fuel usage

[rick2519]

Ok guys, I know many of you are big iron users and I have a question about fuel usage in big stuff. How many gallons would a British Airways 747 burn on a Seattle to London flight? How about something smaller like a 767 Seattle to Miami? Are the smaller jets any more economical?

Suddenly thinking 'green' here so don't fret about a wrong answer. BTW, a Piper PA-18-95 gets 19 miles per gallon and a J-3 Cub gets 18.

Will the new 787 be any better? Got a guess?

Thanks,
Rick

[CBreuer]

Hi Rick,

Not a direct answer to your question, but one thing has to be taken into this calculation: number of passengers/cargo carried.

OK, here's an example. I am currently on the flight from Quito to Bueonos Aires. I am using the Level-D B767. I am carrying 37.7 tons of cargo. Due to some limitations in TOPCAT that is almost equal to 264 PAX and 10 tons of cargo. Distance to travel is roughly 2550 NM. Scheduled fuel burn should be something around 30.2 tons (9970 gallons). Per NM it will burn around 3.9 gallons. If we now divide this through the number of PAX we should get a result of 0.01 gallons per NM...
I really hope my calculation is correct otherwise:

[rick2519]

Christian,
Thanks. This is great and confirms my guesses. Big iron is really UNGREEN for the planet. The reason we use them is simply speed. We need to get from A to B in a hurry. Should have carried the 37 ton on donkeys backs eh? But you couldn't get your iPads quick enough that way.

I guess us humans just won't stop using this fuel until it becomes so pricey someone will topple the oil giants with a better idea. I'd bet they are buying into windfarms and solar even as we speak. But this discussion could go on a long time I suspect and who listens to little people like me? Certainly NOT my government or my neighbor Bill Gates.

Thanks for taking the time.

Rick