Originally Posted by
trooper
We used ONE of those engines for any speed up to 25 knots IIRC.. the second engine was needed for the relatively small increase to "top" speed...
I suspect aircraft are the same deal.. massive increase in power required past a certain point for relatively modest gain....
If you drive faster in a car, you burn up more fuel. On the other hand, a small engine (for example - a
SMART car) can only push a vehicle so fast.
So ultimately, a faster vehicle (car, ship, plane) needs a larger engine that burns more fuel. To get an incremental increase in speed though requires a disproportionate increase in power. More power being used = more fuel being burned. Additionally, a more powerful engine is probably somewhat more complex so maintenance becomes an added issue.
Personally I would consider paying more if I could fly say, YYZ - HKG in 7 hours instead of the current 15+ hours. But I know that I don't represent the majority of flyers.