Definition
A faulty wheel landing in which the airplane contacts the runway with excess vertical speed or insufficient power reduction, causing the main wheels to rebound off the surface and the airplane to become briefly airborne again. Recovery requires adding power to cushion the next touchdown, re-establishing the proper landing attitude, and either completing the wheel landing or executing a go-around if the bounce is severe.
Plain English
When you try to land a tailwheel airplane on its main wheels first, but you come down too hard or too fast, the airplane springs back into the air instead of staying on the ground. You then have to recover carefully or go around and try again.
Context Anchor
Encountered during tailwheel training when practicing wheel landings, especially at the moment the main wheels first touch the runway.
Why Pilots Care
A bounced wheel landing demands immediate corrective action; failure to correct properly can lead to loss of control or aircraft damage.
Grounding Statement
If the airplane lifts off again after the wheels touch, treat it as flying, not as already landed.
Intuition Check
Do not assume a small bounce means the landing is over. If the airplane is back in the air, it still needs to be flown and controlled.
Example Sentence 1
After the main wheels bounced off the runway, the instructor added a touch of power to cushion the airplane back down and salvaged the wheel landing.
Example Sentence 2
After a bounced wheel landing the instructor demonstrated lowering the nose slightly and re-establishing a proper descent to the runway.