Originally Posted by
Meikleour
tdracer: Do you have any knowledge of the "pod nod" applied to the R-R engined B747-2/300? I was told that although the airframe was optimised for M.86 cruise it was more commomly cruised slightly slower with a commensurate higher cruise pitch attitude. The "pod- nod" applied a slight droop to the pods giving a better alignment for the slower cruise speed and hence a slight fuel burn improvement.
The last of BA's -200's BDXP had different (basically -400) pylons, they had a noticeable droop to them ( 5deg?? IIRC), That was there as stated to improve airflow into the engine especially during rotation. There was one other of the fleet and the reg. I cant remember had a no.4 pylon only to the same standard as we replaced it due to overheat damage.