[Vwdiesel] Diesel powered airplane

[William J Toensing]

Did you know there is on the market, a new diesel powered airplane powered by two  Mercedes Benz 5 cylinder Sprinter diesels modified to aircraft standards?  I did not know this until today when I attended our local Grass Valley, CA airshow. The airplane is made by Diamond, an aircraft manufacturer in Ontario, Canada that I had never heard of before. I talked to the pilot who flew it to this show. He said the plane, named the "Twin Star" uses 6.5 gallons per engine, or 13 gallons per hour at a 170 MPH cruise, & a range of 900 miles. If the cruise speed is reduced to 150 MPH, the pilot said the range was 1200 miles. My math, this would equal 13 MPG at 170 MPH or about 17 MPG at 150 MPH. He said it burns "Jet-A" type fuel, readily available at airports. I think the military calls it "JP-4" I noticed 110/130 avgas was selling for $3.95 a gallon. I don't know what "Jet-A" sells for a gallon but I suspect around half the price of avgas.
I am not aware of any other current use of diesel engines in modern aircraft. However, Packard made an air-cooled radial aircraft engine in the late '20s or early '30s. I saw it on display in the Franklin Museum in Philadelphia sometime in the 1970s. Also the Germans used Maybach diesels on the Graf Zeppelin & ill fated Hindenburg. I also recall, not sure, that the Germans used diesel engines on their Dornier DO-X  ten  engine flying boat flown around 1930, as I recall.