Posted on 05/03/2008 6:36:57 AM PDT by COUNTrecount
Airlines in the U.S. have ordered their pilots to slow down to reduce fuel consumption. They say the move will add minutes to journey times yet save millions in fuel costs.
The tactic will not be adopted by British airlines, however, although the price of jet fuel has risen by more than 70 per cent in the past year.
British Airways and Virgin said they have already introduced fuel-saving measures which they believe are more efficient than those adopted by the Americans.
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U.S. airlines are introducing slower cruising speeds on both domestic flights and long-haul routes to Britain and Europe
Insisting that reducing speed saves fuel in certain speed ranges, the U.S. operators are introducing slower cruising speeds on both domestic flights and long-haul routes to Britain and Europe.
Northwest Airlines, which is in merger talks with Delta to become the world's biggest carrier, said it saved 162 gallons of fuel on a Paris to Minneapolis flight this week when the pilot cut his average speed from 542mph to 532mph.
The speed reduction added eight minutes to the flight time but saved the airline nearly £300.
Northwest bosses calculate that by slowing down they will save £300,000 this year alone on the route between Los Angeles and Hawaii.
Another U.S. airline, Southwest, estimates it will save £21million this year by adding one to three minutes to each flight.
The budget airline jetBlue said it would save nearly £8million.
United Airlines recently installed flight-planning software - similar to that used by BA - that it believes will save £10million a year. BA's onflight-board software shows pilots the best altitude and speed to allow optimum use of fuel.
Experts said most passengers would not notice the slightly longer times. But a BA spokesman said: 'We don't believe a short-term, knee-jerk response like this is the answer.'
Virgin's Paul Charles added: "We believe our fuel-saving measures are better than the Americans."
Virgin is concentrating on reducing the weight of planes by using light carbon-fibre fittings.
"We will save many millions of pounds more with our weightwatchers programme than the Americans can save by slowing down," said Mr Charles.
American carriers are struggling with older, less efficient fleets than British companies, he added.
BA has also ordered its pilots to use only one engine while taxiing around airports. Both BA and Virgin also try to use 'continuous descent' when landing, so planes glide smoothly down.
The alternative is to descend in steps, a process which uses a lot of fuel but is sometimes essential at busy airports.
Bob Mann, a New York-based airline consultant, warned that reducing speed can increase maintenance which means aircraft spend less time in the air.
"Everyone is looking for that " sweet spot" when an airplane flies at the highest speed for maximum fuel economy," Mr Mann added yesterday.
I have flown in and out of PDX, MSP and IAH nine times since mid-December. The last two trips, iyt seems that the engines are now cut back a bit 70-75 minutes out. I also take the same flights and while the departure times are the same, the arrival times are a bit later. Could be from cutting speeds and/or seasonal changes in the jet stream.
One hopes the airline (NWA?) is adjusting its schedules accordingly. My last flight back home to SEA very distinctly cut engines 30 minutes out (and I had a captain as a seatmate, dead-heading back home to PDX).
I'll keep an eye out for such, though my short trip to SFO & back next week may not be a good indicator.
Believe it or not, they would also get some increase in fuel economy if they would wash the planes on a regular basis.
The average weight of the paint on the average airliner is 400 lbs., at least when I went to aviation school. Reduce the paint and polish the surfaces and you would get a pretty good return on investment. Then work on further reducing weight of the aircraft.
Slowing down will slightly increase maintenance costs because many parts, including engines, are maintained on the basis of operating hours and thus if they operate for longer periods doing the same work, more maintenance costs.
One of the simplest ways would be to reduce the baggage brought on board by passengers. These days, the smart travelers send their baggage by FedEx or UPS to their hotels and save hours of waiting and have very little risk of losing a bag. The length of time it takes to board and debark these days is ridiculous because of people taking everything they own and trying to stash it in an overhead compartment.
That’s how an aircraft descends when in level flight. Reduce airspeed reduces lift which allows the aircraft to descend. Increase airspeed increases lift which causes an aircraft to cliimb.
I now work at an aerospace company, and I have to say that they are pretty good at cutting excess travel (air and ground) and providing for virtual meetings. The old wireless/telecom company I used to work for has people travelling ridiculous amounts. The airplane maker discourages inefficient plane travel and the phone company encourages it.
Ironic! ;-)
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