"Larry Dighera" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 2 Nov 2006 22:02:09 +1300, Dave Doe wrote in
:

fly at 65kts, and you get the longest time in the air

That is incorrect. Flying at best glide speed will give you the
maximum (no wind) distance over the ground just as Vy (velocity along
the Y axis: best rate of climb) does. Flying at minimum sink speed
will give you the most time before landing just as Vx (velocity along
the X axis: best angle of climb speed) provides the maximum height in
the shortest time (regardless of wind).

Larry, you said that backwards. Best-glide speed is analogous to Vx: it
gives you the best (most positive) angle of flight. Minimum-sink speed is
analogous to Vy. It's Vy, not Vx, that gives you the maximum height in the
shortest time; Vx instead gives you the maximum height in the shortest
lateral distance. (And Vx and Vy do not refer to velocity along an x or y
axis.)

--Gary