Takeoff flaps at high altitude airports

[rvdave]

For high altitude airport fliers what is your procedure for high altitude takeoffs? What I?ve been reading says less flaps for takeoff because of increased drag but with a caveat that it depends on performance charts for the aircraft. Being from Michigan I recently took a trip to Arizona and performed my normal takeoffs with 0 flap setting and noticed the longer run and less climb performance but afterthoughts are wondering if I would have been better off with more flaps?

[Flying again!]

Never bothered with flaps at high altitude, still gets off in 1/4 of whatever runway I have used at high DA. I can not tell any difference between -3 or 0 deg. If it was a short runway I may try 15 deg.

I was at DA of over 10,000ft at KSJN at gross and had a climb rate of over 700 fpm which is more than I get from a 172 here at 52F in the summer.

The balance is more lift vice more drag and for runways over 4000ft at high altitude the -3 deg setting seems to work well.

FWIW

TJ

[FORANE]

The question isn't if flaps are necessary; it is does the addition of some degree of flaps add lift and reduce the takeoff roll.

Certainly the RV's are good short field performers. As to making a good short field performer some degree better, the addition of 5-10 degrees of positive flaps most likely would.

[rdrcrmatt]

I use flaps 0? at high DA, even in cruise.

I'd consider running the flaps to an intermediate setting (between 0? and "half" around 15?, so around 5?-7?) for a high DA take-off if I need to get climbing in short order.

[rvdave]

I use flaps 0? at high DA, even in cruise.

Do you ever use -3

[BobTurner]

Originally Posted by rvdave

I use flaps 0? at high DA, even in cruise.

Do you ever use -3

I?ve experimented with -3 vs in trail, in cruise, at mid-weight, 16,500? DA. I couldn?t see any difference. I presume that at even higher density altitudes, in trail might be a bit faster.
As to the OP?s question: Adding flaps will decrease the ground run, but also decrease the rate of climb. With enough density altitude or flaps, that climb rate may be zero.
So far, I have not yet encountered a short/hot/high enough runway where ?in trail? flaps did not provide a comfortably short enough ground roll.