The U-2 Dragon Lady is probably one the most difficult plane to land in the world.
That’s why, U-2 spyplanes need chase automobiles to supervise take offs, landings (and touch and gos).
Such sport cars are driven by highly trained pilot who act as ground-based wingmen for pilots flying aircraft whose size is such that the pilot’s view is obstructed by the airframe or part of it, and there’s a significant risk of hitting any ground obstacle with a wingtip.
Both manned and unmanned planes rely on chase cars, 20 of those are located across the globe.
Anyway, watch the video, showing several crash landings or overruns!
H/T to Tony Lovelock for the heads-up
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The little vertical bits at the ends of the wings are skids. No more, no less. The “pogo-stick” wheels mounted mid-wing (one is seen being dropped during one approach) are for take off only. At the end of a landing roll-out, unless people catch it, every U-2 winds up on one wing tip or the other. “Track” has got to be less than 2 feet on the single, main, landing gear. So that’s pretty hairy to start with. Add the lift, drag and density of a glider and you begin to see the problem. It doesn’t want to stop flying, it has no particular source of drag and there’s no way to dump lift. And they DO climb like homesick angels.
Bill