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2 Answers

Emergency Landing

Asked by: 3157 views FAA Regulations, General Aviation, Student Pilot

If say I have an engine failure and I am forced to say land in a field in the middle of no where as I am flying VFR, obviously set transponder to 7700 and notify nearest Tower if in reach( if not go to 121.5). But once I land what do I do in terms of contacting the right people about the incident?

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2 Answers



  1. John D Collins on Sep 10, 2015

    An accident needs to be reported to the NTSB according to NTSB Rule 830 criteria. An off field landing may or may not be an accident. If it does not qualify as an accident according to the NTSB rule, then no report of the incident is required. So a landing in which there are no injuries, damage to objects on the ground does not exceed $25,000 and the aircraft is not substantially damaged is just an incident and need not be reported. So a forced landing because of a catastrophic engine failure with a landing in a corn field, busting the nose gear off, and damaging the prop would not usually be an accident, but would be classified as an incident.

    Call someone who can help you, but don’t call the FAA.

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  2. Kris Kortokrax on Sep 13, 2015

    You might not call the FAA, but if the police respond (which they usually do), FAA Flight Standards will be notified. Also, if you squawk 7700 and call ATC on 121.5, who do you think is looking at the radar screen or answering your radio call? You got it, the FAA. ATC will send a notice to Flight Standards.

    If your engine fails because of a mechanical issue, there won’t be any problem with the FAA. If it fails because your fuel tanks were contaminated with air, you might have a little explaining to do.

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