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A review by easyqueenie
How to Land a Plane (Little Ways to Live a Big Life) by Mark Vanhoenacker
5.0
Sophie isn’t a great flyer, although she does adore commercial aircraft and is a regular plane spotter; it’s just the whole actual being in the air bit that makes her a little nervous. That’s why she found the concept of Mark Vanhoenacker’s short book How to Land a Plane so interesting. It begins with the premise that you have suddenly found yourself in sole charge of landing the aircraft you are currently on board and attempts to talk you through the process.
Mark starts out by introducing you to the cabin, explaining the controls and instruments you’re going to see and which ones are the most important to use in this situation. He then talks you through simple, easy to follow procedures used by real pilots to assess difficult or unusual situations, getting you in touch with the people who will be able to help you, then guiding you through what crucial information to relay to them and where to find it. Sophie found the guide to understanding runway lights and markings particularly fascinating and has been watching videos shot from airplane cockpits to see them in action.
The whole book is written in a chatty, relaxed style. It’s almost like Bob Ross is talking you through the landing process. And, even though it’s obvious that the premise of this book is somewhat tongue-in-cheek (the likelihood of it ever being used by a real passenger suddenly needing to pilot down a 747 singlehandedly is almost nil) Sophie felt that by the end of it, she could actually enter a cockpit and have a reasonable idea of what she was looking at, how to make some basic corrections, and how to get help. Not bad for a 64-page book she read in its entirety during a single train journey.
Mark starts out by introducing you to the cabin, explaining the controls and instruments you’re going to see and which ones are the most important to use in this situation. He then talks you through simple, easy to follow procedures used by real pilots to assess difficult or unusual situations, getting you in touch with the people who will be able to help you, then guiding you through what crucial information to relay to them and where to find it. Sophie found the guide to understanding runway lights and markings particularly fascinating and has been watching videos shot from airplane cockpits to see them in action.
The whole book is written in a chatty, relaxed style. It’s almost like Bob Ross is talking you through the landing process. And, even though it’s obvious that the premise of this book is somewhat tongue-in-cheek (the likelihood of it ever being used by a real passenger suddenly needing to pilot down a 747 singlehandedly is almost nil) Sophie felt that by the end of it, she could actually enter a cockpit and have a reasonable idea of what she was looking at, how to make some basic corrections, and how to get help. Not bad for a 64-page book she read in its entirety during a single train journey.