Malaysia Airlines pilot praised for ‘crabbing’ plane landing at Heathrow

 

A video of the Airbus A350-900’s landing shows its nose veering sharply to the side as it battles with the wind, both rear wheels on the ground and the nose at an almost 45-degree angle.

PETALING JAYA: 

A Malaysia Airlines pilot has been praised for the “crabbing” plane landing he performed at Heathrow Airport in the UK amid powerful crosswinds on Saturday.

According to the UK’s Daily Express, the unnamed pilot of the Airbus A350-900 was seen employing the technique to maintain control while being affected by strong winds caused by Storm Darragh.

The storm saw wind speeds of up to 154kph in southern England, which forced many planes to undertake multiple landing attempts.

A video of the Malaysia Airlines aircraft’s landing shows its nose veering sharply to the side as it battled with the wind, with both rear wheels finally on the ground and the nose at an almost 45-degree angle.

In the “crabbing” technique employed, the pilot intentionally directed the aircraft’s nose into the wind while continuing to fly straight ahead, landing almost sideways like a crab, the report said.

This enabled the plane to counter the wind’s force and align with the runway.

Some commenters online said it appeared as if it “looked like row 40 in economy was landing first”, while others lauded the skill of the pilot for achieving “quite a spectacular crab angle”. - FMT