Definition
A night approach over featureless, unlit terrain or water toward a lighted runway, in which the absence of visual references between the aircraft and the runway causes the pilot to perceive the aircraft as higher than it actually is, leading to a tendency to fly a lower-than-normal approach path.
Plain English
A night landing where everything between you and the runway is dark, so your eyes have nothing to judge height against. The runway looks farther away or higher than it really is, and pilots often end up too low without realizing it.
Context Anchor
Seen in night landing, instrument flying, and optical illusion discussions, especially when approaching a runway over water, unlighted terrain, or other dark areas.
Derivation
Called a 'black hole' because the area between the aircraft and the runway appears as a featureless void at night — like staring into a hole with no edges, depth, or reference points to anchor your perception.
Why Pilots Care
Failure to recognize the illusion can result in controlled flight into terrain.
Grounding Statement
Imagine flying toward a single cluster of runway lights with nothing but blackness in front of, below, and around you — no roads, no towns, no horizon. Your eyes have no way to tell if you're at 1,000 feet or 200 feet.
Intuition Check
Do not read “black hole” as an actual hole or space object here. In this term, it means a dark, featureless visual scene that can fool the pilot’s height judgment.
Example Sentence 1
Approaching the coastal airport from over the ocean at night, the captain briefed the crew on the black hole approach and stayed on the PAPI all the way down.
Example Sentence 2
Using the visual approach slope indicator prevented the black hole approach illusion from affecting the night landing.