In short: This preview samples Rod Machado’s Art of Takeoffs and Landings eCourse, a course built around practical techniques for consistent takeoffs and landings. The clips cover judging your glide path, knowing when to begin the roundout, where student pilots should look during the flare, and how to tame rudder overcontrol.
Video: “The Art of Takeoffs & Landings” by Rod Machado, from his YouTube channel.
What you’ll learn
- How the stationary spot method tells you where your glide path is taking you
- Why a slip should start with aileron, not rudder
- How the runway expansion effect signals the roundout without relying on depth perception
- Rod’s find-the-planet strategy for where students should look during the flare
- How rudder pulses can stop serpentine motion during taxi, takeoff or landing
- A first look at sampling the elevator response in the flare
Why a Whole Course on Takeoffs and Landings
Every flight begins with a takeoff and ends with a landing, yet the course description points out that many pilots were never taught solid fundamentals for either, or have not practiced enough to stay proficient. Rod’s approach mixes original techniques with familiar ones explained from a fresh angle, and sometimes simply confirms that what you already do is right.
The preview opens with glide path judgment. On a stabilized approach, the one spot in the windscreen that does not move is where you are headed. Rod suggests watching your intended landing spot: if it stays fixed, you are on track. He also explains why slips should begin with aileron followed by rudder, since a rudder-first entry produces a brief skid, which is dangerous near the critical angle of attack.
Seeing the Flare Correctly
Two segments focus on vision. The runway expansion effect describes how the runway width at your landing spot appears to grow dramatically in the final seconds before touchdown, conveniently around the height where the roundout should begin.
Then comes what Rod calls the find-the-planet strategy. Experienced instructors use peripheral vision to judge height and closure rate, but students have not developed that yet. So as the roundout begins, Rod has students shift their gaze to the small triangular area to the left of the engine cowling, where the left side of the runway and a sliver of horizon remain visible. There they look for the spot on the runway that appears stationary and no longer blurry, which he places roughly 80 to 100 feet ahead at typical approach speeds. That spot moves closer as the airplane slows, helping the student track height and closure rate.
Taming the Rudder and the Elevator
If you find yourself weaving on the centerline, Rod offers rudder pulsing: a quick push and release on one pedal instead of continuous pressure, used only when normal rudder inputs are not stopping the serpentine motion. The preview closes with sampling the response, a series of tiny pull-and-release elevator motions that keep you at the threshold of control during the flare.
Go deeper with Rod Machado
Each technique previewed here is taught in full, with animation and real cockpit examples, in Rod’s dedicated takeoff and landing course. Learn more in The Art of Takeoffs and Landings eCourse.
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