Right Hand Seat – Fuel and the Doubting Thomas

Fuel. It is the stuff that powers the engine, be it a piston or turbine. Without it the pilot becomes a worry to the insurance company and yet each year aircraft run out of fuel in flight.

The reasons for this are many and varied but the basic reason is simply not planning to have enough fuel for the flight plus a reserve.

The fuel quantity can best be calculated by two out of three methods. Use a calibrated dip stick to check tank quantity, checking reliable calibrated gauges and working from a known quantity and a known fuel burn rate. In spite of these methods engines still run dry. One only has to read the ATSB weekly reports or the American NTSB monthly reports to see the number of aircraft that suffer total fuel exhaustion or run dry on the tank selected
The American FAA says that of engine failures in light aircraft 85% are caused by carburettor ice or fuel exhaustion – of the tank selected. How many times does one read in the NTSB reports of an accident aircraft suffering engine failure from fuel exhaustion only to find that the other tank has an adequate supply of fuel in it. No doubt it happens here as well.