At what speed does a Boeing 737 land?

On the 737, as on any transport jet, the crew does not land at a fixed speed but at VREF, the landing reference speed, which the flight management computer derives from the predicted landing weight and the selected flap setting. It is 1.23 times the stall speed in that configuration, a margin required by certification. Half the headwind component plus the full gust value is added to VREF, with a minimum of 5 kn and a maximum of 20, to get the approach speed held until crossing the threshold at about 15 m (50 ft).

A 737-800 at 60 tonnes with flaps 30 has a VREF near 140 kn (260 km/h); with flaps 40 it drops around 5 kn, and near the maximum landing weight of 66 tonnes it is close to 147 kn. The lighter 737-700 approaches between 125 and 135 kn, and the 737 MAX 8 sits at similar values to the -800 at the same weight. In every case, groundspeed at touchdown is lower when there is a headwind, and it determines the landing roll length.

Arriving too fast extends the flare, makes the aircraft float and eats up runway: every extra 10 kn can add several hundred metres. Arriving below VREF reduces the margin above the stall and increases the rate of descent, which can cause a hard landing. That is why procedures treat as unstable any approach that deviates more than a few knots from the target speed below 300 m (1,000 ft), in which case the correct action is to go around and try again.