a high-altitude filling station: air force captain tops off fuel tanks mid-air

This facility allows the pilot to balance the fuel tanks or to 'trim' the aircraft laterally. Left, Right and Both allow for fuel to be fed to the engine from either the Left tank or the Right tank individually or from Both at the same time. This valve serves several functions and will potentially have Left, Right, Both and Off selections. The fuel is piped from the tanks through fuel lines to a fuel control valve which is commonly referred to as the fuel selector valve. Fuel tank boost pumps may or may not be incorporated depending upon the location of the tanks. A two tank system requires additional components to allow controlled provision of fuel to the single engine. On newer aircraft, two fuel tanks, with one in each wing, are more common. Small piston-engine powered aircraft often have a single tank fuel system. Each tank will potentially be equipped with internal fuel pumps and have the associated valves and plumbing to feed the engines, allow for refueling and defueling, isolate the individual tanks and, in some applications, allow for fuel dumping or for optimisation of aircraft centre of gravity.

In a modern, multi-engine passenger or cargo aircraft, the fuel system is likely to consist of multiple fuel tanks which may be located in the wing or the fuselage (or both) and, in some cases, in the empange. In the most basic form, a fuel system will consist of a single, gravity feed fuel tank with the associated fuel line connecting it to the aircraft engine.

General Descriptionįuel systems differ greatly from aircraft to aircraft due to the relative size and complexity of the aircraft in which they are installed. An aircraft fuel system enables fuel to be loaded, stored, managed and delivered to the propulsion system (engine(s)) of an aircraft.

A high-altitude filling station: air force captain tops off fuel tanks mid-air