Hello, first timer here, forgive me if I posted in the wrong section. I apologize in advance for the long question.
I bought a Cessna 150L for the purpose of time building. I chose the C150 for economic reasons, and the performance figures I saw in the POH looked favorable. However, after I bought the plane, I noticed quickly on the first flight how wrong the data was. My biggest concern here is range. My question is A) Is there something I'm doing wrong, B) Is there something wrong with my plane or C) Is the POH wrong?
A little background info: I trained in a 2012 C172S and was taught to plan my cross countries with the data in the POH and trust them.
According to the data in my C150 POH, on a no wind situation, I should be able to go 380mi/330nm including fuel for start, taxi, runup, takeoff, climb, descent and 45 minute reserve at 2500rpm and 58% bhp at 7500 feet. 535mi w/o reserve.
Recently I flew TOL-AGC (191NM) at 7500 feet/2500RPM with a nice tailwind. Since I had a good 20 knot tailwind, the math calculated I'd land with about half tanks, since it is about half of the max range according to the POH. When I landed and checked the tanks, I had burned 17 gallons, and had about 1 hour reserve left, far more than I should have burned. So, as you can see, even though the POH says I should be able to fly 330NM legally in a no wind situation, I would have run into fuel exhaustion had I tried to do so, even with the 20 knot tailwind.
I've been trying to figure out why I'm running into this issue. About 99% of my flights are solo - long cross countries, so it's important to me to figure out why my aircraft performance isn't matching up with the POH. Let me mention that when I fly solo, i'm no where near max gross weight.
The POH say that at 7,500 feet @ 2500RPM (58% BHP), I'm supposed to get 105 MPH TAS (91 knots). In those conditions, I'm getting around 90 mph, about 15mph short of what the POH says. My aircraft has a new propeller, flap gap seals, wheel fairings, and I wax it often. I have a digital tachometer so I know I'm at 2500rpm.
However, I don't have any issues with fuel leaks. I keep the aircraft and engine clean and well maintained. The engine is a Continental O-200. I have a EGT and CHT gauge, which I use to help with leaning ROP. Also, I do compression checks monthly, which always shows good results.
So, I guess my question is, how come I'm not getting the speed and range performance I should be getting as shown in the POH? I'm getting about half the range, and about 10-15MPH slower in cruise flight.
I went from a new plane to a C150L twice my age, so I'm wondering if it has to do with the age of the aircraft?
I also noticed that Cessna advertised this for the Cessna 150 which shows two adults, two children, and two suitcases. Now, it could be me but that seems a little optimistic. So, I'm wondering, is it possible that the POH data was exaggerated a little to sell aircraft?
Or is there something I'm doing wrong from an operators point? I'm new to the aviation game, so I figured I'd ask those with more experience. Thanks, and sorry for the long message!
I bought a Cessna 150L for the purpose of time building. I chose the C150 for economic reasons, and the performance figures I saw in the POH looked favorable. However, after I bought the plane, I noticed quickly on the first flight how wrong the data was. My biggest concern here is range. My question is A) Is there something I'm doing wrong, B) Is there something wrong with my plane or C) Is the POH wrong?
A little background info: I trained in a 2012 C172S and was taught to plan my cross countries with the data in the POH and trust them.
According to the data in my C150 POH, on a no wind situation, I should be able to go 380mi/330nm including fuel for start, taxi, runup, takeoff, climb, descent and 45 minute reserve at 2500rpm and 58% bhp at 7500 feet. 535mi w/o reserve.
Recently I flew TOL-AGC (191NM) at 7500 feet/2500RPM with a nice tailwind. Since I had a good 20 knot tailwind, the math calculated I'd land with about half tanks, since it is about half of the max range according to the POH. When I landed and checked the tanks, I had burned 17 gallons, and had about 1 hour reserve left, far more than I should have burned. So, as you can see, even though the POH says I should be able to fly 330NM legally in a no wind situation, I would have run into fuel exhaustion had I tried to do so, even with the 20 knot tailwind.
I've been trying to figure out why I'm running into this issue. About 99% of my flights are solo - long cross countries, so it's important to me to figure out why my aircraft performance isn't matching up with the POH. Let me mention that when I fly solo, i'm no where near max gross weight.
The POH say that at 7,500 feet @ 2500RPM (58% BHP), I'm supposed to get 105 MPH TAS (91 knots). In those conditions, I'm getting around 90 mph, about 15mph short of what the POH says. My aircraft has a new propeller, flap gap seals, wheel fairings, and I wax it often. I have a digital tachometer so I know I'm at 2500rpm.
However, I don't have any issues with fuel leaks. I keep the aircraft and engine clean and well maintained. The engine is a Continental O-200. I have a EGT and CHT gauge, which I use to help with leaning ROP. Also, I do compression checks monthly, which always shows good results.
So, I guess my question is, how come I'm not getting the speed and range performance I should be getting as shown in the POH? I'm getting about half the range, and about 10-15MPH slower in cruise flight.
I went from a new plane to a C150L twice my age, so I'm wondering if it has to do with the age of the aircraft?
I also noticed that Cessna advertised this for the Cessna 150 which shows two adults, two children, and two suitcases. Now, it could be me but that seems a little optimistic. So, I'm wondering, is it possible that the POH data was exaggerated a little to sell aircraft?
Or is there something I'm doing wrong from an operators point? I'm new to the aviation game, so I figured I'd ask those with more experience. Thanks, and sorry for the long message!