Writer

Charlotte Bailey

Jeppesen ForeFlight is releasing a new safety feature called emergency glide mode. According to the aviation software and data company, the&nbsp;pilot-activated function provides a “clear, focused view of reachable airports and potential off-airport landing sites” in the event of an engine failure.
Available soon to all ForeFlight subscribers at no extra cost, emergency glide mode augments the existing glide advisor feature. This, ForeFlight explained, “continuously displays a glide range ring based on the aircraft’s altitude, best glide speed and ratio, and known winds.” However, the new capability uses a proprietary algorithm to display the top three most appropriate airports within this radius, or—for U.S. users—additional potential landing sites.
“Emergency glide mode is a good use of an EFB [electronic flight bag]&nbsp;to solve a stressful and urgent situation,” ForeFlight GA product lead Cole Crawford told&nbsp;AIN.&nbsp;“In a situation like this, every second you save deciding where to turn is a second you gain setting up for a safe landing.” Although he stressed that the ultimate decision remains with the pilots, the function does nevertheless offer tools to help make a “highly informed decision as quickly as possible.”
When activated via the touch of a button on the iPad screen, the nearest three appropriately sized airports available within an aircraft’s glide range—which is available via manufacturer data, or input manually—are highlighted. Tapping “activate glide” draws a virtual straight line from the user’s present position to the airport’s center, factoring in altitude, wind direction, and terminal area forecast (if available). On-screen functionalities, including the basic instrument panel, runway extended centerlines, and track vector are also automatically engaged.
According to Crawford, this enhances situational awareness: helping pilots get their eyes “outside the cockpit and using the primary piloting skills that they have” to safely handle the situation. Simulations to date, including experimenting with an airplane as large as a Boeing 747, have helped validate the algorithm’s ability to take into consideration the characteristics and landing needs of the aircraft being flown.
<h2>Off-airport Opportunities</h2>
However, for customers in the U.S., ForeFlight has taken the concept one step further: offering suggested off-airport opportunities if no airfield is within glide range. Using a range of proprietary and public data sources such as the U.S. Geological Survey, ForeFlight’s possible landing areas presents a selection of polygons deemed a “best bet” to bring an aircraft safely down.
​The off-airport guidance is based on geographical data and is available only in the continental U.S.
Crucially, this algorithm takes into account the presence of roads, power lines, and tree coverage to suggest potential landing strips of at least 1,000 feet (300 meters), something Crawford said can be hard to assess from higher altitudes. Although users worldwide will be able to access emergency glide mode, possible landing area suggestions are limited to continental U.S. users “simply because the underlying data in order to produce those polygons is only available in that region,” he explained. &nbsp;
Crawford revealed that emergency glide mode has been under consideration for some years, with ForeFlight iterating on an initial concept and making subsequent improvements. Additionally, with Boeing’s divestment of ForeFlight in November 2025, “it’s probably more materially important that we merged with our sister company, Jeppesen,” he continued. “Now we’re a software company owned by a parent company that only does software and has the capital to invest in various [endeavors], I think that’ll mean more access for us to do things, simply because we have the sort of operating structure that would allow us to do things we couldn’t do before.”

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