What a hard landing is, and what a go-around is

This page explains two terms: a hard landing, which may need checking afterwards, and a go-around, which is a landing that was not made.^[1][2]

Hard landings

The UK Civil Aviation Authority says the primary trigger for a hard landing report should be the captain's own assessment. Operators should train staff to report a suspected hard landing so that it can be investigated before any further flight.^[1]

The CAA wrote this after an Airbus A321 was not flared enough on landing, producing a hard landing categorised as severe. It was not reported, and a crack in a wing rib gear support was found only after two more flights. Some aircraft also record loads themselves: on the A320 family, structural exceedances appear in a report from the aircraft's data management unit.^[1]

Go-arounds

In a go-around the crew stops the approach and climbs away instead of landing. The FAA's training handbook calls it a normal manoeuvre, used when the approach does not go as expected or when it is hazardous to continue. Its training guidance is to go around if the approach is not stable by 500 ft above the airport in good visibility, or 1,000 ft in instrument conditions.^[2]

The handbook lists reasons for a go-around, among them:^[2]

• Air traffic control instructions, or another aircraft or a hazard on the runway.^[2]
• Wind shear or wake turbulence.^[2]
• A mechanical problem, or an approach that is not stable.^[2]

It also rejects the idea that a go-around means a poor approach or a lack of skill, calling that a fallacy. The manoeuvre is not dangerous in itself, the FAA says; it becomes dangerous only when it is left too late or flown badly.^[2]