What do you mean by alternating?

During the flight, if an aircraft (aircraft) cannot or should not fly to the destination airport in the flight plan, or the destination airport is not suitable for landing, the act of landing at other airports is called alternate landing.

Alternate flight is a normal measure to ensure flight safety during aircraft operation. Aircraft (aircraft) cannot or should not fly to the destination airport in the flight plan or the destination airport is not suitable for landing, while landing at other airports is called alternate. There are many reasons for alternate landing, including route traffic control, poor weather conditions, non-acceptance of scheduled landing airports, poor weather conditions at scheduled landing airports below landing standards, and aircraft failure.

In the "Eight Objections" issued by the Civil Aviation Administration of China to ensure flight safety, it is clearly stated that "alternate landing" means that when landing conditions are not available for various reasons, the destination airport should land at the alternate airport, and flight safety should not be affected by blind forced landing.

Selection of alternative fields

Alternate airports are generally pre-selected before takeoff. Before each flight takes off, the flight plan signed by the captain on duty must specify at least one airport with suitable conditions as the destination alternate airport. When the weather standard of the take-off airport only meets the take-off requirements but not the landing requirements, the alternate airport should also include the take-off alternate field.

The alternate airport should consider whether it meets the flight standards of this type of aircraft, such as whether the runway meets the take-off and landing requirements of this type of aircraft, whether it has the refueling equipment of this type, whether the airport has the release conditions of this type of aircraft, whether the airlines have ground handling or agents at this airport, the airport fire protection level, and the airport clearance.