this is an example of an airplane that has to land in limited visibility conditions, which means, that the pilots cannot navigate their way by looking outside the cockpit and worst of all they wouldn't be able to see the runway on which they are suppose to land. mostly it is because a cloud "sits" on the the airfield (fog or mist are usually the case in early morning landings).the ILS (Instrument Landing System) is a landing approach based on different wave lengths that are being transmitted from a specific point on the ground in the airport (on the sides of the zebra line - the "threshold"). a receiver in the airplane receives the signals and transform them into screen visual images that indicate the position of the aircraft regarding the runway on 2 axis (vertical+horizontal). this device helps the pilots to bring the aircraft to safe landing without even having to see the runway once until touchdown.
this "limited visibility" situation is parallel to a situation where a car driver cannot see / is unaware of pedestrian existence nearby, and the potential danger that awaits around the corner. Exactly like the pilots are unaware of their position in relation to the runway and need a directing instrument to help them avoid accidents.
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