In aviation, a touch-and-go landing (TGL) or circuit is a maneuver that is common when learning to fly a fixed-wing aircraft. It involves landing on a runway and taking off again without coming to a full stop. Usually the pilot then circles the airport in a defined pattern known as a circuit and repeats the maneuver. This allows many landings to be practiced in a short time. If the pilot brings the aircraft to a full stop before taking off again, it is known as a "stop-and-go". If the aircraft's wheels do not touch the ground, it is known as a "low pass". Both a touch-and-go landing and a low pass are types of go-around. An unplanned touch-and-go landing is also called a "rejected landing" or "balked landing". Touch-and-go landings can perform a crucial safety role when a plane lands with not enough space to come to a complete stop, but has enough space to accelerate and take off again. Standard procedure In a normal landing, the pilot flies the traffic pattern and establishes the aircraft on final approach. As the aircraft crosses the threshold of the runway the pilot executes the landing flare, touches the aircraft down, and immediately applies braking, ground spoilers, and (if available) reverse thrust until the aircraft has decelerated enough to exit onto a taxiway. In a touch-and-go landing, after the wheels are down, the pilot does not apply the brakes but instead increases the engine power to full, partially retracts the flaps, accelerates back to rotation speed, and lifts off again. At a towered airport, the pilot must receive ATC permission to perform a touch-and-go landing by requesting it by name or as "the option," which allows the pilot to perform a touch-and-go, stop-and-go, low approach, full-stop landing or go-around as desired. At a non-towered airport, the pilot announces position and intent over the CTAF or UNICOM radio frequency to coordinate the flow of local air traffic with any other pilots. Debate over role in flight instruction Some flight instructors believe touch-and-gos should not be heavily used, if at all, with student pilots. They argue that this procedure results in less attention to learning to land properly, and thus creates safety problems. They note that neither the Federal Aviation Administration's Practical Test Standards nor its Airplane Flying Handbook discusses touch-and-gos. Instructors who favor the use of touch-and-gos contend that it makes it possible to