At Least He's Honest. Would This Attitude Have 'Saved' Light Airplane Business??

On 22 Dec 2004 11:38:42 -0800, "Michael"
wrote:

snip

150 kts cruise at low altitudes (less than 8000 ft) at less than 65%
power (don't like running the engines hard) and less than 18 gph (don't

I'm firm believer in running those big engines at 75% and don't
believe running them less is doing them any favors.

like spending money either). Must be able to burn either Avgas or
Jet-A (no special fueling issues). Note that this is a bare minimum -
my spam can does better in every respect.

5 hours endurance at 150 kts (including climb fuel and VFR reserves).
Enough useful load to carry the fuel required for that endurance and an
additional 600 lbs of pax/cargo as well as a full redundant IFR panel

You said 4 full size adults. Today that is 4 X 170 = 680# (if you are
lucky to find 4 trim adults) plus at least 20# each for baggage makes
760# after fuel.

At 9 GPH at 65% you are pretty much talking 4 cylinder engines. Even
an IO-470N will run about 12 GPH at 65%.

But figuring your optimistic 18 GPH @ 5 hours plus a half hour reserve
= 99 gallons useable so figure at least 110 to 120 gallons @ 6#/gal =
660 to 720# plus 760# for pax and baggage means about 1500# useful
load.

The hard part is going to be getting it all together. The hardest
part is the speed at 65% at low altitude loaded and that fuel burn.

(dual nav-coms, dual AI's, GPS and LORAN, stormscope, autopilot, ADF,
DME, etc). Again, these are bare minima.

Cabin room for full size adults (think Bonanza and up - not Mooney).

Now you are talking bigger engines and more fuel burn which means long
range tanks in something like a Baron. According to the specs the
Aztec will do it all except for the fuel burn. At 65% you are still
looking at least at 22 to 24 GPH, but they are docile and the panel
can always be upgraded. Anything smaller has miserable single engine
performance.

I can't think of any recent/new small twin that can match the Aztec
for useful load and it comes the closest to your specs.


Anything newer that I can remember will burn a lot of fuel to meet
your specs.

Get the Geronimo conversion, put 70 grand into a new panel...well
maybe 80 grand and you'll have your machine...except for the fuel burn
and easy to find parts.

Roger Halstead (K8RI & ARRL life member)
(N833R, S# CD-2 Worlds oldest Debonair)
www.rogerhalstead.com


Not interested in building - will only buy one that is already built
and flying. No one-offs - only want a design with enough track record
to be insurable for hull (I will take whatever training and meet
whatever experience requirements they want).
I'm looking forward to your suggestions.

Michael