Gross Weight

Fred Choate wrote:
Here is a topic that was of discussion at work today:

How much is too much over gross weight? For example.....the 172 has a gross
weight of 2300 lbs, but what if you are 2345 at time of takeoff.....is that
too much over, even if you are going to be burning enough fuel before your
first scheduled stop to be under weight for landing?

What about airframe age, prop age...etc? Does it make a difference on
decision to "carry a little extra"?


Everything makes a difference. On those occasions where I've flown over, the
weight has to be within reason, and the air needs to be cool if at all possible.
It's been my experience that balance is much more critical than weight.

In any case, you're entering uncharted waters. 45 lbs in a C-172 isn't going to
make any detectable difference.... 200 lbs is unflyable on the best of days.

Many years ago, I came out of the Bahamas in a Cherokee Six with six of us on
board plus all our crap. After I cleared customs in Ft. Pierce, FL, I taxied
over to get some lunch and fuel. I told them to fill the mains only. Later
after we'd eaten, I checked the mains to verify they were full and taxied out
for takeoff.

Jeez... what a pig it was. I averaged somewhere between 150 and 180 fpm climb
at best rate. I couldn't figure what was wrong until my eyes wandered across
the fuel guages... ALL four of them were full. That was an extra 34 gallons I
hadn't depended on with an already heavy aircraft on a hot day. I eventually
worked my way up to cooler air and burned off some fuel. And learned to check
*all* the tanks, not just the ones I ordered fueled.

If the aircraft had been out of balance, we'd have crashed for sure.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE