MacDill utilizing multi-pronged approach to saving aircraft fuel

Published Jan. 28, 2011
By Mr. Nick Stubbs
6th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs

MACDILL AIR FORCE BASE, Fla. -- Drivers who stay aware of their right foot, keep their engine tuned and adjust their car's tire pressure, can save a few cents a day in gas costs. When the professionals that plan the flying missions at MacDill Air Force Base get frugal, it can save thousands of dollars a day.

A KC-135 Stratotanker makes even the worst gas guzzlers on the street look like fuel-sipping super hybrids, the big, old birds drinking fuel faster than most gas station pumps can dispense. That's why the 6th Air Mobility and 927th Air Refueling wings constantly monitor and plan with an eye toward greater fuel efficiency and savings.

The efforts at MacDill operate under the overall Air Mobility Command directive to maximize fuel savings while maintaining the mission, said Capt. Ryan Reed, 6th Operations Support Squadron, the man in charge of keeping an eye on fuel consumption.

So far, changes in procedures and policies over recent months have added up to thousands of pounds of fuel saved, he said.

"The single biggest thing that has saved us here (MacDill) has been moving a lot of the (flight) training to the simulator," said Captain Reed. "It costs us about $500 per hour to train on the simulator, compared to about $5,000 per hour flying a KC-135."

It's a balancing act, he said, as the KC-135 flight simulator on base must be supplemented by "real" flight time.

"There are certain things in training that require the real thing, but by doing more in the simulator and flying only when necessary, we save a lot of fuel," said Captain Reed.

More savings are realized by flying higher than in the past. The thinner atmosphere means less drag on the air frame, reducing the amount of power needed to propel the plane. MacDill's tankers also carry fewer pounds of fuel when they take off, the reduced weight cutting down on the fuel needed to carry the load.

"That means we have less wiggle room," said Captain Reed, referring to dealing with contingency situations that might require rerouting or spending more time in holding patterns waiting to offload fuel.

"It's a trade-off," he said. "The pilots don't have the (fuel) buffer they used to have, but it means they take off with less weight and return with less than they used to."

Carrying less applies to both the plane's supply as well as that carried to refuel aircraft. Captain Reed said measures are taken to ensure no more fuel is carried to a receiver aircraft than they are willing to take, as in the past it was common for aircraft to request more than they needed, meaning the tanker had to return with a heavier load than necessary.

Other factors that have added up to big savings at MacDill include less time running aircraft engines on the ground, careful monitoring of fuel usage on each mission and making adjustments when needed.

"Tracking is another area where we save," said Captain Reed, who added the wing increasingly looks at the ways commercial airlines economize for ideas on saving more fuel.

"You'll see commercial airlines taking magazines off to save weight," he said. "That attention to detail is something we are doing in our tracking."

The process will be ongoing, with adjustments for maximum savings without interfering with the mission always the objective, said Captain Reed, who added small savings will have to do until the day when the aging KC-135s are replaced with a modern tanker.

While the engines on the 50-year-old KC-135 fleet are newer and more efficient, the air frame itself is heavier and less efficient. There are more malfunctions and maintenance issues with older planes, which means more planes have to return early from missions, requiring additional landings and takeoffs, or push harder to make it to the destination on time.