Readback: April 2010

In response to your article What is Minimum Fuel? (Feb 2010 IFR):I believe that the single most important thing to do at your first thought that you may be running tight on fuel is to slow down to your max range power setting-which is about 40-percent power in most small planes-and lean to 50-degrees lean of peak EGT. This will allow you to fly the longest distance with the remaining fuel before you drop from the sky. The distance is what is important, not the time.

Editorial Staff

Tuesday, January 06, 2015 at 12:00 AM ET

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Key Takeaways:

Pilots are advised on proactive fuel conservation tactics, such as slowing to max range power and leaning aggressively, along with precise guidance on when to declare "minimum fuel" or a "fuel emergency" to ATC, noting that such declarations typically avoid FAA enforcement unless gross negligence is involved.
The article highlights critical safety concerns including potentially dangerous differences in flight instrument displays (e.g., roll indicators between piston and jet aircraft), debates surrounding adherence to single-engine climb minimums in IMC, and proper procedures for missed approaches when required navaids are out of service.
Discussions also cover practical navigational issues, such as altitude-restricted waypoints disappearing when activating Vectors-to-Final in GPS/FMS systems, and provide guidance on how subscribers can access an annual index for searching past articles for instructional reference.

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Low Fuel Tactics
In response to your article “What is Minimum Fuel?” (Feb 2010 IFR):

I believe that the single most important thing to do at your first thought that you may be running tight on fuel is to slow down to your max range power setting—which is about 40-percent power in most small planes—and lean to 50-degrees lean of peak EGT. This will allow you to fly the longest distance with the remaining fuel before you drop from the sky. The distance is what is important, not the time.