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Running dry?



 
 
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  #1  
Old August 22nd 05, 03:59 AM
Mike Weller
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On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 01:34:56 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:


4. Measure your gas with your watch, never your fuel gauges.


That has served me well for a long time.

Mike Weller



  #2  
Old August 22nd 05, 04:44 AM
Ron Rosenfeld
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On Sun, 21 Aug 2005 21:59:07 -0500, Mike Weller
wrote:

On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 01:34:56 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:


4. Measure your gas with your watch, never your fuel gauges.


That has served me well for a long time.

Mike Weller



I used to believe the same mantra. But one flight many years ago changed
my mind.

You need to believe the method that is the most conservative at the time.

Some years ago, when I believed as you wrote, a tank ran dry unexpectedly
about 12,000 feet over the hills of W Va. Not a very hospitable place.
The tank ran dry about 5 minutes before I was planning to switch, at a time
when there should have been about 20 minutes of fuel remaining.

The fact that it ran dry allowed me to refigure my fuel consumption and
know what I had left in the other tank. The closest airport happened to be
my planned destination (CRW) and I landed with maybe 15 minutes of fuel
remaining, instead of the planned for 60 minutes.

The problem turned out to be a leaky gasket in the fuel servo, increasing
my fuel consumption by about 10-15%, if I recall correctly.


Ron (EPM) (N5843Q, Mooney M20E) (CP, ASEL, ASES, IA)
  #3  
Old August 22nd 05, 04:48 AM
Matt Barrow
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"Ron Rosenfeld" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 21 Aug 2005 21:59:07 -0500, Mike Weller
wrote:

On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 01:34:56 GMT, "Jay Honeck"
wrote:


4. Measure your gas with your watch, never your fuel gauges.


That has served me well for a long time.

Mike Weller



I used to believe the same mantra. But one flight many years ago changed
my mind.

You need to believe the method that is the most conservative at the time.

Some years ago, when I believed as you wrote, a tank ran dry unexpectedly
about 12,000 feet over the hills of W Va. Not a very hospitable place.
The tank ran dry about 5 minutes before I was planning to switch, at a

time
when there should have been about 20 minutes of fuel remaining.

The fact that it ran dry allowed me to refigure my fuel consumption and
know what I had left in the other tank. The closest airport happened to

be
my planned destination (CRW) and I landed with maybe 15 minutes of fuel
remaining, instead of the planned for 60 minutes.

The problem turned out to be a leaky gasket in the fuel servo, increasing
my fuel consumption by about 10-15%, if I recall correctly.


What says a fuel gauge is any more or less accurate than a fuel FLOW gauge?



  #4  
Old August 22nd 05, 08:00 AM
Thomas Borchert
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Matt,

What says a fuel gauge is any more or less accurate than a fuel FLOW gauge?


Experience gd&r. Seriously, most fuel gauges are horrendously unreliable.

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)

  #5  
Old August 22nd 05, 11:31 AM
Ron Rosenfeld
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On Sun, 21 Aug 2005 20:48:12 -0700, "Matt Barrow"
wrote:

What says a fuel gauge is any more or less accurate than a fuel FLOW gauge?


I don't see the relationship of your question to anything I posted. But
certainly in the ranges over a quarter tank, experience in small a/c show
that a properly calibrated fuel flow gauge is more accurate.

As a matter of fact, I believe that the fuel quantity indicators are only
required to be accurate at zero fuel in level flight (for a/c certified
under Part 23).


Ron (EPM) (N5843Q, Mooney M20E) (CP, ASEL, ASES, IA)
  #6  
Old August 22nd 05, 01:52 PM
Dylan Smith
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On 2005-08-22, Ron Rosenfeld wrote:
As a matter of fact, I believe that the fuel quantity indicators are only
required to be accurate at zero fuel in level flight (for a/c certified
under Part 23).


Close, but no cigar. That one is a bit of an OWT. The fuel quantity
indicator must be calibrated to read zero when there is no usable fuel
left, but:

23.1337:

b) Fuel quantity indication. There must be a means to indicate to the
flightcrew members the quantity of usable fuel in each tank during
flight. An indicator calibrated in appropriate units and clearly marked
to indicate those units must be used. In addition:

(1) Each fuel quantity indicator must be calibrated to read
zero during level flight when the quantity of fuel remaining
in the tank is equal to the unusable fuel supply determined under
§23.959(a);

--
Dylan Smith, Castletown, Isle of Man
Flying: http://www.dylansmith.net
Frontier Elite Universe: http://www.alioth.net
"Maintain thine airspeed, lest the ground come up and smite thee"
  #7  
Old August 22nd 05, 07:57 PM
Ron Rosenfeld
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On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 12:52:36 -0000, Dylan Smith
wrote:

On 2005-08-22, Ron Rosenfeld wrote:
As a matter of fact, I believe that the fuel quantity indicators are only
required to be accurate at zero fuel in level flight (for a/c certified
under Part 23).


Close, but no cigar. That one is a bit of an OWT. The fuel quantity
indicator must be calibrated to read zero when there is no usable fuel
left, but:

23.1337:

b) Fuel quantity indication. There must be a means to indicate to the
flightcrew members the quantity of usable fuel in each tank during
flight. An indicator calibrated in appropriate units and clearly marked
to indicate those units must be used. In addition:

(1) Each fuel quantity indicator must be calibrated to read
zero during level flight when the quantity of fuel remaining
in the tank is equal to the unusable fuel supply determined under
§23.959(a);



I sit corrected.


Ron (EPM) (N5843Q, Mooney M20E) (CP, ASEL, ASES, IA)
  #8  
Old August 22nd 05, 02:56 PM
George Patterson
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Ron Rosenfeld wrote:

As a matter of fact, I believe that the fuel quantity indicators are only
required to be accurate at zero fuel in level flight (for a/c certified
under Part 23).


Nope. They are required to report the amount of fuel in the tank. They can't do
that without being accurate.

George Patterson
Give a person a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a person to
use the Internet and he won't bother you for weeks.
  #9  
Old August 22nd 05, 04:18 PM
Matt Barrow
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"Ron Rosenfeld" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 21 Aug 2005 20:48:12 -0700, "Matt Barrow"
wrote:

What says a fuel gauge is any more or less accurate than a fuel FLOW

gauge?

I don't see the relationship of your question to anything I posted.


I was agreeing with your counterpoint to someone else who was a FF fanatic
:~).

But
certainly in the ranges over a quarter tank, experience in small a/c show
that a properly calibrated fuel flow gauge is more accurate.

As a matter of fact, I believe that the fuel quantity indicators are only
required to be accurate at zero fuel in level flight (for a/c certified
under Part 23).

Ummm...no; they must be accurate at all fuel levels. Point is to find out
exactly what 1/2, 3/4, ...really means. I do it a couple times a year just
to verify the gauge's accuracy. It actually is off my 15 gallons on a full
tanks. (Incidentally, those are the only times my tanks are topped off. They
hold 98 gallons by the POH, but 99.5 by my measurements. Other than those
time, I've never had more than 84 gallons in them and that was for a two leg
trip of over 800nm.


--
Matt
---------------------
Matthew W. Barrow
Site-Fill Homes, LLC.
Montrose, CO


 




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