An engine failure in a single-engine airplane is, mechanically, one of the simplest emergencies to fly: the airplane becomes a glider, and gliders are flown by a small, fixed set of priorities in a fixed order. The difficulty isn't the flying, it's doing those priorities in order, calmly, instead of skipping straight to the part that feels most urgent.
Every emergency procedure in every aircraft, for every kind of failure, begins with the same instruction: maintain aircraft control. An engine failure that's handled calmly, with the airplane flown at the correct speed and attitude the whole time, but with every checklist item missed, still generally ends better than a perfectly executed checklist flown while the airplane is allowed to stall or lose control. Aviate first, navigate second, communicate third, and only then work the checklist.
Best glide speed is the specific airspeed that gives the maximum glide distance per foot of altitude lost, published in the POH for the aircraft's typical weight, and it's the first number to establish after a power failure, before anything else. Flying faster or slower than best glide speed reduces the distance the aircraft can cover, directly shrinking the number of possible landing sites within reach.
With best glide established, the next priority is picking somewhere to land, and picking it early, since a glide only covers so much ground. Preference generally goes to a firm, clear, reasonably long and flat surface, ideally into the wind, with an assessment repeated as the glide continues since the "best" option can change as new terrain comes into range or a first choice turns out to have obstacles. An open field is nearly always a better real choice than "the highway" or "the parking lot," both of which carry real risk from wires, signs, traffic, and vehicles.
Once best glide and a landing site are established, the aircraft-specific engine-out (or "engine restart") checklist is worked, generally in a fixed logical order: fuel (selector position, quantity, mixture, pump), ignition (mags, ignition switch), and air (carburetor heat, alternate air), the systems most likely to cause a fixable power loss, followed by a mayday call and, if time and altitude remain, a restart attempt. Every checklist item should be worked from memory for the immediate items and confirmed against the printed checklist if time allows.
A restart attempt is worthwhile whenever there's altitude and time to spare after best glide, a landing site, and the immediate checklist items are already handled, but it should never come at the expense of those higher priorities. If the engine doesn't restart promptly, commit fully to the landing rather than continuing to trade altitude for restart attempts.
A mayday call (or, for a less immediately dire situation, a pan-pan call), including aircraft identification, nature of the emergency, position, souls on board, and intentions, should go out once the higher-priority items (aviate, best glide, landing site) are handled, ideally on the frequency already in use or on 121.5 if unfamiliar with the area, and squawking 7700 if a transponder is available. ATC assistance can meaningfully help, but communicating is never worth trading away control of the airplane or the glide.
A failure immediately after takeoff, below a safe maneuvering altitude, leaves essentially one viable option in almost every case: land essentially straight ahead, with only small heading changes to avoid specific obstacles, rather than attempting to turn back to the runway. There simply isn't enough altitude to complete a turn back and still have margin for a stabilized landing in most low-altitude failure scenarios.
The "impossible turn" refers to attempting to turn back to the departure runway after an engine failure shortly after takeoff, a maneuver that's genuinely possible in some circumstances (sufficient altitude, a well-practiced, briefed turn, favorable wind) but has a long, well-documented history of ending badly when attempted without enough altitude, since it demands a turn at low speed, often steep bank, with no power, which is exactly the setup for an accelerated stall at an altitude too low to recover from. Aircraft-specific minimum altitudes for even attempting the turn are sometimes published or trained, but the safer default assumption below that altitude is: land ahead.
With more altitude available, the same priority order applies with more time to execute it carefully: establish best glide, identify and continually reassess a landing site as the glide develops, run the engine- out checklist, attempt a restart if time allows, and communicate. More altitude also gives real time to circle or maneuver toward a better landing site, rather than being forced into whatever's immediately ahead.
Plan the approach to the chosen site the same way as a normal landing wherever possible: a pattern-like path with a clear final segment, flaps used per the aircraft's engine-out guidance (some POHs recommend specific flap timing to manage glide distance), and the landing gear down (if retractable) unless the surface specifically favors a gear-up landing. Prioritize touching down under control, on speed, and in the intended spot, over a marginally longer glide distance to a slightly better-looking field.
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This guide is intended for educational and training purposes only. It is not a substitute for official FAA publications, an authorized ground school, or qualified flight instruction, and should not be used as a sole source for real-world flight planning, dispatch, or operational decisions. Always follow the specific emergency procedures published in your aircraft's POH.