Tourists are afraid to land here. The pilot cools down his emotions
A European island has one of the most dangerous airports in the world. However, the Polish pilot believes that the tourists’ fears are exaggerated.
The short runway at Funchal airport in Madeira has been raising concerns among tourists for years. The fear when approaching landing is intensified by the strong wind – there are many recordings available on the Internet in which planes visibly swing while descending. However, as Polish pilot Zbigniew Młotkowski assures in an interview with Euronews, this airport is not dangerous, but simply difficult. What he said may reassure unsettled passengers.
The pilots are well prepared
Although Madeira airport has a bad reputation, in fact no serious accident has occurred here for years. The last one was in 2003, when a small private Beechcraft plane crashed into the ocean shortly after takeoff. The biggest disaster occurred in 1977 – when one of the planes ran off the runway. In 2000, the landing strip was extended, but it is still quite short compared to other island airports in Europe.
Indeed, it is not the easiest place to land, but this means that the pilots selected for this task are highly trained. Difficult conditions on site can be learned in advance on a simulator. “The simulator provides a detailed visualization of all natural and man-made objects in the vicinity of the airport, preparing pilots to fly to a real airport,” Zbigniew Młotkowski, director of crew training at Lithuanian charter airline KlasJet, told Euronews. While exercising, you can also set the function for worse weather conditions.
Special requirements in Madeira
According to the documents of NAV Portugal, the company managing the country’s air traffic, pilots must meet specific requirements. “In order to operate at Madeira Airport, the pilot-in-command must have completed there, within the last six months: one landing and take-off, or, flight simulator training, including landing and take-off on each runway, in simulated adverse weather conditions, or a line training flight to Madeira Airport, including landing and take-off, assisted by a qualified instructor in the right seat,” we read.
