1. I have learned from this discussion that everyone has an opinion,
and their opinion is quite strongly held. Does anyone have any data,
on either side, to back up their opinion? How often do planes have
trouble caused by not knowing precisely how much gas they have,
perhaps influenced by inaccurate gages? How often do planes have
trouble caused by running a tank dry (NOT running the _last_ tank
dry)?

I don't know if there's a way to adequately answer your question, as no
records (to my knowledge) are kept of this kind of thing.

The one record we all know, however, is the appallingly high number of
"accidents" that happen each year because of planes running out of gas.
This is a statistic that should be easily improved, yet, year after year,
the numbers stay stubbornly high.

Why? Carelessness and stupidity. There simply IS no other reason for
running out of gas. (Short of a fuel leak, of course.)

My wife and I are both pilots. We have both had it pounded into our heads
(by instructors, FAA seminars, and magazine articles) that it is the
ultimate display of ignorance to ever run out of fuel. Thus, our *very*
conservative fuel management system has evolved over the last decade, and it
has served us well.

In the end, we may ultimately succumb to some sort of an aviation mishap --
but I can almost guarantee that it will *not* be due to fuel exhaustion.

2. There seems to be a lot of discussion mentioning that the only way
to be sure of your tank's capacity is to run it dry. In my reading
about flying, I notice that folks talk about measuring fuel by looking
in the tanks and perhaps using a dipstick. Couldn't you calibrate
your gages by filling the tanks, going for a flight, then sticking a
ruler into the tank to see how much is left? Is running the tank dry
any more accurate or useful?

The bottom line is that with a dipstick (or, in our plane, with the gauges)
you will be accurate to within a gallon -- maybe two. The truth is, if this
amount of gas is the difference between a safe arrival, and an off-field
landing, you have made a VERY dumb mistake in your fuel management.

In short, if you need it more accurate than *that*, you are pushing your
range too close to the razor's edge.

Is my characterization accurate?

Quite.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"