Welcome to brain Stuff from how Stuff Works dot com where smart Happens. Hi, I'm Marshall Brain with today's question, how much fuel does an international airplane use for a trip? A plane like a Boeing seven forty seven uses approximately one gallon of fuel every second. Over the course of a ten hour flight, it might burn thirty six thousand gallons of fuel. That sounds like a lot. According to Boeing's website, the seven forty seven burns approximately five gallons
of fuel per mile. This sounds like tremendously poor miles per gallon, but consider that a seven forty seven can carry as many as five hundred sixty eight people. Let's call it five hundred people to use around number. A seven forty seven is transporting five hundred people one mile using five gallons of fuel. That means the plan it is burning about point oh one gallons per person per mile. In other words, the plane is getting a hundred miles
per gallon per person. The typical car gets about twenty five miles per gallon, So the seven forty seven is actually much better than a car carrying one person and compares favorably even if there are four people in the car, not bad when you consider that the seven forty seven is flying at about five fifty miles per hour. Be sure to check out our new video podcast, Stuff from the Future. Join how Stuff Work staff as we explore the most promising and perplexing possibilities of tomorrow the house
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