Tracking along a centerline of the touchdown area is an  important consideration in gliders. The long, low wingtips  of the glider are susceptible to damage from runway signage  and runway lighting. Turning off the runway should be done  only if and when the pilot has the glider under control. control authority is lost. The slip should be established no  lower than 100 feet to ensure a stable approach. Pilot selection of the slip or crab method for crosswind  landing is personal preference and/or related to glider size and  wingspan. The important action is to stabilize the approach  early enough on final to maintain a constant approach angle  and airspeed to arrive at the selected touchdown point. Landing in high, gusty winds or turbulent conditions may  require higher approach airspeed to improve controllability  and provide a safer margin above stall airspeed. As a rule  of thumb, pilots add one-half the reported gust factor to the  normal recommended approach airspeed. This increased  approach airspeed provides a safety margin and affords better  penetration into the headwind on final approach. Common errors during approach and landing include: Crosswind landings require a crabbing, or slipping method,  to correct for the effects of the wind on the final approach.  Additionally, the pilot must land the glider without placing  any unnecessary side load on the landing gear. The crab method requires the pilot to point the nose of  the glider into the wind and fly a straight track along the  desired groundpath. The stronger the wind is, the greater  the crab angle needs to be. The glider is in coordinated flight  and tracking the extended centerline of the landing area.  [Figure 7-27A]  Prior to flare, the pilot must be prepared to  align the glider with the landing direction.  [Figure 7-27B] The pilot should use the rudder to align the glider prior to  touchdown and deflect the ailerons into the wind to control  the side drift caused by the crosswind. A slip is a descent with one wing lowered. It may be used  for either of two purposes or both of them combined. A slip  may be used to steepen the approach path without increasing  the airspeed, as would be the case if the spoilers/dive brakes  were inoperative, or to clear an obstacle. It can also be  used to make the glider move sideways through the air to  counteract the drift that results from a crosswind. Formerly,  slips were used as a normal means of controlling landing  descents to short or obstructed fields, but they are now  primarily used in the performance of crosswind landings  and short/off-field landings. In the slip method, the pilot uses rudder and ailerons to slip  the glider into the wind to prevent drifting downwind of  the touchdown area. The disadvantage of the slip method is  that the sink rate of the glider increases, forcing the pilot to  adjust the spoilers/dive brakes, as necessary, to compensate  for this additional sink rate. Glider pilots should be ready to  apply brakes to avoid leaving the runway or landing area as  With the installation of effective spoilers/dive brakes on  modern gliders, the use of slips to steepen or control the  angle of descent is no longer the only procedure available  WIND The crab method using coordinated flight to track  the extended centerline of the landing area The pilot lowers the upwind wing into the wind direction and uses opposite rudder deflection to maintain landing  direction. Using this combination of flight control input,  the pilot lands the aircraft with the least amount of side  load possible on the landing gear. WIND A B Figure 7-27.  Using the crab method to track the extended centerline of the landing area (A). Controlling side drift by adjusting the glider  into the wind before landing (B). 7-25 Crosswind Landing Slips •  Improper glidepath control. •  Improper use of flaps, spoilers/dive brakes. •  Improper airspeed control.  •  Improper stabilize approach. •  Improper correction for crosswind. •  Improper procedure for touchdown/landing. •  Poor directional control during/after landing. •  Improper use of wheel brakes.