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AKA
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Never before has saving on GAS been so important with the advent of the current over $5.00 per GALLON! FLASH! As of February 2008, Exxon reported profits of over 40 BILLION DOLLARS! That is over $1300.00 per minute! There is apparently no shame when it comes to screwing the American public out of their hard earned money. WHERE IS YOUR LOYALTY TO THIS COUNTRY EXXON? Not only that, but they continually ask for government subsidies; more money from us! YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU EXXON and others, so when the time comes to reconcile with the creator, we pity your rich sorry asses!
Well, whomever you blame for the current oil crisis, it exists and we must find a way to limit the pocket linings of the FAT CATS that are responsible for the overcharging going on in the OIL WORLD! Okay, the zef is not really that political, but someone has to take the blame for $5.00+ avgas prices. What I have found however, is that most pilot-owners are dyed in the wool and will ALWAYS have an airplane to own and operate. For those who refuse to quit their passion, all we can do at present is to conserve as best as we can, and for the rest of you NON-MOONEY owners, our sympathy because nothing in its class gets the kind of gas mileage for miles traveled than does the MOONEY! However, for any of our pilot/owner brethren, let us talk about getting the most out of each gallon of AVGAS! Obviously the largest controllable expense in flying is in Fuel. It is up to each of us no matter the size of our pockets, to conserve fuel. Perhaps if demand goes down, so will prices! How do we save money on fuel while flying? Here are TWELVE ways to help conserve fuel and thus our wallets:
1. Insure spark plugs and mixture settings are clean, not worn, and correct. 2. Do we absolutely have to always fly at 75% power? Most normally aspirated Mooneys can accommodate a power setting of 19.5 squared, a good power setting for just boring some holes in the sky. At that setting, many Mooneys will burn a miserly 5.5 GPH! That's around ten hours endurance on a tank of avgas! Speed? At that setting, you'll get about the top cruise speed of a Cessna 172, or around 120 MPH! 3. Time on the ground. Why start the plane earlier than necessary? We can often get our clearance prior to engine start. Why even start our planes when we see a departure line of more than 5 minutes at larger airports. 4. Lean to Lean of Peak. Did you know that on most applications such as the Lycoming powered Mooneys that running 25-50 degrees lean of peak will actually cause the engine to run cooler? The installation of Gami fuel injectors (www.gami.com) will actually pay for itself with fuel savings! For instance, a Mooney turbo 231 can have a fuel savings from 12.7 GPH at 75% power down to around 10.0 GPH! Do the math for a year of flying at 125 hours per year on average. 5. Change your oil often! Fresh oil is more fuel efficient due to less engine drag. 6. Wax up your plane! Actually we don't recommend products with wax in them, but the Simonize polishes or my favorite (Dri-Wash 'n Guard) will make the plane so slick, it will slide through the eliments easier which equates to better fuel economy. 7. Keep your belly clean! Creaper, eye protection, WD-40 will cut the grease, help keep belly screws corrosion free, and will slick you up through the air; especially at climb. 8. Speaking of climb, try to climb to altitude via the quickest speed possible thus best rate of climb, that way you get to altitude quicker and burn less climbing fuel and GO DIRECT as often as you are able! 9. Descending: come on down at the highest safe speed to help make up for fuel used during climb. 10. Do the math and eliminate as many fuel stops as possible. Stopping needlessly burns fuel! 11. Consider using an airport where you can refuel your own airplane. 12. Check this site for CHEAP AVGAS in your area: http://www.airnav.com/fuel/greatdeals/long?type=1 . For instance fuel per gallon at nearby (to me) Hondo, Tx is currently priced at $3.48 per gallon. At the nearer nearby airport SAT International, fuel when last I checked was $5.38 per gallon! That's about $100.00 savings per tank in just buying from the right place! Keep a Log as to your fuel burn per given trip or flight and then apply some of the above to see in real time bux how much $ you have saved! You just might be amazed.
Of Course be sure to have enough fuel on landing so you'll make the Field! |
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The ultimate way to save on fuel is to not carry enough with you... We at Mooneyland hope you are enjoying our articles. Please help us to keep them coming to you: Thanks! |
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Richard Zephro
Coast to Coast Aircraft Sales
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