The Dangers of Sticking With a Bad Approach

If you think about the flying you’ve done, you probably never wanted to go around (other than in training). Nobody wants to go around. It can feel like admitting you messed up the approach. 

Maybe you’re worried about what your passengers will think, the time added to the flight, the extra fuel required, or how you really wanted to nail this landing. 

Here’s the truth. The decision not to go around has wrecked a lot more planes than the decision to go around. Yet pilots keep sticking with unstable approaches, trying to salvage them all the way to the ground. Sometimes they get away with it, and sometimes they don’t. 

Let’s look at why that happens and how to make sure you’re not the one hoping you can “make it work.”

Why Pilots Don’t Go Around — Even When They Should

1. “I’ve Got This” Syndrome

You’re on final. You're a little high and fast, but you think you can fix it. You tell yourself, “I can work this out,” even as the runway threshold comes up fast.

2. Get-There-Itis in the Flare

We’ve talked about get-there-itis earlier in this series. It doesn’t just happen in cruise. It shows up when you’re determined to land on this runway, this time, no matter what.

3. Ego

You’ve got people on board. You don’t want to look like you don’t know what you’re doing. So instead of going around, you keep pushing, hoping to salvage a touchdown.

4. Task Saturation

Sometimes you’re so focused on getting the airplane on the ground that you lose track of how far outside the envelope you really are.

The Botched Approach You Can’t Save

Imagine you’re flying a Cessna 172 into a small, uncontrolled airport. Winds are shifting, and they’re a little stronger than forecast. You turn final a little too high and fast. You’re descending, but you’re not on the glidepath. You figure you’ll just slip it in or land long. 

You cross the numbers still carrying extra speed, and there it is…the float! You float…and float… By the time you touch down, you’re more than halfway down the runway, still going faster than you should. 

Now you’re running out of pavement. You get on the brakes hard, but it’s too late. You end up off the far end of the runway, into the grass, or worse. The part that keeps replaying in your head is that you knew you should have gone around at the start of the approach. You just didn’t.

I remember being a newly minted private pilot flying my wife to Sedona (KSEZ). It took me two go-arounds to get the Cessna 172 on the ground safely. The first time, I was really fast and high. The second time, I was just fast and high. The third time was much better and led to a stabilized approach and landing—albeit a couple of small bounces, but who’s counting? I only logged one! 

Did I feel a little goofy after? Yes, but I knew it was okay to go around. My instructors drilled that into my head during training. My wife and I still laugh about that flight all those years ago. I’m proud to say we are still here because of the go-around. Trying to make a landing work at KSEZ could end up fatal.

Go-Arounds Are Not a Failure

Go-arounds are a decision to stop a bad situation from getting worse. The airlines practice them constantly, as do Part 135 and military pilots. If they can do it, so can the typical general aviation pilot flying for the $100 hamburger.

Going around says:

• “I’m in control of this situation.”

• “I’m flying by the book, not by ego.”

• “I trained to go around."

• “I’m going to set this up right and land safely.”

Passengers are usually impressed that you’re making the safe call. They want to get to their destination safely, and so do you. You get to fly another day.

When To Go Around — No Questions Asked

Unstable Approach

• You’re too high, too low, too fast, or too slow.

• You’re not configured early enough (flaps, gear, trim).

• You’re making big corrections on short final.

If you’re working too hard to make it work, it’s not going to. Think back to the best landings you’ve ever had. They started with a stabilized approach. If any of the above points are not correct or are out of tolerance, that is the time to go around. You don’t have to wait until 100 feet AGL to execute the go-around.

Excessive Sink Rate

Are you dropping like a rock? Add power and go around. Better to do it early than wait until you’re on the verge of a hard landing—or worse.

Runway Not Clear or Traffic Conflict

Somebody pulls out on the runway. A deer runs across. Whatever it is, go around. In early 2025, we saw a Southwest pilot execute a go-around as a business jet crossed the runway at Chicago’s Midway Airport. Exercising the go-around is essential for the airplane to land safely.

Crosswind Exceeds Your Comfort Zone

If you’re fighting to stay aligned and it feels like you’re losing, don’t force it. Go around or pick another runway.

Loss of Situational Awareness

If you’re suddenly not sure where you are on the approach—or your brain is lagging behind the airplane—break it off, regroup, and try again.

How To Make Go-Arounds Second Nature

Practice Them (A Lot).

Most private pilots only practice go-arounds during checkrides or flight reviews. Make them a regular part of your flying. If you haven’t done one in a while, go practice. I had an instructor tell me, “Plan to go around, and if everything works out, you’ll get to land.” Be spring-loaded to go around.

Brief It Every Time.

Before you land, say to yourself (or your passengers), “If things aren’t stable, we go around.” Make it part of your mental flow.

Don’t Wait for Perfection.

You don’t have to wait until things get really bad to go around. If something doesn’t feel right, fix it by adding power, climbing, and resetting.

You don’t get points for making a bad landing. You get points for making safe decisions, and the go-around is one of the best tools you’ve got for doing exactly that. The best pilots aren’t the ones who “never go around.” They’re the ones who go around early, before a bad approach becomes a bad accident.

If you don’t listen to Aviation News Talk with Max Trescott, I recommend it. It’s an excellent podcast for any pilot. The theme song he plays at the end of each episode is “Go Around” by Ken Dravis. The song is great, and it can get stuck in your head (warning). It keeps the idea of performing a go-around on the brain.

“You can always go around,
If it don't look right comin' down.
Don't wait until you're sideways, maybe slidin' on the ground.
You can always go around.”