Comments on: Headwinds, headwinds, and more headwinds http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139 Online perspective from the editors of "AOPA Pilot". Mon, 20 May 2013 06:19:54 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Jeff Frey http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139&cpage=1#comment-96120 Jeff Frey Sat, 29 May 2010 14:18:48 +0000 http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139#comment-96120 You would think that on a round trip that they would average out and you would at least get tailwinds 50% of the time. Like you though it seems like I’m always fighting a headwind. Last month on a family trip to Myrtle Beach we had a headwind down and then coming back about a 25 knot headwind to deal with.

This weekend we flew from Delaware to Michigan though and had a small tailwind. Not bad for a trip heading west. Usually I’m only getting around 100 knots ground speed across the mountains heading west in my Archer and I was actually getting around 125 knots. Hopefully the wind shifts by tomorrow morning so I can have a tailwind for the return trip.

]]> By: Ian Twombly http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139&cpage=1#comment-96105 Ian Twombly Thu, 27 May 2010 12:42:47 +0000 http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139#comment-96105 Good observations Finbar, and absolutely correct. But aside from the issue of the headwind acting on us longer, doesn’t it seem like on a leg-by-leg basis, we get more headwinds than tailwinds? I don’t know if I’ve ever gotten a tailwind in both directions of a trip, for example. But I’ve had a headwind both directions many times.

]]> By: Finbar Sheehy http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139&cpage=1#comment-96096 Finbar Sheehy Wed, 26 May 2010 22:01:10 +0000 http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139#comment-96096 Ian,

Your perception is correct. On average you should spend more time fighting headwinds than enjoying tailwinds, because the headwind legs take longer.

If you fly at 100kt into a 20kt headwind for 100nm, it will take you 1.25 hours.
Fly the 100nm back, with a 20kt tailwind, and it will take you 0.833 hours.

Observe that:
1) You are back where you started, but the winds didn’t average out. The round trip took 2.0833 hours, not 2.0000 hours – an extra 5 minutes of flight time over the no-wind condition. Headwinds hurt more than tailwinds help.

2) You spent 60% of your flight time fighting a headwind, and only 40% enjoying a tailwind.

So you are right. You have a bad headwind/tailwind record. So do we all!

]]> By: freds http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139&cpage=1#comment-96091 freds Wed, 26 May 2010 01:16:58 +0000 http://blog.aopa.org/blog/?p=1139#comment-96091 Turbo arrow trip from Seattle to Boston Maine. 10.6 hours eastbound at 19K, 21 hours for the return (counting cows in North Dakota and Montana).

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