Uh oh! Where am I going to land?

As long as I was landing due to an engine failure and not a fire, I'd land on a residential road because many of the residential roads around here have underground powerlines, and many are pretty straight, and dead flat (Southwestern Ontario is a pancake), which makes my/my passengers' chances of survival pretty good. I'm not too worried about hitting people, since I think people would notice an airplane coming at them - even if the prop isn't turning, the air over the wings makes a pretty loud whistling noise. And if one person sees me, they'll start screaming and everyone else will move. Also, given the that I usually fly on weekdays, in midmorning (oh the joys of being a university student on holiday :D), residential streets will be pretty quiet.
I guess it comes down to: 1) roads here are flat, paved and wide enough for a Cessna, 2) people move out of your way. Trees and water don't. and 3) people relatively nearby can help in case of further emergencies.
but, if I had an engine fire, I'd pick water. I'd rather minimize my chances of burning people/trees/me.

Just a kid's take on it.

Sarah!

Great comment! You hit an interesting point. It all depends on your situation. Even geographically as to where you are located! Good job thinking it through.

Jason

I chose water because at KASH runway 14 all the residential roads beyond this runway are lined with many power lines and trees, it would be quite difficult if not impossible to put it down on one of the residential roads there so in this situation I think water might be a good option. I know of several ponds/lakes and rivers that might be suitable. It would be far from ideal but probably a better change of survival.

Jim,

Great Comment! I Agree, water is not a bad option but landing near a shore or boat is a must. Also you'd have to be sure to jettison the doors.

Jason

I would chose water because water has greater shock absorving properties. Preferably a river and not sea cuz of the surface. I think the impact can be less than in trees or road. Keep the landing gear up. In water chances to do other damages and hurt other people are less all you need is a life jacket and know the ditching procedure.

Hopefully not trees. They grow tall in the PacNW and I can only imagine a ground loop a hundred feet off the ground with trees. Hopefully not water in a fixed gear tail dragger.

Safety of those on ground take priority over self, security of property on ground takes priority over plane.

Was always taught to not let it stall, fly it all the way.

I suppose you could have a road passing through a Pine grove next to a lake or the ocean, so you would have 3 options. However, my first thought would be to spare lives, not only mine, but passengers and residents of the area. So, that being the first criteria, would probably
limit my choices.

If I had to pick one of the three, I would take landing in the trees
at the slowest possible speed. Trees are flexible and would reduce
and absorb some of the kinetic energy. If thick, hopefully in the tops. If sparse, maybe between two.

Water might be good, but the thought of drowning in the event I was knocked unconscious does not appeal to me.

Water, if it's possible to get rescued before the plane sinks, otherwise trees. Residential street - too much of a chance hitting someone, like a kid. You might live, but you'll wish you didn't.

A water landing near the shore is great as long as you have life jackets with you. Remember you or one of your passengers could be incapacitated as a result of the impact, so being able to float while waiting for help to arrive is of paramount importanc . In an airplane with a retractable landing gear I would leave the gear up to minimise impact. I would also open the door before impact: it would be very sad to perform a survivable ditching only to end up trapped inside a sinking airplane.

When landing on a road it's not the cars I would fear most, it's the poles and walls alongside the road. Cars can steer away from me, power or telephone poles can't. I would definitely face oncoming traffic if I had to choose, and keep landing lights and strobes on!

Trees are the worst option in my opinion: it's like a thousand poles next to each other, and if you manage a landing on the canopy you may still face a 20-meter vertical fall with branches coming straight at you through the windscreen. Opening the door may also be tricky, to say nothing of exiting the airplane to safety or the risk of setting the whole forest, yourself and your passengers, on fire.

As long as I had landing speed I would head for a highway or large road. At least there is a chance of saving my plane. I wouldn't know who to call for towing though.

I guess I got the idea from a video I saw where 2 guys were heading to Sun n Fun and had to do just this when their engine cut out. It was a perfect landing and they handled it well.

Water because I like to go swimming :)