of “slipping the surly bonds of earth,” but there is also pleasure in landing, especially after a long night’s flight arriving in another country at daylight with a view of the countryside as you pass over or the long flights west over the Atlantic.
There are some obvious pleasures of the return, a trip gone well, the pleasures of a home routine, but also that a landing signals a break before the next trip. A necessary interlude.
I don’t always sit at a window, but the takeoff frequently signals the pleasure of looking at the earth, our country, other countries, in a different way, sometimes for hour upon hour.
Trips over the western states impress with the mountains and the deserts - and the realization of what a scarce commodity water is in some regions with the irrigation circles surrounded by barrenness, the pipeline that scars the the Rio Grande Rift but does not destroy its impact. There’s the pleasure of a sunrise or sunset above the clouds.
A landing after such a flight could be a letdown, but in the NYC area, the approach can be a trip in itself with views that are frequently spectacular, including in the past the chance to photograph Manhattan on approach to LGA.
I suppose it depends.
7
Both. I especially enjoy the landing in a storm with wings rocking, the plane jolting up and down and the pilots working hard to smooth the transition to the ground.
I have been flying in commercial jets for 50 years. There has only been one instance (going into San Francisco at night) where if the pilots decided to go someplace else, it would have been ok with me. Otherwise, it was all an adventure.
2
I am all about the takeoff, unless there is a screaming child nearby during boarding/taxiing. At that point, I become all about the landing.
10
@bengoshi2b Or unless there is a chatty adult kicking the back of your seat.
I'm a documentary and portrait photographer, I tend to travel a lot in bursts. For me getting on a plane represents the project is actually going to happen. No more talking and hoping. I love takeoff. There are so many things yet to see and explore. It represents hope and the unknown. Physically, I love the sensation of speeding down the run-way. That acceleration is simply the best. Landing is nice, it means we made it... alive. For all those that complain about air travel and it can be a pain. I try to remember that it's some kind of miracle. We are flying through the air going to some far off destination. That's amazing!!!
14
I enjoy the take off & appreciate the landing.
And I love the view in between. As a “map fan”, I watch our progress across the earth as often as I can during the flight. Depending upon the route, I like to pick specific sides of the plane for the best vantage point (and to minimize direct sunlight & glare midsummer). You can truly comprehend the enormity and fragility of our planet at 30,000’ feet.
Thank you for a wonderful essay.
4
I love both takeoffs and landings but that's besides the point. Thank you for this lovely reflection on life in the air. When your flying days are over, I suggest a novel based on your experiences. Well done.
10
Landings. Isn't that obvious? I'd rather spend 3 hours in an MRI than in a plane.
What could be worse than having my knees crunched up near my chest (even in the extra-legroom seats), being yelled at by flight attendants for using the business-class bathroom because the line for the steerage restroom goes halfway up the plane, and the $10 in-flight box of crackers and Velveeta that's supposed to suffice as a meal?
For these reasons and many more, all I care about is landing so I can get out of that miserable tube and start or end my vacation.
8
@Sarah Fly first class and your problems will be solved.
I have been reading Mr. Vanhoenacker since his first book came out. I fly frequently, close to 2 million miles these past 30 years, and his writing has really given me a new appreciation for flying -- not to mention lessening the sense of dread.
I can see why takeoffs would be more appealing to younger people: the incredible acceleration, the g-forces, the swooping up into the sky, it all has an amusement park ride quality to it. Landings have none of that, really, but I can appreciate the increased technical difficulty. But landings sometimes make me nervous: the ground is hard, while the sky is soft, and hitting a hard thing from above at a very high rate of speed is not a fun concept to dwell on.
But as the other commenters have fairly remarked: flying commercially these days is not fun. Airport parking, check-in lines, TSA lines, overcrowded gates, cramped seats in economy bordering on inhumane, baggage claim chaos, taxi queues -- it's an ugly mess. Airports are where America's failure to adequately invest in infrastructure is most painfully felt.
20
For me it's both. I was 27 when I first flew but I knew I would love it. [I had spoken with the Air Force recruitment officer in my county the year Nixon stopped the draft.] Both take off and landing are the most dangerous times of flight, so both are, to me, equally compelling.
But landing in NYC is always special as it's my home.
3
I once told a dear friend of my husband and mine, who was a pilot for United, that every time I take off in a plane, I think, “I’m flying, I’m flying!” and wondered if he still thought that. He responded, “Each and every time I fly.”
21
How lovely. Thank you.
4
Beautifully written article. Almost a metaphor for life’s journey. I like the excitement of taking off but love the anticipation of landing and exploring both the known and the unknown. Landing is not the end but an important milestone in the continuation of the journey.
7
Landing is more constrained than in one dimension. The plane must come to a halt before the end of the runway, which is essentially a zero-dimensional point. Further, the speed of descent and the yaw, pitch, and roll must be within very tight limits the instant the wheels touch the runway.
4
For me, flying never gets old. Coming from an airline family, I have been flying on airplanes for almost 60 years. The love of it is strong despite cramped seats and crowded airports.
Four years ago I earned my pilots license, a life-long dream.
And, like so many pilots, I find that landings are the most fun. They are the most dangerous phase of flight. A pilot has to really pay attention, watching airspeed, altitude and control input carefully. It takes concentration and skill and no pilot, no matter how good, gets it perfect every time because the air is a fickle thing. Wind gusts and crosswinds can surprise.
Since having earned my wings, I find that I see birds in a new light. They, too deal with the vagaries of the winds and I fly with then as I watch them deploy flaps, pitch up to lose airspeed, turn final, apply power (if needed) and flare for landing. Like us, they sometimes get it wrong. It is, at once, reassuring and humbling to watch.
9
For me, arriving is much more exciting then returning. And I'm almost 80.
5
Wonderful story. I have flown nearly one million miles as a passenger and I never tire of the magic of it, both takeoffs and landings.
12
@Daniel Friedman
2.5 million miles here, and I'd be thrilled if I never had to get on another airplane.
1
Aside from my problem with painful pressure changes, especially when landing, in the ear, what I dread most about flying is the TSA security scrum. I can only assume the sense of humor can be surgically excised, and is required for employment as a TSA agent.
4
Thank you to Mr. Vanhoenacker who again in his prolific writings beautifully describes the magic of flight. As a self-confessed lifelong "avgeek" myself I continue to be mesmerized by the very simple act of stepping across the threshold onto an aircraft.
Takeoffs or Landings? Hmm...I have to say that takeoffs are my favorite - afterall, I proposed to my wife during the takeoff roll on a flight from New York-JFK to London. Best takeoff ever (she said yes, after all)!
To this day on every flight we still kiss and say "I love you" once the aircraft begins powering up for takeoff.
Ahh, the magic of flight!
14
For the vast majority of us who fly in economy, I expect the landing at our final destination is the only thing that potentially brings any joy -- because it means the end of a cramped, uncomfortable flight and no further possibility of flight delays/cancellations . Of course, there's still the possibility of having to wait interminably for our luggage to appear or that our luggage has been lost altogether. Yay. The joys of air travel today for the average person.
10
Ahh- we made it-we landed! That is the reaction at the end of a trip and at the end of a challenging endeavor.It is great to land smoothly where you hoped to be - in the air and in life.
12
The descent is what I dread most. The pressure changes on my tympanic membrane too often cannot be relieved with any of the recommended procedures: chewing gum and swallowing, valsalva maneuver, yawning, massaging the area between the base of the ear and the jaw. This is not a problem during ascent. The last landing took three days to clear my left ear, the pain was constant and intense, and what little I could hear was tinny sounding while simultaneously distant and muffled.
4
Beautifully written essays by this pilot-author. I will be looking for more!
I most often prefer the outbound takeoffs and landings to the returns.
6
Passengers never applaud takeoffs. They do applaud a smooth-as-silk touchdown.
5
My Dad was a paratrooper in WW2. He took off many, many times and never landed. He never wanted to get on an airplane after that. I didn’t blame him.
19
"Every air traveler will have a perspective on takeoffs and landings."
My perspective is usually dependent on all the rigmarole before getting into the plane at the airport from check-in through security etc. etc.
My perspective is based on delays, for whatever reason, on planes without enough bathrooms, room for one's legs, seat-size and paying for everything that used to be free and part of the service.
My perspective is I wish I would get to where i have to go without the pleasure of airports, taking off or landing.
Enjoy your flight.
3
I like the takeoffs and landings! It’s the rest of the flight I can’t stand.
21
The more I fly the more I appreciate a good landing. I recall a return flight several years ago from Frankfurt aboard Luthansa, the pilot touched down at JFK so smoothly that I hardly noticed that we were on the ground. It gave me more of an appreciation for the skills needed by those that take to the sky. And this might be biased but a descent into NYC at night is simply a sight to see from the air and always causes me to fall in love with my hometown all over again.
20
@Gerard Those landings are rare, Gerard. I've experienced only one in the 50 years since my first plane ride.
I am 70.
Each year it gets more and more complicated to travel.
The best place is home.
Good luck to the rest of you.
15
I love flying, doesn't mattter if it's take off or landing. However to my way of thinking it's the journey between flights that mattters most. Having seen most of the world at a very slow pace either sailing or bicycling, flying can be thought of as a means to an end and yet....I cannot help but remember some exhilerating landings into Morroco or takeoffs out of Jakarta or putting the mother in law onto a bagage cart because the wheelchair didn't arrive or having our baggage return to London without us due to a faulty hatch in Paris. After all these slow adventures I still yearn to be a pilot sailing within that extra dimension.
1
this was very well written. a nice respite from all the madness in the news.
9
Its the takeoff that I am obsessed with.
I have a bad case of airlineophobia. I hate scheduled airlines.
They make my blood pressure go up to about 150/110.
This does not apply to charter flights in small planes.
This is because the airlines are so unreliable in getting each
flight to get to its scheduled destination on time, or even getting airborne at all. They love to cancel on you. This makes me literally sick.
My last vacation I was supposed to have a two hour flight
from Alta Floresta to Sao Paulo, Brazil. They cancelled.
It took a 5 hour drive, a one hour flight, a long wait, a two hour flight, a very tight connection, and a 45 minute flight to get to Sao Paulo ... at midnight!
There's always a great relief (of my blood pressure) when the final leg flight to the final destination takes off. So clearly I prefer landings.
I hate airlines, but love getting somewhere. At least the long drive added two birds to my life list.
Despite decades of flying (as a passenger), approaching the ground at high speed still makes me nervous.
I love taking off. Love arriving too. Just don't like landing.
For a tailwheel plane, the landing, of course.
Private pilots get to bounce once in awhile, but any smooth touchdown in a taildragger, especially on a grass strip, is one of life's amazing moments.
To be more precise, the function of a pilot on the trip is far different from a passenger. Yes, it is a job and one that must be done with great precision and responsibility. But pilots do them very often.
For those of us who travel less frequently, even with more affordable fares, the purpose of the trip is the determining factor. Is it to go to a solemn event such as a funeral or to support someone during a divorce or similar tragic event of life? Or is it setting forth on a vacation or experience that is stuffed with possibilities and excitement?
I recall when we were fortunate to take our two young sons to Hawai'i for a pure vacation. My oldest was about 7, and our return day was a realization that we were fortunate to have visited Paradise, seen wonders we'd only read about, and seen whales cavorting. Our return required an inter-island hop, and as we departed the jet and walked toward the departure gate for the final flight home, he walked more and more slowly, falling behind. We glanced back and he was dragging his backpack, walking ever more slowly and finally stopped, tears streaming down his cheeks. All he knew was this one vacation, his first significant one to a far off and fascinating place, was coming to an end. We promised to return, to no avail.
5
Beautiful piece Mark! And chalk me up for a landing.
4
As an SEL pilot I have hard time deciding. Each has its own challenges and satisfaction. Each requires full concentration and in each case one can die if one makes a mistake.
Short take-offs and landings under crosswind conditions certainly are interesting.
I like neither taking off nor landing. For 40 years or so, I've grown very fond of Amtrak.
16
Huh. Maybe it's because I hate flying in general and so couldn't really answer this in a literal sense, but I was more than a bit surprised to see that the commenters here seemed content to answer the question as asked.
I have flown exactly once in my life, but I have taken hundreds of journeys in my five plus decades on this planet, and I can say with certainty that I have always preferred takeoffs to landings. The start of an adventure, the takeoff - be it a job, a relationship, a move, a friendship, acquiring a pet, starting diet or a creative project - holds a limitless potential for what it could be.
With the landing, you become obligated to acknowledge what it was.
8
I enjoyed this. Such a respite from everything. For what its worth, I used to be afraid to fly. Really afraid of every little, normal bump. Then I read an essay by a pilot, who said think of the plane as a marshmallow in a jello mold. It might bounce riding on the air currents, but it's not going anywhere, barring unusual circumstances--lightening strike, etc. After that, I wasn't afraid anymore. I love how that works. We all help each other out just sharing our expertise, and often aren't even aware of it.
11
There was a time when passengers applauded the landings.
For me, landing represents how we can command control of a fierce and powerful force. Without a doubt, I can feel the energy of a pilot who has deemed the control to be a gesture of being in charge and thus majestically utilizes he or her skills sets, to land with a controlled, soft but powerful kind of elegance.
6
@N. I’m with you...the spool up of a 77W is just music to my ears!
That plus Channel 9 on United if available. (You can hear the comms between the pilot and ATC).
4
As both an airplane pilot and hang glider pilot landings are it for me. Though I have to admit running off a cliff with a wing attached to you is pretty cool. I’m always somewhat amazed it works as I pull my legs up into the harness. Landings though in a hang glider when you own legs are the landing gear carry an additional element of risk. So when I zero out the descent rate and forward speed as my feet touch its very satisfying. Probably more than a greaser in a 747.
2
If I'm flying in Business Class I can deal with the "takeoff" part of my journey but let's face it: the destination is almost always a more comfortable and desirable place to be than inside an airplane and therefore I'm much happier when I reach my destination than I am with the actual starting or "takeoff" of it.
5
I fly a few times a year and am exhilarated by the takeoffs with that push back into the seat and the feeling of leaving the familiar and heading to something new.
My favorite takeoff/landing was several years ago in a 4-engine tail-dragger called Aluminum Overcast. Being relatively light as compared to its laden brethren bumping into the air from British fields a few generations ago, I couldn't pick the moment that the wheels actually left the runway. The landing felt the same way.
The other favorite landing was coming into LGA a few years ago. The pilot made a tight approach and landed more lightly than I've ever felt a jet land. True artistry in returning us to earth.
4
Hitting the tarmac is fine, but the 20 minutes of descent kill my inner ears. Nothing helps and I have stuffed up ears for a day after. Also, 40 years ago I landed at JFK on a 747 at night in the rain and the pilot said it was autonomous, no instruments, no pilot, only a computer. I was impressed.
2
As a small plane private pilot I'm all about the landings. The sense of accomplishment is crystal clear. As David Mamet the playwright said regarding flying lessons : "It's the ultimate reduction of would you like to do it right, or would you like to die?"
3
I came to appreciate landings after an emergency landing. I was on a London Heathrow-Toronto flight on a 767. One engine failed two hours into the flight, well over the Atlantic. I remember looking out of the window, waiting to see the Irish coast so desperately. And then the pilot saying ‘I’m trying to land this thing’. We landed in Heathrow, safely.
6
What a lovely ode to the profession and the experience of flying!
10
I've been traveling all my life starting at age 3 months. Early in my life we travel by ship -- long leisurely voyages with stops in exotic places. Our accommodations were never luxurious (my parents were missionaries) but much of the pleasure of travel was between ports out on the vast seas. Flying, with the overcrowded planes, cramped seats and increasingly fewer in-flight perks, is merely prelude to landing so real travel can begin. I love the landings when I've made it through the tedious hours mid-air and can either look forward to the new adventure ahead -- or to the comfort of my own bed once again. Last summer, at age 71, I planned a 5 week solo trip to Europe. I drew up an itinerary and booked flights, trains and Airbnbs. I studied the travel guides and listened to the suggestions of friends. As the plane began to descend in London I was full of anticipation and a touch of anxiety. The landing was the true beginning of an amazing experience.
10
In a literal sense, though I generally enjoy flying, I have a small mix of anxiety at some point both in the take-off and in the landing. In terms of what each represents, I don't think that I actually have a preference for I love going somewhere, but also am ready to come home when the time comes. The one thing which is better about landing is that it sometimes affords better opportunities to really look around. Take-off often involves much banking, which makes it harder to see what is below, even with a window seat and no sun in my eyes.
3
I have had so many flights in my 74 years, I only remember the bad ones, with one exception. I was on a flight, don't remember where but was seated next to a pilot that was deadheading. We had talk during the flight about his job as a pilot and as we were landing he turned to me and said "cheated death again". Makes you feel great.
7
Thank you for a beautifully written piece, it makes me want to jump on a plane, to any destination, and look at the world again from above.
5
I enjoy both, but even though I haven’t traveled by air that much, I plan not to any more.
Shouldn’t we do our planet a favor and take off and land much less than we do?
I’ll be fine visiting Delphi in my dreams.
5
Yesterday I landed in Shanghai on a short flight from Tiawan (KHH). The pilot descended for what seemed like an eternity in a shroud of fog and rain. I could not see the ground so I assumed the pilot was similarly blinded. At my age, 67, having flown for business worldwide I don't know how many times, I still can't stop my heart from racing with fear in such circumstances. In the last minute or so before touchdown, the ground and airport finally appeared to my great relief. I know the pilot has instruments, but landing blind is just plain scary to this frequent flyer.
18
@StarvinMarvin
I once had a similar experience landing in Dublin in heavy fog, except I never saw the ground. Sudden landing without ever seeing the ground was quite scary.
1
I fly on a regular basis and I also favor landings. In fact, I am most impressed when there is a smooth, almost effortless landing. When I am deplaning, I tell those upfront how impressed I was in their skill to bring this big bird down safely.
12
At 75, landings by far. I know where I am and where I have been, but Mexico City, Montevideo, Barcelona, Berlin and Belgrade are all new to me. My mother, when she was past 80, was the same. The only continents she missed were Africa and Antarctica. Something about travel keeps you alive.
13
I love landings. I open up my shade, try and find the ground through the clouds, and wait for the sound of the landing gear to come down. Then I enjoy the moment we land and watch all the activity going on. Takeoff, with the exception of the roll down the runway and initial ascent is kinda boring. It’s because planes can get so high so fast that there isn’t anything to see. I see more and more people sitting at the window who even close their shade prior to takeoff.
6
@Wamsutta As a frequent business and pleasure traveler, I will never get tired of the window seat view. I never understood why someone would choose a window seat and close the blind.
35
Lovely. Thought-provoking. Fresh.
Thanks very much for a terrific read. I’ll reflect on this the next time I take off and the next time I land.
14
When I was young, the takeoff entranced me with the thought of adventures to come. But, I loved the landings equally: they signaled the true beginning of the adventure. I have always especially loved evening landings when the sky is streaked with color and lights twinkle below. I try to schedule flights to land at that magical time.
I must mention the first time passengers applauded after a smooth landing. It was in Brazil. Now, four decades later I still remember that applause and my surprise at hearing it. I’ve experienced that applause numerous times since then and I always wonder if it’s recognition of the pilot’s skill or relief that we’re all safe on the ground.
11
Am I the only one who enjoys being at cruise altitude? The world far below, the journey already well underway, and still a great deal to look forward to!
14
@M. I’m with you. As Harry Chapin said in his song Greyhound - “It's got to be the going not the getting there that's good.”
1
I'm not a pilot but remember my first flights as a passenger vividly. It was a thrill and it was fun. I was a teenager and was carried away by the anticipation of take-off and experienced a bit of a downer after landing because the ride was over. it was glorious.
Fortunately for me, the first couple of flights were on a DC-3. It was a leisurely cruise over the landscape with all the topographical features available for inspection.
Unfortunately for me, flying is no longer fun. Its cramped, crowded and uncomfortable with long delays and long waiting times.
It is as a lifelong sailor that your remarks resonate with me. In that, I am equally appreciative of departure and arrival. There is anticipation of the journey at cast-off and the pleasurable glow of arrival, all challenges and unforeseen developments met, with broad horizons, wind, weather, rolling water, and cloud-scapes (albeit viewed from below). Driven by the wind, it is akin to gliding, requiring a skill set that bears some mutuality with that of a pilot in preparation and execution.
A beautiful article.
8
I miss the sound of those radial engines on when the props are changed from take off to climb and then cruise.
The change in RPM was reassuring, the sound of those motors purring in synchronous, the jet is nothing but noise. The ground drops away and you are making that turn, I have my face glued to the window the whole time.
As for landings, the old saying, it is harder to get up in the air than down, and I don't relax until I feel the reversers working.
6
@David Underwood one of my favorite things to do as a kid, lying on the grass in the backyard and listening as a 4 engine prop plane flew overhead, the engine noise being compressed and then expanded by the Doppler effect. i have a magazine full of kodachrome slides my father took at logan on a cold march day in 1959 that features all the cool planes of the era, constellation, stratocruisers, dc-3s and one snap of a mink coat draped matron climbing the stairs into a dc-7. i like takeoffs, being forced back into the seat by power i really can't imagine, but i like landings more, having landed a cessna 150 a few times i'm aware of how many variables come into play, flaps, airspeed, sink rate, wind. great article.
3
@david
I worked on those, Connies, DC 3,4, 6, 7s, Boeing Stratoliners, B50s, B25s, used to sit in the engineers seat on test runups, Cal Fire has a DC7 that flies over our area after refueling at McClellan in Sacramento, I could tell by the sound of the 3350s.
1
landings for sure—they signal the end of the hectic, hyper commercialized, nightmare that commercial air travel has become for us plebes unable to afford our our planes.
5
Lovely piece. I much prefer landings because half the time it means I have arrived home safely after a long, exhausting trip.
And it doesn't help that I have experienced some pretty terrifying takeoffs - a jumbo jet with an imploding cockpit window within 45 seconds of lifting off the ground, a small commuter plane with a little engine that couldn't resulting in a harrowing trip past the runway at full throttle. A blown tire and a sharp unexpected turn before, again, leaving the runway.
While I experienced a thrill at the beginning of my travel adventures, let me tell you - the thrill is gone now, baby.
Endless waiting for a delayed (and then sometimes cancelled) flight, battered luggage (when it is isn't outright lost), putrid food even in business class, and sitting next to Trump's 400 lb hacker who has left his mother's basement just this one time to sit right beside me.
8
Takeoff! At landing I am tired and stiff and cranky from sitting still in tight quarters, even if only for a couple of hours. The body is not meant to sit still for even that long.
10
This beautiful essay invokes the pleasure and sense of adventure of flying. Now I want to head some place I've never been before.
If only flight didn't have to begin and end at an airport!
10
For those of you who love the thrill of plane takeoff: add a scenic helicopter ride to your bucket list. Vertical takeoff is even more of a sensory blast. If you take the kids, they will never ever forget it (I didn't).
4
This month I experienced my grand daughter's first flight at 2 1/2years of age. The look in her eyes as the roar of the engines and power put her back in her seat was amzaing. Opa we are flying like a bird as she gazed out over the clouds. After we landed she was walikng through Sacramento airport and stopped put her fingers together and said " it was a little bit scarry but fun." So I assumed she liked take offs. After a week onthe farm with the baby goats, horses and miniature donkeys we returned. On approach to Ontario 50 minutes after take off she wanted out was donewith the thrill. Coming out of the walkway into the terminal she broke into a happy hoka dance I had never seen. Saying "Yes yes we made it we are back home" entertaining all those waiting to board brought smiles to all of us. I can only conclude that She prefers landings.
10
Many thanks, Mark, for another lovely and evocative piece! As a long time reader of your works, seeing your name again at the start of a new piece signals me to sit down and prepare for a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience.
I'm sorry that the B747 is slowing vanishing after having served so many of us as a magic carpet for so many years, but I hope you'll still be winging around the world in a later model.
Happy (con)trails!
7
Mark, you are a poet who is a pilot!
Reading your writing, whether book form or columns, is a beautiful experience.
It lifts me beyond any runway, and lands me in appreciation.
(yes, like you, I'll always take the window seat!)
Alice
10
I look forward to landings. Take-offs trigger anxiety in me. I have learned to calm my nerves, count to ten, and silence the noise in my head.
Landings signify the beginning of what's to come when I land in a new city and after I come home. I start to perk up when the flight attendants walk through the cabin to collect trash. After the "bing" to put on seatbelts and notification from the pilot we are about to descend, I begin organizing my carry-on items under the seat. There is this calm that comes over me when I hear the wheels release.
I exit the plane ready for a new journey.
6
Since I never have been in a dragster, the only, very mild, thrill I can get like it is to finally feel the pilot line up the airliner on those white takeoff stripes on the runway, imagine the throttle levers being pulled back as I feel my body being pushed back in my seat. It brings a grin to my face, and I can't help thinking that even these jaded airline pilots internally are yelling,"WHOOPPEE!" as we all feel their multi-ton aluminum tube defying gravity again, the landing gear thumping and closing into the wings, the slats, flaps and ailerons shifting and clacking.
And the landing: the shivering thought of, "Here we go...." The wings flare again, the landing gear descend from their compartments and groan like someone unhappily shaken from slumber, a whoosh, and finally boomp! as we touch down, the disconcerting reverse thrusters now pitching us forward. A barely noticeable landing is the work of an artiste pilot; remember to thank them for their expertise as you exit.
Oh, I love both landing and takeoff. Much has changed as far as the total experience of airline flying, but they still have to get up and come down, and that thrill for me will never change.
28
@CM
What a wonderful comment, so artfully written. It captured (for me) the thrill of flying! Thank you.
11
@CM, I'm with you! I've been on a lot of flights all over the place and I'll never get over the thrill of both taking off and landing. I adore feeling the POWER surging through my body, and every time on take off, I too say to myself (and the plane), "Here we go ..." and then "GO, GO, GO, GO, GO, GO GO" until the power levels off and we're "in the blue." How embarrassing. HOW WONDERFUL! Great article.
3
I like the rush of the takeoff and the promise of the landing. Flying is an amazing experience, though it has become onerous these days with TSA and jammed-full planes.
We almost got blown over sideways landing at SeaTac a couple of years ago- the pilot suddenly swept up and circled around for another attempt. He stuck it . . . barely. We could feel the keening wind trying to flip the plane tip over teakettle. The terminal never looked so good as we taxied in.
Scary.
But I believe it was Patrick Smith, he of "Cockpit Confidential" fame, who alerted his readers that takeoffs are the most dangerous part of any airplane flight, at least in statistical terms.
So maybe landings win out after all.
2
Any landing you walk away from is a good landing.
Lovely writing. Thanks.
16
Thanks for the lovely essay which I read after hiking Yokun Ridge earlier today watching a number of planes both taking off and landing at the Pittsfield airport on a spectacular summer day in the Berkshires.
4
First, I'm not a pilot. But my current trip's landing in CCS was the absolute first where I felt absolutely ... nothing. No constraints, no nothing. I had arrived
2
Lovely text. It's landings for me, mainly because they take longer. I love taking photos from the plane window - to the point of checking landing corridors on Flightradar24 when I'm about to take a flight to a new location - and landings offer many more possibilities than take-offs. But I love them all.
4
My 1st flight was at 5 years old, may decades ago (I won't reveal how many), before jet planes were the norm and cross-country flights had to stop to refuel. How planes and flights have changed since that time, but never my love of flying. Take off is the choice for me; love getting above the earth - it always seems I leave any troubles on the ground and bring above it all gives me a better perspective of what's important. Landing, even if it's in a new foreign place which I much anticipate exploring, is a let down (no pun intended) because the magic of the flight, the clouds and stars is over - until the next one of course!
11
My wife prefers takeoffs. I prefer landings. She is always excited about the roar and the power required to takeoff. I prefer the landings because it is reassuring to know you have arrived. I remember a particularly landing when it was so smooth I never felt the wheels hitting the ground.
15
It’s plausible that subjecting the human body to the non-standard G forces of takeoff enacts a biological override on our sense perception, which by itself is enough to account for the qualitative difference between takeoff and landings.
The preference then reduces to the personal one for two modes of perception: the hug of acceleration, versus the spectacle of landscape.
1
Take off! Nothing better than the sound of the engines spooling up and feeling the thrust as we speed down the runway. My favorite is the sound of the 777-300ER which uses the largest jet engines ever made. The fuselage of a 737 would fit comfortably within the diameter of the engines.
The spool up has what sounds like two stages. Very exciting stuff.
8
@N Yes -- we rode a 777 on Delta returning from Paris to Atlanta in May. Great ride, great service. But it still felt good to touch down with a smooth landing in the U.S.A.
2
Actually, my favorite part of a flight is the apex when I feel the plane shift and begin its decent. It's usually gradual and something my inner ear seems to sense or perhaps it's that space high on my neck between my shoulder blades that tells us something has changed.
I often think about it from the perspective of a teeter totter delicately balanced as it shifts back and forth.
7
Lovely essay, and I have to say I enjoy both takeoffs and landings, as well as the view out the window in between. It is exciting to leave and a relief to arrive.
My sister, a pilot, shared this joke about landings: on a particularly rough landing, the captain congratulated her for her "textbook landing", one of her first as copilot in that aircraft. Knowing she had set the plane down hard, she protested. No, he insisted, it was indeed a textbook landing, then explained: You know if you stack a bunch of textbooks on a desk and then push them off all at once and they land with a thud? That's a textbook landing.
May your landings be gentle. And safe.
62
What an engaging essay! The narrative triggered a memory of a time when I was "flying" in the right seat on a 2 seat Cessna with a friend who was an experienced pilot. On my first adventure with him, I recall looking down from about 3000 feet and asking him, "Could you land it here if you had to?" His reaction was surprising. He said that it was a pretty astute question because a pilot is "always landing" as the trip progresses. And so it is for me...always asking myself, could I land here (in NY, CT, CA, AK, NH)? Answer "yes" to all.
Still taking off after all these years...
16
In the beginning 95% of your mind was on the physical aspects of controlling the aircraft and making it do what you wanted it to. 5% was your mind. At the end of my career you could reverse that, the physical part of flying had become almost instinctual, I didn't have to think about flying i, it was automatic in the sense that I knew exactly when to manipulate the controls in the direction and configuration I wanted the aircraft to fly. Pilots do get better with time. Most flight problems were solved prior to flight, the unexpected was what you really got paid for. The trite saying I was familiar with was takeoffs are optional, landings are mandatory and as the author states the good takeoffs should equal the successful landings. Do that and stay out of the office politics and with luck you will have a successful career.
6
Although—after experience with turbulence and all too many media reports of terrorism and tragedy—every landing is a relief, no landing can ever compare with the bright-eyed anticipation of takeoff. Even now—in my 70s—it’s a rare flight when I don’t take off with a giddy thrill to be off on a new adventure or the repeat of a much-enjoyed old one or the joy of soon reuniting with loved ones. Even now—with our next trip scarcely more than a general idea—the mere thought of that nose lifting up puts a silly grin on my face.
45
On a trip to Alaska about 35 years ago, we took a floatplane trip to a wilderness lake. The plane had two seats (I sat on our backpacks) and the pilot was 19 years old wearing hip waders. Both the takeoff and landing were so subtle I had to look out to know when the "boat" part ended and the plane part began. Of course, there could have been bad weather with significant waves that would have been totally different, but our experience was so smooth that I enjoyed both the takeoff and landing equally.
16
Rich reflections, from a perspective most of us don't share, as we are passengers. At this point in my life, I'm for landings, especially the ones I barely noticed. Passing back to the dust to which we all return, gently.
12
Captain Vanhoenacker writes as beautifully and expressively as my hero Ernie Gann, who wrote "Fate is the Hunter", among other wonderful memoirs.
12
Beautiful essay and many eloquent comments. Flying can be a joyful experience.
17
If you flew the morning Delta flight from Tampa to Boston in the early 70's, takeoffs and landings were inconsequential. It was in-flight service that was the thrill. In coach then was business class today. Champagne breakfast couldn't be beat. You just never wanted the flight to end.
41
Definitely the takeoff. As the aircraft lifts off from the ground, I literally leave all my earthly burdens behind and truly feel free to zoom amongst the clouds.
13
Landings person, definitely.
No matter if landing from the outbound or return segment of a trip, landing means that an inevitably (at least for my ears) uncomfortable flight is over.
If I am landing at my destination, then vacation is about to start.
If I am landing back home, then I am about to see my pets.
Either is great! :)
22
I have little desire to see most new places. There are many factors that make it not worthwhile to me.
Of course I could possibly be convinced otherwise, but I'm not expecting that to happen anytime soon.
Though I wouldn't mind an electric sailplane to escape the reality of being a human for a while.
To take part in flying the machine is what I crave. And to be free of most of today's gadgets; that is, beyond the powerplant system, all else can remain of the early 20th century type. Afterall, I'm only leaving the earth for as much as an hour - that is, if both my battery and that of the plane will allow for it.
Oh, takeoffs and landings are enjoyed equally, as they each bring their own special reasons.
6
Not a pilot but I took a couple of lessons in my late teens, from a tiny rural airport. And have occasionally taken small plane flights for fun, and still have the rush of anticipation on taking off.
In my home town area, seeing everything from that vantage point changed everything. There were patterns to the landscape, but there were no visible barriers up there. Few people realize that the airways were much freer then: there were small single runway airports in many small towns, and flying a small single engine plane wasn't prohibitively expensive.
And landings - more literally, are often interesting: the short approach to San Diego, or in my area how typical flights coming from the North into White Plains go out over Long Island Sound and turn back.
Despite the fact that we can see pictures and videos of almost anything -- I still love seeing the real thing from a plane: favorites include coming in over the Hudson Valley in its fall colors, seeing Mount St. Helens modeled by sunset light, and having a eagle's eye view of an abstract white and gray Greenland coast while heading back toward the US.
As for landing home again: we all need a nest, somewhere we belong, with people we care about. As we age we know what we would lose without it - and we know it isn't guaranteed anymore than a safe landing for every takeoff.
14
Thank you for sharing your great and evocative writing with us. Your beautiful words reminded me of why I absolutely love to fly - takeoffs, landings, and even some roller coaster turbulence.
I felt transported by this essay, and besides shedding a few tears (of appreciation), I found myself in a joyful and meditative space while I read your essay. I felt like I was flying.
With gratitude and good wishes!
30
both for me. what really gets me though is the people who close the window slides beginning even with taxiing. shutting out the beauty and "miracle" of flight? i don't get it. (cfii)
176
@Robert
When I am in a window seat, I close the shade for the entire flight because I am very glare sensitive due to lasik eye surgery.
2
I always prefer a window seat -- but not always for the view. There might be very little to see due to low overcast or it being a night flight; or I might have seen that same view dozens of times; or I might want to fall asleep as soon as possible (one of the reasons I prefer a window seat is so that I can sleep undisturbed by people climbing over me or by the refreshments cart jostling me). So although I will often enjoy the view out the window, equally often I will ignore it, or there may not be a view in the first place.
2
@Robert in Europe you have to keep the shade open during takeoff and landing. I love it.
6
The takeoff is a promise. The landing is the moment of achievement.
96
On those vacations when we flew Alitalia across the Pond, upon landing, dozens of Italian passengers would spontaneously break out in applause. My wife and I understood why immediately.
To this day, we do the same (low key) on all foreign and domestic flights upon landing. "Whew, we made it!"
11
While the beginning of my career was exciting and challenging, I have found retirement to be far more enjoyable. Every day is Saturday... Cocktail anyone? 😎
31
Both! The journey begins, destination is reached!
10
Take offs are optional, landing are required. Actually, I’m neither. I’m the guy stuck in row 28 between two 300 pounders one of which is obviously allergic to soap and water and the other digging for gold in his nose. If at all possible I drive!
24
Used to fly every other week with two or three take offs and landings per trip. Always loved the takeoff from my home city and the landing in the new one. Now I only fly a few times per year but still feel the same way.
6