Liberty Aerospace, Inc. has laid claim to having the 'World's Most Efficient IFR Trainer & Touring Aircraft".

After conducting an independently-monitored efficiency flight test on Sunday, January 11th, 2009, using its FAA IFR Certified Full Authority Digital Engine Control (FADEC) equipped XL2, Liberty was able to achieve a mileage efficiency of 21.208 nautical miles per gallon over a 165 nautical mile course.

The flight, which was conducted in a standard-equipped Liberty XL2, was flown on a 165NM loop from Spruce Creek (7FL6) to Hernando County Airport (BKY) in Central Florida, at a cruising altitude of 7,500FT. Power was set at 50% with an RPM of 2350, with max power in the climb and 30-40% power on the decent.

Average True Airspeed was 106 KTS for most of the flight resulting in a total elapsed time of 1 hour and 40 minutes. Total fuel burn was 7.78 US Gallons, for an average hourly rate of 4.686 US Gallons Per Hour.

Paul Everitt, Business Development Manager for Liberty Aerospace stated, "For years we have claimed that the XL2 is the world's most fuel efficient IFR trainer and touring aircraft, and this test was simply one more way for us to prove the point. With standard equipment and no special pre- planning for weather or winds, we showed what can be done in real-world everyday conditions."

"These results don't surprise me," said Dick Gates, a private owner of an XL2 based in Florida. "During the two years that I've owned my XL2 I've calculated my average fuel burn to be in the low 5-gallon range, and when used for flight training, it has been below 5 gallons per hour."

The Liberty flight was independently monitored by retired airline pilot Sal DeVincenzo, who logged departure and return times along with fuel usage. Mr DeVincenzo also documented the flight, which was tracked live on the web via an on-board third party GPS tracking system.

"For the GA industry to grow, light aircraft manufacturers must produce efficient fully-certified two- place aircraft that allow Flight Schools and individuals to continue flying while remaining profitable," added Mr Everitt, who has over 700 hours PIC flying all over the USA in the XL2. "We challenge the aviation industry to beat our record of being the most fuel-efficient and environmentally acceptable Part 23 IFR Certified aircraft available today."