my flight got delayed but the pilot said they would go faster to make up for lost time and we ended up arriving early. This got me thinking why can’t planes always go at this faster speed?
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I’ll take it a step further: aircraft are designed with an optimal speed in mind, which is highly driven by cost – fuel consumption is the most significant of those costs, I believe.
Planes have actually gotten “slower” over time, as we’ve built more efficient turbine engines. Simply put, we’ve found a sweet spot that balances aircraft efficiency of the engines with design characteristics of the aircraft that further reduce the fuel consumption.
There are additional reasons to stick with these speeds. Using the engine at its most efficient output also reduces the wear and tear on components, for example. It’s kind of like running a marathon: if you sprint, you will have to stop and rest many times. The aircraft would need a lot more maintenance, which is costly to complete and means the aircraft isn’t flying – when it’s not flying, it’s not making money.
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