Aero-Tips!
A good pilot is always learning -- how many times have you heard
this old standard throughout your flying career? There is no truer
statement in all of flying (well, with the possible exception of
"there are no old, bold pilots.") It's part of what makes aviation
so exciting for all of us... just when you think you've seen it
all, along comes a scenario you've never imagined.
Aero-News has called upon the expertise of Thomas P. Turner,
master CFI and all-around-good-guy, to bring our readers -- and us
-- daily tips to improve our skills as aviators, and as
representatives of the flying community. Some of them, you may have
heard before... but for each of us, there will also be something we
might never have considered before, or something that didn't
"stick" the way it should have the first time we memorized it for
the practical test.
It is our unabashed goal that "Aero-Tips" will help our readers
become better, safer pilots -- as well as introducing our
ground-bound readers to the concepts and principles that keep those
strange aluminum-and-composite contraptions in the air... and allow
them to soar magnificently through it.
Look for our daily Aero-Tips segments, coming each day to you
through the Aero-News Network. Suggestions for future Aero-Tips are
always welcome, as are additions or discussion of each day's tips.
Remember... when it comes to being better pilots, we're all in this
together.
Aero-Tips 04.13.06
We all know the rules -- for Part 91 aircraft operations, pilots
must plan to have at least 30 minutes’ reserve fuel when
arriving at destination for day Visual Flight Rules (VFR)
flight; 45 minutes’ reserve is required for night VFR and for Instrument Flight Rules
(IFR) operations. (Note: the IFR fuel requirement
extends to alternate planning as well)
These minima apply only to planning that takes place before you
leave the ground. Once you’re airborne, you’re
responsible for accurately monitoring your fuel state to ensure you
will have enough to safely complete the trip. The 30 minute/45
minute planning requirements legally go away once the engine
starts, although it’s extremely advisable to continue to
destination only if your monitoring and in-flight calculations show
you’ll still have at least this safety reserve in the tanks
when you land.
Minimum Fuel Advisory
If weather or other events force you to make decisions that keep
you aloft longer than expected--or increase you fuel burn rate, or
result in fuel venting overboard and shortening your range--and
you’re flying in an area where Air Traffic Control (ATC) is
sequencing traffic, there’s precise language to tell
controllers you are eating into your minimum reserves. A call of Minimum Fuel Advisory tells ATC your
fuel supply is low enough that you cannot accept “undue
delay” before being cleared to land. Proclaiming a Minimum
Fuel Advisory is not declaring an in-flight emergency, but is
telling controllers that the situation may devolve into an
emergency if you are told to remain clear or sequenced behind
several other airplanes. You’re not given priority, but your
condition will be given strong consideration. Don’t hesitate
to declare a full “emergency due to low fuel” if at any
point you feel you no longer have enough fuel to safely land.
(Note: this terminology came as a result of the Avianca Flight 052 Boeing 707 crash near New
York in 1990... when unclear terminology
during and after to multiple en route holds continued until the
airliner ran out of fuel and crashed.)
Aero-tip of the day: Always know your fuel
state—and use Minimum Fuel Advisory if the situation becomes
dire.