You don't land a Champ or a Luscombe in the same manner as you land a B767 or an MD-88, but the principles are the same. Both kinds of airplanes require your full attention until you have them parked, chocked and shut down.Landing a tail-dragger only begins with the touchdown. Once the tires kiss the grass or pavement that is when the real fun can begin. There are a plethora of surprises in store for transport jet jocks, too, should they ignore the fickle ways of their aircraft.A lot of airline pilots forget this and tonight in Cleveland we are suffering the effects of such a misunderstanding by a pilot who works for "Brand X." He has forgotten a very important rule about landing a Long Beach Death Tube on a wet, rubber-covered runway in a strong crosswind.The rule, of course, is this: No matter how many line-check airmen, simulator instructors and aircraft manufacturer representatives tell you that you should have both engines out of reverse by 80 knots, you should leave the damn things in until you are sure you can make a stop or can at least exit the slippery part of the runway.There have been many times during my now-over-with-career as a Mad Dog driver that I left the reversers in during an icy landing and even used differential reverse to make the turn-off. It is easier to accept the chance of FOD than the certainty of an NTSB hearing should you slide off the end of the runway into the mud as this guy just did.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at https://www.avweb.com/features/ceo-of-the-cockpit-59-do-it-for-the-love-of-the-game