Miles per Gallon Flying

In the discussion of "Slow Flight"  you could fly forever, so to speak, at a slow speed and a high angle of attack close to a stall. Until you run out of fuel - which is another story.

The planes actual flight path was straight and level and the attitude of the plane's wings was angled upward. This "slow flight" flying will stretch your fuel efficiency if you travel long distances and you want to use the least amount of fuel while doing it.

An airplane will fly the most "miles per gallon" of fuel if you use the "slow flight" technique and it will fly the most minutes per gallon of fuel if flown very slowly , and very nose high. 

The latter technique is most often associated with high altitude flying associated with military missions where flying long distance is the goal and speed of flight is not primary. Think the first bombing raid on Japan ,very early in WWII, from a Aircraft Carrier in the Pacific Arena. It was essentially a suicide mission with the range calculated to reach China after passing over the target areas in Japan.

In straight and level cruising speed attitude the difference between path of flight and the attitude of the aircraft is very slight. The design of all aircraft is focused on efficiency in cruising flight.

If you are trying to get the most miles per gallon in a private plane mixture control may be the solution. 

In the next post I will discuss, in a plane equipped with a six cylinder engine normally aspirated, how the use of a "six cylinder head temperature" gauge and a "six cylinder exhaust gas temperature" gauge can help you find the hottest cylinder burning fuel and lower its temperature by 25 degrees.

Remember, when you lean the mixture the temperature rises and you have to watch out for valve damage.