The estimation of range of jet-propelled aircraft

Extract

The statement that with modern aircraft and jet propulsion engines it is essential to match the engine and aircraft has become a platitude, without the reasons being quite so well appreciated. It is well known that should the aircraft be operating away from its “ design point,” involving throttling back of the engine, then the loss of efficiency with either jet or turbine airscrew engines is liable to be serious, and to have a large effect on the range. There is also a firm conviction that very high altitude is necessary in order to give a jet aircraft any range worth mentioning.

It seems worth while to examine in a simple way on what qualities of the engine the range depends. The object of this simplified attack on the problem is two-fold; first of all it enables the factors to be readily appreciated, and second it provides rapid methods of comparing the qualities of two different engine types for range.