Pre-departure testing

Before heading off on my adventure, I wanted to gather some useful data on the performance of the PMDG B1900D.  Despite having flown it for years, and far more than any other aircraft, I didn't have any figures to go by for fuel planning.


I departed Dar Es Salaam (HTDA) for a short flight to Dodoma (HTDO).  Dodoma has been the capital of Tanzania since 1973, but many of the government offices remain in Dar which is the largest city, and commercial capital, of Tanzania.


Using a payload of 100kgs as the default allows more range, and accounts for any equipment to be taken along by the two pilots.  The Zero Fuel Weight (ZFW) for the trips would therefore be 5057kg / 11125lbs.  This allows take-off and landing with full fuel if necessary and eliminates the need to worry about particularly limiting airfields, especially since the trip will take in some of the highest airports in the world, and some of the shortest runways for this type of aircraft.


The Beech fuel gauges feature a yellow shaded background area which I am using as the reserve fuel allowance. It adds up to 400kg / 880lbs which is a lot for a small aircraft, but given some of the remote airports I am planning to visit, and the unpredictability of the weather, I felt it would be a sensible figure to ensure a safe landing somewhere if a diversion was needed.


From take-off to top of climb, the B1900D burnt 180kg of fuel, and thereafter 410kg per hour in the cruise.  Using these figures and the flightplanning tool in ActiveSky I am able to calculate a sensible fuel figure for each leg.  For example:


HTDA - HTDO (51 minutes, FL250)


Min landing fuel (reserves):  400kg
Climb fuel:                          180kg
Cruise fuel:                         349kg


Total fuel:                           929kg

Even though the trip fuel should normally include take-off and climb fuel, calculating it separately adds an extra comfort zone to the fuel calculations in case of a change in wind etc.


Using the above figures for the return trip worked very well so I decided it would be good enough to use for the world tour.


I am using the callsign "Fly World" followed by the leg number.  This helps keep track of the number of legs I have flown.


I thought the aircraft would need some additional painting for the world tour so the first part of the trip took it to Lanseria in South Africa, where it was originally painted for Safari Plus.  And so the journey began!