Fuel for Thought
The mere thought of running out of fuel gives pilots the shivers. No system, automated or manual, digital or analogue, gives a blissfully exact picture of how much fuel is in the tanks or how long it will last. Good fuel management is about reducing uncertainty. Rules also reduce uncertainty. These rules might be CASA rules, flight operations or training rules, or personal minimums.
Got Fuel?
There is something inherently comforting about a Tiger Moth’s fuel gauge. There it sits, float bobbing happily atop the fuel, a glass tube poking out of the corrugated metal tank above the front cockpit. There is no interface, no electrickery, no cords, wires, or pumps – almost as true as it gets.
It would be hard not to trust your own eyes and a sight gauge, but a transparent configuration is not common in larger than sport-size aircraft, and still has potential for failure. Even with a system as honest as a sight gauge, how certain is it that the measurement lines are in the right place? And, how long will that fuel last anyway? Will the aircraft reach its destination?
“the legally-correct calculation figure that outguns all others is the one that leads to compliance.”
In many aircraft,
