Flight Planning

[Michael]

Do any of you have a database of altitudes, manifold pressures, TAS, fuel rates...etc. for flight planning purposes?

I've not done this for all my VFR flying, but now in the middle of IFR training there is definitely a need!

Cheers,
Michael
97AV

[azb5gh]

Since you are doing your instrument training with PIC, you will figure out the 6 configurations.

I used a TAS of 140 on my flight plans and for the most part it was very close on each of my flights.

I generally used a 22" or 23" MP and set the RPM at 2450. I have heard that it may be good practice to use 23" & 2300 RPM as a cruise setting.

As you know the higher your cruise altitude the less MP you will be able to maintain.

Fuel consumption at cruise depends on whether you use LOP or ROP mixture settings.

LOP @ 8000 to 10000 - 12.9 or so.
ROP @ 8000 to 10000 - 15 or so.

Leaning procedures are up to you, from what I have heard and seen, examiners don't care if or how you lean the mixture.

They do care about power settings and how you use them.

I saw ground speeds from 135 to 154 depending on winds aloft.

Good luck with your training, I just passed my instrument check ride last Friday using the PIC course, It's a great feeling when your examiner starts yapping about various things in the airplane, and you know you have passed.

Where will you be doing your checkride?

[kwmoore]

Todd & Jo have a set of mp/rpm/%power charts for the 260se. I don't think it has fuel consumption on it though.

Fuel consumption varies more from plane-to-plane. My ROP fuel burn is generally in line with what azb5gh cites. I haven't done much LOP. However I know that Todd's 58780 and Glen's 2099X burn about 1 gph less than mine in cruise. I have also consistently observed that, while cruise fuel flow is 15-15.4 gph at my usual power settings (22-23"/2450 rpm @7500-8500 feet for example), the actual block-to-block fuel consumption on a cross-country flight is closer to 13 gph by Hobbs time, and 13.5-14 gph by tach time. Obviously, this includes warm-up & taxi on the ground, as well as descent and traffic pattern at destination. YMMV (literally). :)

[Michael]

I have the stats that Todd hands out, but they don't give TAS (and if they did they would be irrelevant since the chart is from a 206). Without TAS it is hard to give an ETE/ETA. Looks like now one's really put together solid data here (like you would find in a POH).

Looks like my checkride will be out of Palomar. I think I'm pushing my instructor harder than he's pushing me! I'm ahead of schedule and eager for more. I can't even begin to tell you how unbelievable the MX20 is in IFR when you buy and load the approach charts. Wow!

Michael

[kwmoore]

This is something you'd want to do for your own plane, as individual 260se's TAS numbers are not so uniform. Glen's power-vs-TAS would be completely different than mine for example: I'd have to be going downhill with a tailwind and a recent wax job to match his numbers. Another 260se that I flew for about 11 hr was consistently 2-3 kt slower than 812KT. Just take notes on your next couple of flights and you'll get a pretty good picture about your own plane.

[n2099x]

I file 150 ktas and 15 gph it seems to work out for 99X. I went up and wrote down some new numbers today. I usually climb out at 110-120kias at 1000ft per minute, full throttle, cowl flaps 1/2 open reducing RPM into the green, and leaning once the flaps are up.


6,500 ft, 50 oat, 23 squared, 140-141 kias,
12gph 1430egt, 368 cyl temp.
13gph 1390egt, 350 cyl temp.

8,500 ft, 45 oat, 21 mp, 2350 rpm, 137-138 kias,
11gph 1440egt, 363 cyl temp.
12gph 1380egt, 365 cyl temp.

Hope this helps, Glen

[Mike Sullivan]

Hey Michael, I'm in the IFR push as well. Started at the beginning of this week going all day long with American Flyers at myf. Have gone through the entire ground school in less than a week. More study, review and SIM next week, and the written test a week from Tues. Hope to do the practical a few days later. It has been a good experience thus far.

I find the airplane easy compared to the SIM.

Mike