The internet loves a “near-miss” landing video: a big jet crab-walking toward the runway, wings cocked, then—whoosh—full power and back into the sky.
What you’re watching isn’t panic. It’s professionalism. In the past few days, multiple Airbus A350s have gone around—one after getting bullied by strong gusts, another because the runway wasn’t actually clear. Same move, different trigger: if the approach isn’t stable or the runway isn’t available, you don’t land. Period.
Gusts hit about 40 mph, the A350 tilts hard—and the crew bails out
The most talked-about clip comes from German-language coverage: an Airbus A350 on final gets knocked around by gusty winds reportedly up to 65 km/h—about 40 mph. The jet shows up noticeably banked, fighting to stay lined up, and then the pilots push the throttles forward and climb away.
This is classic crosswind work. The airplane has to track the runway centerline while the air mass shoves it sideways. That can mean a mix of heading correction and bank, and it can look dramatic from the ground because, well, it is.
But the key word in airline flying is “stable.” If the approach starts getting sloppy—too much drift, too much correction, wrong energy state—the crew doesn’t “save it.” They go around. That’s not a failure; it’s the procedure they brief, train, and practice until it’s muscle memory.
Zurich: same airplane, different problem—another aircraft is still on the runway
Then there’s Zurich, where Swiss’s new A350 also went around. This time it wasn’t the weather. According to reporting from Tages-Anzeiger, the issue was runway occupancy—another aircraft was still in the picture when the A350 arrived.
This is the part the viral clips don’t teach you: go-arounds aren’t just “wind and rain” events. They happen because spacing collapses, clearances change, traffic doesn’t exit fast enough, or controllers and crews need to re-separate airplanes safely.
And the decision window is tight. Wait too long and you’re low, slow, configured to land, and running out of options. So crews make the call early. If the runway isn’t available, the airplane doesn’t touch down. End of story.
Atlanta: Qatar’s A350 goes around in strong crosswinds
This isn’t some quirky European thing, either. A widely shared video shows a Qatar Airways A350 going around in Atlanta under what’s described as strong crosswind conditions.
Near the ground, winds can shift fast in both speed and direction. Pilots are constantly adjusting—rudder, aileron, power—trying to keep the jet inside a tight “box” of acceptable speed, sink rate, alignment, and configuration.
When the corrections get too big or the approach stops meeting the airline’s stabilized-approach criteria, the safest move is the boring one: climb out and try again.
Wind shear: when the air changes its mind at the worst possible moment
Crosswind gets all the attention because it looks wild on camera. Wind shear is the sneakier threat. It’s when wind speed and/or direction changes sharply over a short distance—often close to the ground, right where you least want surprises.
A separate clip titled “When wind shear disrupted an A350’s landing” shows how quickly shear can mess with an airplane’s energy. One moment you’ve got a nice headwind helping you; the next, it drops off and the jet can sink. Or the reverse happens and you float. Either way, it can shove a stable approach into the unstable category fast.
Airline crews train for this specifically. And yes, the go-around is baked into that training for a reason: it buys altitude, time, and options.
Why planes take off into the wind—and why crosswinds make landings look so ugly
A lot of the viral chatter around these videos circles back to Aviation 101: airplanes prefer taking off into the wind because it increases airflow over the wings, helping generate lift at a lower ground speed.
On landing, a headwind can be your friend—same airspeed, slower speed over the ground, more control margin. A crosswind is the opposite: it forces constant correction, and gusts can turn that correction into a wrestling match.
The punchline here is simple: the spike in go-around videos doesn’t mean flying is getting sketchier. It means cameras are everywhere—and crews are doing exactly what they’re paid to do. If the approach isn’t right, they go around and live to land it clean on the next try.
Sources
Futurezone: “Airbus A350 gerät in Schräglage und muss durchstarten”
Tages-Anzeiger: “Flughafen Zürich: Swiss A350 musste wegen Pilatus PC- …”
Instagram: “A Qatar Airways Airbus A350 performs a go-around during …”
Instagram: “Wusstest du, dass Flugzeuge immer gegen den Wind …”
YouTube Shorts: “When wind shear disrupted an A350’s landing”
