So why are these the most dangerous phase in a flight?
As discussed above, anything can happen during these phases like bird strikes, engines injesting runway debris, landing gear problems, crosswinds, mid-air collisions, and so on. In fact, as the aircraft comes closer to the ground, the more they are also closer to other aircraft moving at almost the same speed rather than at cruising altitude where aircraft are quite distant from one another.
Landing an aircraft is actually more hazardous than take-offs but both have their challenges. Airplanes love to fly, and they are designed to fly that sometimes, it can get tricky making them stop especially in the presence of unpredictable winds and slippery runways.
Take-off is also a very critical and dangerous point of a flight. Both Lion Air and Ethiopian Air Boeing 737 Max 8 crashes happened during the climb, when the sensor on the Maneuvering Characteristic Augmentation System (MCAS) allegedly malfunctioned. The US Airways "Miracle on the Hudson" water landing happened during take-off when the aircraft suffered a multiple birdstrike and both engines flamed out.
During take-off, the pilot calls V1 and V2. Basically, V1 is the "commit to fly" speed, meaning, even during an engine failure, the aircraft has to fly. It is the decision speed where there is no more stopping no matter what happens. V2 on the other hand is the speed where the airplane will climb in the event of an engine failure. This is also known as "take-off safety speed."
So always remember that when the flight crew gives you instructions to prepare for take-off and landing, be sure to follow them as this is actually a very dangerous phase of the flight. Never take these instructions for granted as they may mean life or death situations.
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