If pilots are getting yelled at for having extra fuel, are the company bean counters getting yelled at if a plane comes in with under safe fuel reserves? I would bet not, the hammer would probably fall on the pilot for not having enough fuel.



I think I’ll stick to driving.

John Wayne is standing with the operations manager. Manager tells Wayne they need to talk in the morning. Wayne looks once more at the torn port engine of the DC 3 and makes a relieved grin. He walks away. Manager says " good night you old Albatros." Theme music from THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY plays in the final frames. I win the lottery, I'm buying an old Connie and hiring some salt and pepper haired pilot who uses old Spice. The stewardess, again, stewardess must look and speak like Patricia O'Neal. She will wear the navy wool uniform and pillbox hat and serve coffee- hot, strong and black.

I'm guessing hail and a huge wind gust, from a large cumulonimbus...

I fly in float planes once-in-a-while; I heard a pilot once say "the only time you have to much fuel on-board, is when you are on fire"!

Mike

My wife works for US Air. There is a lot more to it than meets the eye with the press.

When US Air 'merged' with America West, it was really America West buying out US Air and taking the name, even though US Air was a much larger airline, they were in horrid financial shape. America West basically saved the company from bankruptcy (liquidation).

Well, there is a group of East (former US Air) pilots that have resented the new management team and want to cost the company as much money as possible. They seem to want to 'show the management who's in charge', and it is some of these that are behind the lawsuit filed.

Figure a 737 can carry 5,300 gallons of jet fuel. That is roughly 18 tons. More fuel carried requires more fuel to burn to reach the same destination. I am not keen on the airlines becoming rich, but why [censored] money down the drain?

Thumbrules have exceptions.

My 27,000hr tailwheel instructor would also add:

Or when you can't rotate and climb in the available runway (happens here in Colorado)

or when you can't haul your airplane over the Continental Divide at this weight

or when your fuel tank ruptures during 9G maneuvers (happened to him in his acro plane).

Really it's very much like choosing your pack weight. If you go for a daytrip and are lugging 100 lb of just-in-case are you being efficient?

Same with hauling 5 hrs of fuel for a 2 hr flight. It costs to drag that weight to altitude.

I hear ya unimogbert and understand the concept, I just thought it was humorous.

A saying I do live by, especially concerning flying in questionable weather is; "Takeoffs are optional, Landings are Mandatory".

Mike

Humorous is fine but can be confusing to those who aren't in the know.

The one I like is - What are the only things that Lead wants to hear from his Wingman?
"Two's up." (on the radio)
"Lead you're on fire."
"I'll take the fat chick." (sorry, that's the joke)

I was practicing takeoffs and landings last Friday and the field density altitude was nearly 8000'. Someone from the "flatlands" passing thru with the wife and kids and refueled to the top could die trying to takeoff under conditions like that because the airplane will not fly! Happens sometimes here at the foot of the Rockies.

Aircraft have "usable load" figures rather than seat count or fuel capacity. This is to suggest that some days with light planes you can take the family and some days you can fly for many hours but they won't be the same day. (unless you want to be Test Pilot for the final flight) I've been on airliners where passengers were asked to deplane because the field temperature was higher than expected and the 727 couldn't safely go with that fuel/passenger/temperature/field length combo.

Remember that the way the media portray preparedness is pretty much the fidelity they apply to everything else. (i.e. they aren't much on accuracy)

2 nights ago there was a show on TV, it was a news show like 20-20 or 60-min. Not sure what one. But it covered this subject. They said there are 2.5 near misses on runways in The USA every day. That’s way too much of a chance of getting dead considering one of those planes is almost always doing close to 190 MPH. and the other one is doing close to zero.


According to this show the agency that monitors this gave the aviation industry a D-minus for runway traffic management.

Survival is about managing risk, I’ll manage to drive where I need to go if at all possible.