If it's dark green and you can't see dirt between rows (and maybe even if you can) it's a bad bet. If you can see the crop waving around in the wind, it's definitely a bad bet.
Cut hay stubble has a yellow tinge. Cut but not yet baled hay has a soft gray green color. You can distinguish these colors from ten miles away. Some sunglasses (e.g. "Sun Tigers") interfere with this. Avoid them.
Absent obstructions (e.g hay bales), cut hay is often a good choice. If the field won't break a mower, that's a good start.
More: A great article on off field landings from Kai Gertsen.
Happy Landings!
T8
PS: Here's how it goes in a cut cotton field in South Carolina.
2 comments:
Thanks for the tips Evan. I'll be sure to keep a cotton field in range at all times.
This is too difficult to read. Is there an audiobook version I can listen to in my car on my way to PMA?
That was quite the exhalation when you came to a stop in the cotton field! It's odd how we stop breathing when we're so focused on doing something exactly right, like an off-airport, cosswind landing.
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