Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) Practice Exam 2025 – The All-in-One Guide to Master Your IFR Certification!

When landing on a narrower-than-usual runway, a pilot may experience a visual illusion that can significantly affect their perception of altitude. Specifically, the aircraft appears to be higher than its actual position. This illusion can be attributed to the way that narrower runways create a misleading perspective, making it seem as though the aircraft is soaring at a higher altitude than it truly is.

As a result of this perception, a pilot may instinctively adjust their approach, leading to a lower than normal landing approach. This adjustment stems from the desire to correct what they believe to be an excess of altitude due to the visual cue presented by the runway's width. Understanding this illusion is crucial for maintaining situational awareness during the approach phase, and recognizing it can aid pilots in making the necessary corrections for a safe landing.

The other contexts present different scenarios or misinterpretations of altitude and approach, but the specific nature of the visual illusion with a narrower runway is why the correct answer focuses on the aircraft appearing higher than it is, resulting in a lower approach.