Engine Failure After Takeoff
Why “the impossible turn” is so dangerous and how to plan for an engine failure on climb-out.
Few emergencies demand a faster, better-rehearsed response than an engine failure just after takeoff. Low, slow and with little time, the pilot’s pre-briefed plan matters more than improvisation.
Fly the aeroplane first
The immediate priority is airspeed: lower the nose to hold best glide speed. A surprising amount of altitude is lost simply trapping a stall as the engine quits while the nose is high.
The “impossible turn”
The instinct to turn back to the runway is often fatal at low altitude. A 180° turn back actually requires more than 180° of turning plus realignment, costs significant altitude, and is flown steeply and slowly — exactly where an accelerated stall and spin lurk. Below a personally-determined decision altitude (often 700–1,000 ft AGL, established for your aircraft on a calm day at altitude), the correct choice is to land more or less ahead, accepting a damaged aircraft over a stall/spin.
A workable plan
- Before every takeoff, brief: “If the engine fails before [altitude], I land ahead in the area I can see; above it, I will consider returning.”
- Pick the touchdown area within roughly a 30°–45° cone ahead — fields, roads, open ground.
- Maintain glide speed, complete only the memory items time allows (fuel, mixture, magnetos, pumps), and commit early to the landing site.
The aircraft is insured; the occupants are not replaceable. A controlled arrival into a field, wings level, at minimum speed is highly survivable.
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*Reference and training only — not for navigation. Always consult the current AIM, your aircraft’s POH/AFM and a certificated flight instructor.*