A magnetic disk apparatus equipped with a negative pressure type slider having a magnetic head and being fixedly secured to a flexible member so as to be floatable with respect to the magnetic disk and bendable toward the magnetic disk by a pressing member. The apparatus moves the flexible member up to a position where the slider is above a predetermined track of the magnetic disk and successively presses the flexible member through the pressing member so that the magnetic head gradually moves toward the magnetic disk. At the same time, the apparatus successively reproduces an information signal from the predetermined track of the magnetic disk through the magnetic head so that the magnitude of the information signal reproduced is successively compared with a predetermined value corresponding to a predetermined distance between the magnetic head and the magnetic disk. The apparatus stops the pressing operation of the flexible member when the magnitude of the predetermined signal reproduced is greater than the predetermined value.