Back to basics this week on the Learn to Fly Blog. Today, we’re talking about landing gear. This post is excerpted from the Pilot’s Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge.
The landing gear forms the principal support of an aircraft on the surface. The most common type of landing gear consists of wheels, but aircraft can also be equipped with floats for water operations or skis for landing on snow.
The landing gear on small aircraft consists of three wheels: two main wheels (one located on each side of the fuselage) and a third wheel positioned either at the front or rear of the airplane. Landing gear employing a rear-mounted wheel is called conventional landing gear. Airplanes with conventional landing gear are often referred to as tailwheel airplanes. When the third wheel is located on the nose, it is called a nosewheel, and the design is referred to as a tricycle gear. A steerable nosewheel or tailwheel permits the airplane to be controlled throughout all operations while on the ground.
Tricycle Landing Gear Airplanes
A tricycle gear airplane has three advantages:
- It allows more forceful application of the brakes during landings at high speeds without causing the aircraft to nose over.
- It permits better forward visibility for the pilot during takeoff, landing, and taxiing.
- It tends to prevent ground looping (swerving) by providing more directional stability during ground operation since the aircraft’s center of gravity (CG) is forward of the main wheels. The forward CG keeps the airplane moving forward in a straight line rather than ground looping.
Nosewheels are either steerable or castering. Steerable nosewheels are linked to the rudders by cables or rods, while castering nosewheels are free to swivel. In both cases, the aircraft is steered using the rudder pedals. Aircraft with a castering nosewheel may require the pilot to combine the use of the rudder pedals with independent use of the brakes.
Tailwheel Landing Gear Airplanes
Tailwheel landing gear aircraft have two main wheels attached to the airframe ahead of its CG that support most of the weight of the structure. A tailwheel at the very back of the fuselage provides a third point of support. This arrangement allows adequate ground clearance for a larger propeller and is more desirable for operations on unimproved fields.
Tailwheel landing gear.With the CG located behind the main gear, directional control of this type aircraft becomes more difficult while on the ground. This is the main disadvantage of the tailwheel landing gear. For example, if the pilot allows the aircraft to swerve while rolling on the ground at a low speed, he or she may not have sufficient rudder control and the CG will attempt to get ahead of the main gear which may cause the airplane to ground loop.
Lack of good forward visibility when the tailwheel is on or near the ground is a second disadvantage of tailwheel landing gear aircraft. These inherent problems mean specific training is required in tailwheel aircraft.
Fixed and Retractable Landing Gear
Landing gear can also be classified as either fixed or retractable. A fixed gear always remains extended and has the advantage of simplicity combined with low maintenance. A retractable gear is designed to streamline the airplane by allowing the landing gear to be stowed inside the structure during cruising flight.
A fixed gear airplane.
A retractable gear airplane.
