The dramatic final moments of the arrival of a Cathay Pacific Airbus A350 at London’s Heathrow Airport were caught on camera at the weekend.
The legendary team at Big Jet TV have shared their footage of the touchdown which was streamed live to an audience of thousands via their YouTube channel.
Jerry Dyer of Big Jet TV posted the clip on Twitter.
BOSH! A350 HARD LANDING 😮
CX239 from Hong Kong smokes the mains on Rwy 27L during crosswinds at London Heathrow. Watch as the opposite inertia kicks the 230 tonne flying machine all over the place. A real battle between pilot and machine to get that thing straightened up with… pic.twitter.com/Jh1VprMFrf— BIG JET TV (@BigJetTVLIVE) July 17, 2023
“Watch as the opposite inertia kicks the 230 tonne flying machine all over the place,” he said.
The aircraft was operating CX239 from Hong Kong.
“A real battle between pilot and machine to get that thing straightened up with the rudder – Pilot won it 💪🏻”
“The direction that thing was facing once they’d caught it, I seriously thought they would Go-Around.
Dyer said pilots had spoken to him about the landing following the live online broadcast.
“Pilots were saying after the show, and I completely understand, that ‘this footage doesn’t replicate the turbulence we experience in the last 2 miles of approach’.”
“I’ve been a passenger during strong winds on approach. Seeing the wing flexing and the flight surfaces going crazy,
“I imagine the pilots up-front in complete calm: Aircraft crabbing, NFP calling-out the numbers, picking their moment to go manual, one hand on the Thrust Levers, expecting those last-second gusts. Even during a landing like this, you’d be surprised to see just how calm the pilots are when it’s all going-on.”
The moment was also captured from another angle by Evie Aviation. It shared the landing on its popular YouTube channel.
