How to load fuel

[me4246 0]

Hi,what is the usual way to load fuel in FS planes? I mean, how to allocate fuel among various tank? Do you have to fill the external/auxiliary first and then the central, or vice versa? Is fuel consumed in the auxiliary tank first or not?I would like some enlightment about it, thanksFrancesco

[Guest panda234]

It varies according to the aircraft and the amount of fuel you're going to load. 747's, for instance, don't load the center tank unless the rest of the tanks are full. Most of this has to do with distributing weight on the aircraft properly and keeping the CoG within design limits. Some addons model this more accurately than others. The RFP 747, for instance, will crash if you try to load fuel with the FS9 menu because the fuel system is so complicated. This isn't a knock on RFP, but a compliment to their attention to detail. And often, in flight, you need to move fuel from tank to tank to adjust weight as well. Fuel management on larger aircraft is a fairly complicated process. Sorry, you asked a question, and not only didn't you get an answer but you probably have more. :-)billg

[me4246 0]

Yes, I supposed it was complicated of course - maybe any plane maker should specify how to load fuel in his creation, in order to help the user :-)What I was looking for was a rule of thumb, anyway, but I'm afraid there is not. The next question should be "where COG should be at takeoff to have a correct fuel+passengers load"...I can't see such an information for any aircraft around. Maybe some tool...Francesco

[Guest lamont]

As a rule of thumb for Boeing a/c, load wing and aux tanks then center tanks. If no center tank distribute evenly among the wing tanks.Depending on how close to reality the a/c is modeled you might want to load 700 to 1000 lbs in the center tank regardless.

[ronzie 21]

Here is a real world practices site for 737 pilots that will answer your questions of fuel distribution and tank management.http://www.b737.org.uk/