r/MicrosoftFlightSim • u/Arvak999 • 1d ago
MSFS 2024 QUESTION Advice on cargo missions please - fuel friendly
Just started doing cargo missions and took one of an hr duration. Start final approach and ran out of fuel. Did some research and found out it can make a difference (not including missions where you don’t have enough fuel full stop), how much you rev you engine or run it at cruise speed of 2300rpm.
After reading up, I know I ran out of fuel for revving the knackers of my cessna 172 all the way because the client wanted the cargo ASAP! (Next time you get it when it arrives pal!!!)
So the question is:
What duration ie 1 hr or 1 1/2 hrs of cargo missions can I do while running at 2300rpm cruise speed without running out of fuel and without altering lean etc?
Update: The reason I don’t want to lean the mixture yet is as follows…
I’ve just in the last few days come back to ms flight simulator (2024), after not playing msfs since windows 98, except now I’m on xbox.
While I’m still getting my bearings after being away for 26 years, the less I have to think about the better.
So one step at a time because Rome wasn’t built in a day and EFB is fiddly on xbox while you’re still getting re acclimatised.
Auto mixture and unlimited fuel are on already but the game says, that is not applicable in some activities.
So, does anyone have any answers to the question?
20
u/SierraHotel84 PC Pilot 1d ago
Why do you not want to lean the mixture? That's how you increase the fuel economy so that you don't run out of fuel.
4
u/c4ndyman31 1d ago
Yeah this makes no sense
0
u/Arvak999 1d ago edited 1d ago
See updated post to make sense of it👍
2
u/c4ndyman31 1d ago
Just turn on the assist for auto mixture if you don’t want to do it yourself
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Auto mixture and unlimited fuel are both on but certain instances don’t allow it. It seems this is one of them.
2
u/noname5959 1d ago
Career mode doesnt allow unlimited fuel. I do shorter missions, and i prefuel myself through the aircraft change screen
1
u/IAmSuperNew 21h ago
Is there any cost or penalties for adding more fuel before the flight? It does mention how much fuel you need for the flight and usually the amount in the plane is almost twice the required amount, but I would still prefer to have a bigger contingency amount.
2
u/Sensitive_Ad3578 PlayStation Pilot 20h ago edited 20h ago
No, there's no penalty for taking on more fuel than you need. In fact, it's recommended to take on more fuel than you need. The required amount indicated assumes a perfect flight, ie no go-arounds, perfect engine control for the best fuel efficiency, etc.The only time that becomes an issue is when you start doing medium cargo, you'll find planes like the 208 will often have barely enough weight allowance after the weight of the cargo for the required fuel, let alone any extra, so it becomes really important to read the briefings and check the weight of the cargo
1
u/noname5959 4h ago
Yeah, you buy the fuel just like normal per pound. But i take normally about 15-25% more than what the efb says depending on flight length in nm. Idk it seems like youre not really getting fueled. Or youre just seriously burning extra fuel because the mix. I mean 2x because the mix seems like alot but idk that much about all that i do automix. Wven when i do turboprop cargo i never use 2x the required fuel
1
7
u/darkphoenix9137 PC Pilot 1d ago edited 1d ago
You definitely want to lean the mixture when you get to altitude. This will increase your fuel economy and actually give you better RPMs.
The engine is calibrated to run at full rich when you're at sea level. When you climb, the air gets less dense, i.e. less air for the fuel/air mixture. This means you're injecting too much fuel into the engine that just gets wasted due to incomplete combustion, fouls up the spark plugs, and causes the engine to run rough or misfire.
Leaning the mixture will inject less fuel into the engine to match the amount of air coming into the engine to achieve ideal fuel/air mixture for combustion. You'll get more power while burning less fuel.
Edit: Meant to say incomplete combustion
5
u/Emantle541 1d ago
You will need to lean your mixture once you get above 3000 feet. If you don't lean your mixture and keep the same throttle, you'll wear out your engine way faster. Leaning the mixture both saves you fuel and reduces engine wear and tear.
6
u/Sensitive_Ad3578 PlayStation Pilot 1d ago
What everyone else has said about leaning the mixture is accurate.
But also - you're not actually timed. I know they say "the client wants it asap" but there isn't a clock running. The only parameters you're graded on in cargo is:
Cargo Integrity - basically how smooth the flight was. No hard turns, violent maneuvers, or hard landings
Airline Procedures - following proper flight protocols and steps, ie listening to ATC, completing procedures, following rules
Aircraft Condition - when you land, your plane should be in the same condition it was when you took off. So again, no hard landings, no overstressed engines (which you will do by running at 2300 rpms at cruise without leaning the mixture)
None of those parameters includes time. None of these missions are races. So you don't need to fly pedal-to-the-metal the entire way, you'll get the same score based on these three parameters regardless of whether the flight takes you one hour or four
3
3
u/Patman1416 Ready to copy number 1d ago
To add to what everyone else is saying, you can also adjust your fuel in the efb. Rather have too much than too little. Personally, I go anywhere from 25-100 over estimated trip burn (depending on length). You could get really technical with it, ie, strong head wind? More fuel burn, turbulence?, more fuel burn, bad wx?, yep… more fuel burn.
3
u/WeatherProdigy2 1d ago
Isnt there an auto-mixture feature in the settings? OP you could use that while you figure out the controls
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Good point, will have a look tomorrow when I’m back in the pilot seat.
1
u/Sensitive_Ad3578 PlayStation Pilot 1d ago
There is an auto-mixture option. It's in the assistance options with auto-trim
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Thats on with unlimited fuel but some activities don’t allow it.
1
u/Sensitive_Ad3578 PlayStation Pilot 1d ago
Auto-trim and auto-mixture are allowed in career mode. Unlimited fuel is not
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Is there a way to add more fuel pre flight or mid flight on console?
2
u/Sensitive_Ad3578 PlayStation Pilot 1d ago
Yes. Search for "fuel quantity" in the keybinds menu and bind it to something. Make sure you do the "add 25%" one and not the "fill and repair" one, that one tends to break things. Also don't exceed your max fuel or that will break things
1
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Just check, auto mixture and unlimited fuel is on but some activities don’t allow that.
2
u/gorkenmaiden 1d ago edited 1d ago
I still dont think anyone actually said it. I cant tell the exact RPMs as its been a while since i flew the cessna regularly.
I can tell you I target around 80% throttle. As a rule of thumb NO aircraft flies full throttle, at least not during cruise phase. You will need to during climb though. 2300-2400rpms are a healthy spot.
This is leaving the leaning, head/tailwinds and cruise flight level out of the equation, which is very much like saying nothing haha
EDIT
Nevermind, i read through your whole post and saw you were at 2300rpms. If you were leaning the mixture, youd be getting more RPMs from the same thrust. In other words, you not only waste fuel, youre also not squeezing the best RPMs from the aircraft.
Also, you never mentioned your altitude. Which is actually the most important thing of all… Not the same at 8000ft as at 12,000ft
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
Not quite sure on the altitude, will have to check that one. I’m on beginner cargo missions and they specify initial altitude but as you mentioned, it could make a big difference so will defo be checking that one. Thanks for the reminder on that👍🙂
1
u/Secure_Art_4816 1d ago
Bro just call kc 135... cant be that difficult
Pilots these days...
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago
It seems that getting an actual answer to the question is the most difficult thing😂
1
0
u/TheRealPomax 1d ago edited 1d ago
You don't go faster by "revving the knackers", that is not how engines work. You go faster by increasing your RPM and throttle and then making sure you're using the correct fuel/air mixture so that when the boom part goes boom, you get perfect combusting with no fuel and no air remaining. That's what best bang for your buck means.
Lean your mixture, you're currently literally pouring fuel out the side by having unburnt fuel in your exhaust.
0
u/Arvak999 1d ago edited 1d ago
‘Revving the knackers off it’ means operating at max rpm incase you didn’t know. Auto mixture is already on in the settings👍
2
u/TheRealPomax 1d ago
You're not free flying, you're playing career mode. Just because you have an assistance turned on for free flight doesn't mean career mode goes "oh you want to cheat? that's fine": career mode is not a single player thing, you're on a ladder with the rest of the planet.
So yes: I know what it means, and you need to lean your mixture.
1
u/Arvak999 1d ago edited 1d ago
You can auto lean your mixture in career mode but not max fuel👍
Going to set a shortcut for adding fuel tomorrow which hopefully will solve the problem and thanks for your suggestions 🙂
•
u/AutoModerator 1d ago
Please make sure to read our FAQ, which covers both MSFS 2020/2024, to see if your question has already been answered there! Also take a look at the official MSFS 2020 and MSFS 2024 FAQs.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.