Being stupid with fuel

[tkatc]

Great great story!!!! I felt as though I was inside your mind as I read it. I too had an extremely similar experience (explained in this very section). If someone reads this story an takes it to heart, it is very likely they will be able to sit high on their "could never happen to me" throne. But if you just dismiss this lesson, or are not fortunate enough to read this, it can happen to you.

Thanks for Manning up and trying to help your fellow aviators. I wish everyone would confess their aviation sins here so we can all learn from them.

Well done!

[Wayne Gillispie]

It is nice to have a back up or in Bob's case...two back ups.

[woodmanrog]

I believe every pilot has had at least one experience with get-home-itis. My best gauge is my co-pilot wife who always makes us spend the night at an off airport if A: the weather looks dicey ahead or B: we are down to one hour reserve and nightfall may come up before we would make it home. she says it's 'all part of the adventure" and only makes for good flying stories later on. Why is she always right? On my first visit to her in NJ shortly after we met, I was anxious to get home on Sunday so as to go to work on Monday of the following week. I had flown commercial from FL to NJ. She told me that it seldom snowed very much and it would be no problem. Well, Sunday morning we awoke to snow literally 3 feet deep in her front yard. I called the airport and was told no flights would be leaving Newark until at least THURSDAY of that week. School was canceled until Wednesday of that week (my wife to be was a Principal), I called my work and was told to enjoy the week off and not to come in till the following Monday. Guess what, the get-home-itis turned out to be one of the best weeks of my life and gave us a story that makes us laugh every time we tell it to someone. We're together 10 years now. By the way, the snowstorm was the worst storm recorded in NJ for over 30 years.

[Vlad]

Thanks. Being an adventurist I need to read stories like this. Helps keep tanks topped.

[Rupester]

We all make mistakes like that at times, and we all benefit from your experience ... when shared.

[flyboy1963]

Originally Posted by rleffler

That is the precise reason I installed these low fuel sensors in my tanks. I get alerted when each tank gets down to about five gallons. Not necessarily idiot proof, but one more thing to help me from becoming one.

bob

So Bob, how do you find them when you are down to 1/3 tank or so...with fuel sloshing around in bumps, or banking etc. Do you just ignore the alarm, and wait until you are in a level steady state to assess?

[rleffler]

Originally Posted by flyboy1963

So Bob, how do you find them when you are down to 1/3 tank or so...with fuel sloshing around in bumps, or banking etc. Do you just ignore the alarm, and wait until you are in a level steady state to assess?

Well at 1/3 tank, I still have 10 gallons left. . But I know the point you are making.

Like must things with flying, you have to use common sense, use the data you know, and make decisions. The low fuel annunciators are just to trigger a forgetful memory, not a primary indicator.

The standard analog fuel gauges should show the approximate level of fuel, but isn't entirely accurate at the lower levels. However, it will validate that the tank is low, should the annunciator light.

I'm my RV, I also have a fuel flow sensor. So I also have a pretty good idea of my total fuel burn. It's pretty accurate, but it doesn't know which tank the fuel came from.

If you take all that input, you should have a pretty good idea what your current fuel state may be.

Yes, if there is rough weather, the low fuel annunciator will not be as accurate as in calm weather. The $64M question is how much sloshing is done at what fuel level to trigger the annunciator. I suspect it's less than five gallons. That will take me to a third of a tank. I typically don't fly my tanks that low, especially in bad weather.

Like I stated in my previous post, it's not idiot proof, but it does help.

[Rotorheadrob]

Great way to share & learn here!

And That IS what they call "experience" my friends!

We all know what the FARs say about landing with fuel reserves... stuff regarding the type of flying and day vs night and even category of flying machine.

In late the tern "Personal Minimums" get tossed around and things can get said, some good & some maybe not so good (for me).

When it comes to fuel state, all of us can agree, Personal Minimums are pretty straight forward-DON'T EVER RUN OUT OF GAS!

That's easy to say and one of those things that are ever nipping at our plans. Wx can make for a longer trip and many other ways to come up short. However, like professional pilots consistently point out to me, just about anyone can fly but the better ones tend to stay within the limits consistently-for me that includes Personal Minimums.

What are your Personal Minimums when planing? And, how do those measure up to your real world experiences?

Great writing and congratulations in gaining a profound "experience" in the sky.

[Tim Fitzpatrick]

Great story which points to the reality that you must always leave yourself options and a way out that is viable. A good saying heard long ago is ?When there is some doubt, there is no doubt?. This applies to many decisions the PIC must make on each flight. Our ingrained experience comes from our mistakes and successes that we have as pilots. These stories are a great help and can aid greatly in making the right choice when the time comes to decide what to do when you come to the fork in the road.

[panhandler1956]

Excellent post! This kind of sharing can help all of us get better.

I applaud you sir!