Originally Posted by
dmb1985
I recently took a flight from New York to San Francisco. It was a beautiful sunny afternoon and visibility seemed good. As the plane approached the runway everything seemed normal. The wheels touched down on the runway and we started to slow. The pilot began to apply the brakes a little harder and we slowed even more.
But about a second later he hit the thrust (I am in no way technical, basically he seemed to switch from braking to accelerating) and we took off suddenly at a 45-degree angle. It was so sudden and really freaky because it didn't feel like we were going fast enough to take off - the plane felt like it was struggling to climb. Still, we climbed and climbed, and a few minutes later we'd broken through the clouds. At that point the pilot came on simply to say we'd be trying the landing again. I might have been imagining it but he sounded like he was choosing his words very carefully! We went round and landed no problem ten minutes later. We never got any explanation about what happened.
I'm just wondering a) what's the likely explanation for that kind of aborted landing and b) how common is that kind of aborted landing? I fly a lot but have never known anything like it.
Thanks!
Most likely a runway incursion ahead - such as another plane or vehicle on or close to the runway. Usually in this case, air traffic control will radio the pilot, "(callsign) GO AROUND. (callsign) GO AROUND." Less likely is that the pilot saw something he/she didn't like, and did it on his/her own.
I've had it happen a few times, both as a passenger and jumpseat rider. It happens often enough if you look at all landings around the world, but for an individual passenger it's a pretty rare event.