7pilot
Well Known Member
I feel like I have to tell somebody and nobody can understand the joy found in a flight like this except another pilot...With about 60 hours flying time since purchasing my RV7A I have made a lot of nice flights, but none above 10K so I have been anxious to get up higher. OK, maybe not all that high to some of you that routinely get up into the teens (and higher) but for me 15,500 is doing pretty good! This was my first opportunity to try out my oxygen bottle and canula. Saturday, I made a flight from 2TS6, just South of DFW, out to KUZA just South of Charlotte NC. I had planned to climb up to 17500 but the winds were more aligned with my course at 15,500.
Climbing out to cruise I donned my canula and set the flow between 15 and 18K. At 15,500 I was cruising at 193kts ground speed and sipping 6.8 gallons per hour! I quickly realized the two stops I had planned enroute would come up way too quickly, so modified the flight to land a little over half way and then at my destination. 806NM with total flight time of 4.6 hours, yielding an average ground speed of 175kts including climb out! At my first stop I had flown 489nm and filled up with 21.09 gallons. The fuel consumed according to the AS2500 for this leg was 21.1, ya gotta love the accuracy of these instruments! I could have easily flown the entire route without a stop and plenty of reserve if it weren't for my own need to have a comfort stop. Highest ground speed in level flight was 204kts - nice! This sure beats flying my old Cherokee Six and hoping to cruise at 135kts on a good day!
Keep on building, these are great machines!
Stewart
Climbing out to cruise I donned my canula and set the flow between 15 and 18K. At 15,500 I was cruising at 193kts ground speed and sipping 6.8 gallons per hour! I quickly realized the two stops I had planned enroute would come up way too quickly, so modified the flight to land a little over half way and then at my destination. 806NM with total flight time of 4.6 hours, yielding an average ground speed of 175kts including climb out! At my first stop I had flown 489nm and filled up with 21.09 gallons. The fuel consumed according to the AS2500 for this leg was 21.1, ya gotta love the accuracy of these instruments! I could have easily flown the entire route without a stop and plenty of reserve if it weren't for my own need to have a comfort stop. Highest ground speed in level flight was 204kts - nice! This sure beats flying my old Cherokee Six and hoping to cruise at 135kts on a good day!
Keep on building, these are great machines!
Stewart