Private pilot · ACS PA.IV.D
Soft-Field Approach and Landing
A soft-field landing puts the airplane down as gently and slowly as possible on grass, mud, sand or snow.
You keep the weight on the wings and the nosewheel off, then keep rolling to firm ground.
Why this one matters
On a soft surface a firm touchdown or a dropped nosewheel can dig in, bend the nose gear or flip the airplane. A stop in mud or snow can strand you or need dangerous power to move. Landing slowly and gently, and keeping the weight on the wings, protects the airplane and the people in it.
Can’t miss
- •Carry some power through the roundout and touchdown: fly 1 to 2 feet off the surface in ground effect as speed dissipates, and touch down nose-high at minimum controllable airspeed with minimum sink.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- •Keep the nosewheel off the surface as long as the elevator allows, then lower it gently.(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IV.D.S9)
- •Keep back pressure and avoid braking on the soft surface; keep enough speed to roll off it without stopping.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- •Fly the manufacturer's published approach speed; only if none is published, not more than 1.3 VSO. Either way, +10/-5 knots with the gust factor applied, and the recommended flaps.(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IV.D.S7)
- •A stabilized approach still comes first: go around if it isn’t working.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- •Soft surfaces hide ruts and holes: look at the strip before landing, and know its condition from the Chart Supplement or the operator.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- •Soft- and short-field landings are near opposites after touchdown. Soft: little or no braking, nosewheel held off. Short: aerodynamic braking with back pressure first, then flaps up as the POH directs to put weight on the wheels, then maximum braking. Short-field braking habits on a soft surface dig in the nosewheel.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
What you should know
The approach K1 · K2 · K3 · R1
- Fly a normal stabilized approach at the POH speed with the recommended flaps. Energy management is the same: right speed, right path, small corrections.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- High density altitude means a higher groundspeed at the same indicated airspeed: a longer float and roll.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aircraft Performance)
- Crab on final and sideslip in the flare to touch down without drift.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Choose the firmest, longest part of the strip, into the wind, and plan to keep rolling and leave the soft area at a speed that won't let the airplane sink in, stopping only on firm ground.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Fly the ACS steps where they happen: the checklist, the radio calls, lined up with the correct runway, a scan of the runway and surroundings for traffic and obstructions, and a touchdown point chosen for the wind, surface and obstacles, with an aiming point before it.(FAA-S-ACS-6C, PA.IV.D.S1-S5)
- Energy management as a picture: on a stabilized approach the aiming point stays fixed in the windshield, and you touch down beyond it after the roundout and float. Airspeed is kinetic energy, altitude potential; manage them with power and pitch together. If the aiming point moves, the speed is off, or the configuration isn't set by short final, go around early rather than stretch a low approach with pitch.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Bound the hold-off: before final, pick a touchdown zone and a hard go-around point. Hold 1 to 2 feet over that zone only; not on the ground by the go-around point, for any reason including a gusty float, means full power and go around while there's runway and climb performance left.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
Touchdown and rollout
- Power is the defining technique: carry a degree of power throughout the roundout and touchdown. Hold the airplane 1 to 2 feet above the surface in ground effect as speed dissipates, and touch down at the lowest possible airspeed in a nose-high attitude, using power to cushion the touchdown and control the transfer of weight from the wings to the wheels, with minimum sink.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- After touchdown, use back pressure and power together to control the weight transfer: keep the nosewheel off as long as the elevator allows, then add a little power to ease it down gently.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Keep the elevator back during the rollout and taxi, and avoid braking: keep enough speed to get off the soft area.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
Wind, surface and wake on landing R2
- Crosswind: crab on the approach and change to a sideslip (upwind wing low, opposite rudder) before touchdown, or set up the wing-low sideslip earlier on final. Touch down with no drift, aligned with the centerline, on the upwind main wheel first in a stronger crosswind, and keep increasing aileron into the wind during the rollout.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- The POH’s maximum demonstrated crosswind component is what was tested, not a limitation. Set your own limit, and use a runway more nearly into the wind when you can.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- A tailwind raises your groundspeed and landing distance. Gusts: the gust factor is the peak gust minus the steady wind (10 gusting 20 is 10 knots); add no more than half of it (5 knots) to your approach speed.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Wind shear on short final can cause a sudden loss of airspeed and a high sink rate. Be ready to add power and go around.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Wake turbulence: behind a larger airplane landing, stay above its approach path and land beyond its touchdown point.(AIM, Chapter 7, Wake Turbulence)
- Wet or grass surfaces lengthen the landing roll and reduce braking. Use the POH corrections.(PHAK (FAA-H-8083-25C), Aircraft Performance)
Planning for the go-around, and LAHSO R3
- Plan every approach as a go-around: brief yourself on when you’ll go around (unstable, too fast, too high, drifting, traffic on the runway) before you start. Touchdown isn't a point of no return: after a bad bounce, a big balloon or a loss of control, with enough runway left, a rejected landing is still available (full power, the right attitude and configuration per the POH, and tell ATC).(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- A LAHSO clearance means landing and stopping before an intersecting runway or point. You may decline it; student pilots and pilots unfamiliar with LAHSO should not accept it. Know the available landing distance and your airplane’s performance.(AIM 4-3-11, Pilot Responsibilities When Conducting Land and Hold Short Operations (LAHSO))
- If you accept LAHSO and then must go around, keep safe separation from the intersecting traffic and tell the tower promptly.(AIM 4-3-11, Pilot Responsibilities When Conducting Land and Hold Short Operations (LAHSO))
Low, slow and busy R4 · R5 · R6
- Takeoffs and landings are where traffic converges: look for airplanes on final and on the runway before you line up or turn final, and use landing lights.(AC 90-48, Pilots' Role in Collision Avoidance)
- Close to the ground there’s no room to recover. A skidding turn to final, a nose-high climb or a stretched glide can stall and spin; flight into terrain or obstacles can follow a distraction.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings)
- Fly the airplane first. Finish checklists and radio calls before the critical moments, and if you’re overloaded on final, go around.(Risk Management Handbook (FAA-H-8083-2A))
Common errors, flaps, crosswind and tailwheels K1 · R3
- The power error chain: closing the throttle abruptly in the roundout removes the cushion, so the airplane sinks at once and lands hard; too much power, or rounding out too high, gives a balloon and a long float, then a stall and drop-in. Keep a hand on the throttle and make small, smooth power changes through touchdown, and watch for a high descent rate.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Soft-Field Approach and Landing)
- Flaps: leave them exactly as you landed until you're off the soft area; don't retract them during the rollout, and keep your attention on direction and weight transfer. Flaps help you touch down slower, but on low-wing airplanes mud, stones or slush thrown up by the wheels can damage them: check the POH and the field first.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Soft-Field Approach and Landing)
- Crosswind: change progressively from the crab to a wing-low sideslip before touchdown (not so high or early that you drift), so you touch down on the upwind main wheel first, aligned with no drift; then lower the downwind wheel and the nosewheel under control while adding aileron into the wind.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Crosswind Approach and Landing)
- The nosewheel model is for tricycle-gear airplanes. In a tailwheel airplane the risk is the main wheels digging in and a nose-over: once the tailwheel is down, hold the stick fully aft.(Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Soft-Field Approach and Landing)
On the flight
ACS standards
- Approach at the manufacturer's published speed, or not more than 1.3 VSO if none is published, +10/-5 knots with the gust factor applied.(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IV.D.S7)
- Touch down at a proper pitch attitude with minimum sink rate, no side drift, aligned with the centerline.(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IV.D.S10)
- Hold the elevator as the manufacturer recommends during the rollout and leave the soft area at a speed that prevents sinking in; go around promptly if the approach can't be flown within tolerances or isn't safe; keep the controls positioned and enough speed to taxi while on the soft surface.(Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C), PA.IV.D.S11-S13)
What your instructor is watching for
Your instructor watches for a stable approach, a gentle touchdown at the lowest speed, the nosewheel held off, no braking on the soft surface, and continuous movement to firm ground.
Scenarios
Decide what you would do first, then see the worked answer.
Arriving at a grass strip after heavy rain, you see standing water at one end.
What do you do? See the worked answer
Overfly it to check the surface, land on the firmest part if it’s suitable, or go to another airport. Standing water can stop the airplane abruptly.
Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings
In the flare, a gust lifts you and you start to float.
What do you do? See the worked answer
Hold the attitude and keep carrying power through the touchdown so the airplane settles gently at minimum sink; if you float past a safe touchdown point, go around.
Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings
You’ve just landed on a soft strip after weeks of short-field practice, and your instinct is to retract the flaps and brake hard.
What do you do instead? See the worked answer
The opposite of a short-field rollout: keep back pressure to hold the nosewheel off, little or no braking, and keep rolling with a bit of power to firm ground. Hard braking here digs in the nosewheel.
Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C), Approaches and Landings
Common mistakes
Letting the nosewheel drop.
It can dig in and damage the gear or flip the airplane.
Instead: Keep increasing back pressure as speed decays.
Braking on the soft surface.
The wheels dig in and the airplane can stop or nose over.
Instead: Let drag slow you; keep moving to firm ground.
Touching down fast.
A fast, firm touchdown loads the gear and lengthens the roll.
Instead: Fly the right approach speed, carry some power, and hold off to minimum controllable airspeed.
Now train it
Say it out loud, hear it asked, and take the quick check in this lesson’s practice pack. It tracks your shaky spots.
Got it?
When it feels solid, practice soft-field approach and landing out loud with our examiner.
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Sources
- Airplane Flying Handbook (FAA-H-8083-3C): Takeoffs and Departure Climbs; Approaches and Landings
- Pilot's Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (FAA-H-8083-25C): Aircraft Performance; Aerodynamics of Flight
- Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM): Chapter 4 (airport operations, LAHSO) and Chapter 7 (wake turbulence)
- AC 91-73: Single Pilot Procedures During Taxi Operations
- Private Pilot ACS (FAA-S-ACS-6C): Area IV
- Your airplane's POH/AFM: normal procedures, performance charts and speeds
Study aid, not FAA guidance. Regulations change; check the current text at eCFR and the ACS. Checked against current sources 2026-11-12.