Running dry?

I'm sorry, was I calling someone a name?

Saying "That is possibly the dumbest thing..." kind of implies the
author is dumb in most interpretations, doesn't it? John Deakin sure is
a lot of things. Dumb is definitely not among them.

Sorry, even Einstein had dumb ideas. This is one of Deakins...

In fact, I would never have guessed that this kind of a hair-brained "fuel
management" procedure would merit a serious discussion in these newsgroups.
To even contemplate running a tank dry in the air, let alone propose it as a
standard -- even beneficial (?!) -- procedure, makes for astonishing
reading.

Although this thread *does* answer a question that has bugged me for a very
long time. I've often wondered how it was possible that so many NTSB
reports ended with "fuel exhaustion" as an explanation.

Now I know.

(And, no, before any "English as a second language" folks misinterpret the
meaning of my post, I DON'T mean that any particular crash happened because
the pilots were purposefully running a tank dry. Rather, it's the "let's
extend our fuel range to the maximum possible" attitude that kills people --
and this thread goes a long ways toward explaining that mentality.)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"