After coming to grips with the VNAV on the FMS in my Eaglesoft Citation X (finally :D ), I now find myself doing long trips (1,500nm +) and running out of fuel. Bummer..

 

Right now I brim the tanks and hope for the best. Sometimes the FMS will say something like "Check Dest Fuel" (can't remember the exact term), and when it doesn't I figure I'm good and I still run low or out of fuel (makes a pretty good glider btw :) ).

 

I figure my planning is way off so I'm looking for help with tools and techniques to help plan my flight profile (altitude, speed, etc.) for a required range.

 

Not sure if Flight Profile Planner is the correct term so please correct me if I'm wrong.

Hi,

 

without actually knowing how detailed or how true-to-the-real-thing the Eaglesoft model is I'd say that the performance manuals included with the software should give you an indication of the range of the aircraft. You have to factor in stuff like the weather too (winds etc), cruise alts etc. A high fidelity sim will usually supply fuel burn figures for different flight levels.

You could also try: http://fuel.aerotexas.com/ and this link: http://bruse.com/FSX/ESCX20X%20Documents/CX20%20KLASKLAX%20Example%20Flight%20.pdf as a sample flight. Google is a great help. I found a bunch of useful-looking links. Just search for 'Eaglesoft fuel planner'.

 

hth