Imbalanced fuel flow: was Re: REFLECTOR:Low fuel light

[Jean Prudhomme]

--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJWCW0000000000000
Content-Type: Multipart/Alternative;
  boundary="------------Boundary-00=_CWYJRN00000000000000"


--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJRN00000000000000
Content-Type: Text/Plain;
  charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Hi Simond.=0D
I did part of Don White in vestigation and i came up with a good solution
wich keep your sump tank full when you need and also transfer fuel from o=
ne
tank thrue the sump and the other tank.=0D
It also prevent of running out of fuel when the tank are low and at long
decent.=0D
I did install 2 fuel pump from Aircraft Spruce with suction located fowar=
d
of each cell and connected at outport with a tee and feeded at the top of
the sump tank.=0D
I am testing Steve Brick airplane and i found this new set up very handy=20
and with much more safety even you loose a cap or leaking=0D
If you need more info i can send you a sketch and photos.=0D
Jean Prudhomme =0D
 =0D
-------Original Message-------=0D
 =0D
From: reflector@tvbf.org=0D
Date: Thursday, July 24, 2003 11:28:04 AM=0D
To: reflector@tvbf.org=0D
Subject: RE: Imbalanced fuel flow: was Re: REFLECTOR:Low fuel light=0D
 =0D
I am still wondering if the left tank goes to 0=0D
=0D
=0D
Chuck:=0D
=0D
=0D
you land on an Interstate on ramp. Has been done before! The following is
from the NTSB:=0D
=0D
=0D
-----------=0D
On June 15, 1999, about 1004 eastern daylight time, a White Velocity XL/R=
G,
N19DW, registered to a private individual, operating as a Title 14 Part 9=
1
personal flight, crashed landed on an interstate highway following a loss=
 of
engine power while attempting a forced landing at the St. Lucie County
International Airport, Fort Pierce, Florida. Visual meteorological
conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft sustained
substantial damage and the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was no=
t
injured. The flight originated from Hollywood, Florida, about 34 minutes
before the accident.=0D
=0D
Full narrative:=0D
=0D
On June 15, 1999, about 1004 eastern daylight time, a White Velocity XL/R=
G,
N19DW, registered to a private individual, operating as a Title 14 Part 9=
1
personal flight, crashed landed on an interstate highway following a loss=
 of
engine power while attempting a forced landing at the St. Lucie County
International Airport, Fort Pierce, Florida. Visual meteorological
conditions prevailed and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft sustained
substantial damage and the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was no=
t
injured. The flight originated from Hollywood, Florida, about 34 minutes
before the accident.=0D
According to the pilot/builder, he was in cruise flight at 1,500 feet msl=
,
about 10 miles southwest of the St. Lucie County Airport. He was maneuver=
ing
to attain a visual on his destination, a private airstrip. Without warnin=
g,
he experienced a rapid decrease of engine power that activation of the
electric fuel boost pump appeared to remedy. One or 2 minutes later, the
engine again lost power and he noticed the fuel pressure gage indicating
zero. He turned toward St. Lucie County Airport, but when it became obvio=
us
to him that engine power available would not sustain flight to the airpor=
t,
he chose the highway for a forced landing. The aircraft collided with
pole-mounted power transmission lines on approach to the highway about 4
miles west of the St. Lucie County Airport, that caused a hard touchdown =
to
the pavement. He estimated that his fuel distribution at the beginning of
the flight to be 5 to 10 gallons in the right tank, 10 to 12 gallons in t=
he
left tank, and 3 gallons in the sump tank. He further stated that he had
recently replaced the factory-provided wing tank fuel caps with a differe=
nt
set of caps about a week before the accident. The new caps were not vente=
d,
and in retrospect, he stated the caps did not feel as tightly sealed to t=
he
filler pipe flange as the previous ones, but thought no more of it. He ad=
ded
that he began to have fuel balance problems that he had not experienced
before, but did not make the connection.=0D
According to St. Lucie County FAA Control Tower personnel, at 1002 the pi=
lot
radioed that he was a possible emergency due to low fuel pressure and
shortly thereafter, advised that he could not make the field due to low
power and was landing on I-95.=0D
Subsequent examination of the wreckage and interview of the pilot/builder=
 by
FAA personnel revealed that the aircraft is configured with a 33-gallon f=
uel
tank in each wing that gravity feeds into a fuselage mounted 3-gallon sum=
p
tank and thence to the aft-mounted engine via an electric driven boost pu=
mp.
There is no fuel selector valve on the aircraft. The fuel quantity
indication system consisted of graduations on a left and right sight-gage
made of clear flex-tubing spliced inline with fuel feed lines between the
wing tanks and the sump tank and routed into the cabin. Eight to nine
gallons of uncontaminated 100LL aviation fuel was contained in the left
wing/sump tank combination and no fuel was found in the right tank,
postcrash. The wreckage was subsequently moved to county property where
operational testing of the fuel system and engine was conducted. The engi=
ne
started with no problems and exhaust sound was relatively smooth and
consistent. High end rpm was not tested due to propeller damage and
imbalance.=0D
The new fuel tank caps are shipped from the kit factory with adjustment
instructions attached, but the pilot does not remember seeing them, (a co=
py
of the instructions is included in this report). All three tanks are vent=
ed
to the outside atmosphere, but inspection of the total vent system reveal=
ed
some plumbing component's inside diameter measurements to be as small as =
=2E18
inch. Pressurizing either wing tank with air revealed that the fuel vent
system could not adequately equalize the pressure, and air bypass at the
loosest fitting fuel cap occurred. It is reasoned that the opposite would
also take effect, i.e. a negative pressure as occurs above the wing durin=
g
flight would also cause air bypass, (siphoning of air) out of the wing ta=
nk
through the loose fitting cap. The net effect would be a low pressure or
vacuum created in the wing fuel tank that would interfere with gravity fe=
ed
into the sump tank and eventual fuel starvation. The factory provides, as=
 an
option to the basic airplane kit at additional cost, a "low fuel" warning
light for the sump tank, but this airplane was not so equipped.=0D
As a result of this occurrence, flight testing was performed at the Veloc=
ity
Aircraft Factory, Sebastian, Florida, using loose-fitting fuel tank caps =
in
an attempt to duplicate the conditions present during the accident. It wa=
s
revealed that the wing tanks did, in fact, stop their gravity feed and th=
e
sump tank quantity started decreasing when using the loose cap. As a resu=
lt
of the testing, the factory is experimenting with replacing the 1/4 inch
fuel vent tubing with 3/8 inch tubing in the wing tanks. Additionally, th=
e
factory eliminated the sump fuel vent in favor of an air bleed-off valve =
or=20
burp" valve for use during pilot's preflight walk-around inspection. The
factory has also issued an alert via newsletter to all kit owners concern=
ing
the hazards of using loose-fitting wing tank fuel caps. Applicable excerp=
ts
from that newsletter are included in this report.=0D
-----------------=0D
=0D
=0D
That should answer a couple of questions...=0D
=0D
=0D
Best=0D
Simon=0D
-- =0D
=0D
Simon Aegerter, Wollerau, Switzerland=0D
=20
--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJRN00000000000000
Content-Type: Text/HTML;
  charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=3DContent-Type content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-=
1">
<META content=3D"IncrediMail 1.0" name=3DGENERATOR>
<!--IncrdiXMLRemarkStart>
<IncrdiX-Info>
<X-FID>FLAVOR00-NONE-0000-0000-000000000000</X-FID>
<X-FVER></X-FVER>
<X-CNT>;</X-CNT>
</IncrdiX-Info>
<IncrdiXMLRemarkEnd-->
</HEAD>
<BODY style=3D"BACKGROUND-POSITION: 0px 0px; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN: 5px=
 10px 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Arial" bgColor=3D#ffffff background=3D"" scroll=3D=
yes ORGYPOS=3D"0" X-FVER=3D"3.0">
<TABLE id=3DINCREDIMAINTABLE cellSpacing=3D0 cellPadding=3D2 width=3D"100=
%" border=3D0>
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD id=3DINCREDITEXTREGION style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 12pt; CURSOR: auto; FONT-F=
AMILY: Arial" width=3D"100%">
<DIV>Hi Simond.</DIV>
<DIV>I did part of Don White in vestigation and i came up with a good sol=
ution wich keep your sump tank full&nbsp;when you need and also transfer =
fuel from one tank thrue the sump and the other tank.</DIV>
<DIV>It also prevent of running out of fuel when the tank are low and at =
long decent.</DIV>
<DIV>I did install 2 fuel pump from Aircraft Spruce&nbsp;with suction loc=
ated&nbsp;foward of each cell and connected at outport with a tee and fee=
ded at the top of the sump tank.</DIV>
<DIV>I am testing Steve Brick airplane and i found this new set up very h=
andy&nbsp; and with much more safety even you loose a cap or leaking</DIV=
>
<DIV>If you need more info i can send you a sketch and photos.</DIV>
<DIV>Jean Prudhomme&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV id=3DIncrediOriginalMessage><I>-------Original Message-------</I></D=
IV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV id=3Dreceivestrings>
<DIV dir=3Dltr style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 11pt" <i><B>From:</B></I> <A href=3D"m=
ailto:reflector@tvbf.org">reflector@tvbf.org</A></DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 11pt" <i><B>Date:</B></I> Thursday, Ju=
ly 24, 2003 11:28:04 AM</DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 11pt" <i><B>To:</B></I> <A href=3D"mai=
lto:reflector@tvbf.org">reflector@tvbf.org</A></DIV>
<DIV dir=3Dltr style=3D"FONT-SIZE: 11pt" <i><B>Subject:</B></I> RE: Imbal=
anced fuel flow: was Re: REFLECTOR:Low fuel light</DIV></DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV cite type=3D"cite">I am still wondering if the left tank goes to 0</=
DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Chuck:</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>you land on an Interstate on ramp. Has been done before! The followi=
ng is from the NTSB:</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>-----------</DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTimes color=3D#000000 size=3D+2>On June 15, 1999, about=
 1004 eastern daylight time, a White Velocity XL/RG, N19DW, registered to=
 a private individual, operating as a Title 14 Part 91 personal flight, c=
rashed landed on an interstate highway following a loss of engine power w=
hile attempting a forced landing at the St. Lucie County International Ai=
rport, Fort Pierce, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed a=
nd no flight plan was filed. The aircraft sustained substantial damage an=
d the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The flight=
 originated from Hollywood, Florida, about 34 minutes before the accident=
=2E</FONT><BR><FONT face=3DTimes color=3D#000000 size=3D+2></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTimes color=3D#0000ff size=3D+2>Full narrative:</FONT><=
/DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTimes color=3D#000000 size=3D+2><BR>On June 15, 1999, a=
bout 1004 eastern daylight time, a White Velocity XL/RG, N19DW, registere=
d to a private individual, operating as a Title 14 Part 91 personal fligh=
t, crashed landed on an interstate highway following a loss of engine pow=
er while attempting a forced landing at the St. Lucie County Internationa=
l Airport, Fort Pierce, Florida. Visual meteorological conditions prevail=
ed and no flight plan was filed. The aircraft sustained substantial damag=
e and the private-rated pilot, the sole occupant, was not injured. The fl=
ight originated from Hollywood, Florida, about 34 minutes before the acci=
dent.<BR>According to the pilot/builder, he was in cruise flight at 1,500=
 feet msl, about 10 miles southwest of the St. Lucie County Airport. He w=
as maneuvering to attain a visual on his destination, a private airstrip.=
 Without warning, he experienced a rapid decrease of engine power that ac=
tivation of the electric fuel boost pump appeared to remedy. One or 2 min=
utes later, the engine again lost power and he noticed the fuel pressure =
gage indicating zero. He turned toward St. Lucie County Airport, but when=
 it became obvious to him that engine power available would not sustain f=
light to the airport, he chose the highway for a forced landing. The airc=
raft collided with pole-mounted power transmission lines on approach to t=
he highway about 4 miles west of the St. Lucie County Airport, that cause=
d a hard touchdown to the pavement. He estimated that his fuel distributi=
on at the beginning of the flight to be 5 to 10 gallons in the right tank=
, 10 to 12 gallons in the left tank, and 3 gallons in the sump tank. He f=
urther stated that he had recently replaced the factory-provided wing tan=
k fuel caps with a different set of caps about a week before the accident=
=2E The new caps were not vented, and in retrospect, he stated the caps d=
id not feel as tightly sealed to the filler pipe flange as the previous o=
nes, but thought no more of it. He added that he began to have fuel balan=
ce problems that he had not experienced before, but did not make the conn=
ection.<BR>According to St. Lucie County FAA Control Tower personnel, at =
1002 the pilot radioed that he was a possible emergency due to low fuel p=
ressure and shortly thereafter, advised that he could not make the field =
due to low power and was landing on I-95.<BR>Subsequent examination of th=
e wreckage and interview of the pilot/builder by FAA personnel revealed t=
hat the aircraft is configured with a 33-gallon fuel tank in each wing th=
at gravity feeds into a fuselage mounted 3-gallon sump tank and thence to=
 the aft-mounted engine via an electric driven boost pump. There is no fu=
el selector valve on the aircraft. The fuel quantity indication system co=
nsisted of graduations on a left and right sight-gage made of clear flex-=
tubing spliced inline with fuel feed lines between the wing tanks and the=
 sump tank and routed into the cabin. Eight to nine gallons of uncontamin=
ated 100LL aviation fuel was contained in the left wing/sump tank combina=
tion and no fuel was found in the right tank, postcrash. The wreckage was=
 subsequently moved to county property where operational testing of the f=
uel system and engine was conducted. The engine started with no problems =
and exhaust sound was relatively smooth and consistent. High end rpm was =
not tested due to propeller damage and imbalance.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=3DTimes color=3D#000000 size=3D+2>The new fuel tank caps =
are shipped from the kit factory with adjustment instructions attached, b=
ut the pilot does not remember seeing them, (a copy of the instructions i=
s included in this report). All three tanks are vented to the outside atm=
osphere, but inspection of the total vent system revealed some plumbing c=
omponent's inside diameter measurements to be as small as .18 inch. Press=
urizing either wing tank with air revealed that the fuel vent system coul=
d not adequately equalize the pressure, and air bypass at the loosest fit=
ting fuel cap occurred. It is reasoned that the opposite would also take =
effect, i.e. a negative pressure as occurs above the wing during flight w=
ould also cause air bypass, (siphoning of air) out of the wing tank throu=
gh the loose fitting cap. The net effect would be a low pressure or vacuu=
m created in the wing fuel tank that would interfere with gravity feed in=
to the sump tank and eventual fuel starvation. The factory provides, as a=
n option to the basic airplane kit at additional cost, a "low fuel" warni=
ng light for the sump tank, but this airplane was not so equipped.<BR>As =
a result of this occurrence, flight testing was performed at the Velocity=
 Aircraft Factory, Sebastian, Florida, using loose-fitting fuel tank caps=
 in an attempt to duplicate the conditions present during the accident. I=
t was revealed that the wing tanks did, in fact, stop their gravity feed =
and the sump tank quantity started decreasing when using the loose cap. A=
s a result of the testing, the factory is experimenting with replacing th=
e 1/4 inch fuel vent tubing with 3/8 inch tubing in the wing tanks. Addit=
ionally, the factory eliminated the sump fuel vent in favor of an air ble=
ed-off valve or "burp" valve for use during pilot's preflight walk-around=
 inspection. The factory has also issued an alert via newsletter to all k=
it owners concerning the hazards of using loose-fitting wing tank fuel ca=
ps. Applicable excerpts from that newsletter are included in this report.=
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV>-----------------</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>That should answer a couple of questions...</DIV>
<DIV><BR></DIV>
<DIV>Best</DIV>
<DIV>Simon</DIV><X-SIGSEP><PRE>--=20
</PRE></X-SIGSEP>
<DIV>Simon Aegerter, Wollerau, Switzerland</DIV>
<DIV>&nbsp;</DIV></TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD id=3DINCREDIFOOTER width=3D"100%">
<TABLE cellSpacing=3D0 cellPadding=3D0 width=3D"100%">
<TBODY>
<TR>
<TD width=3D"100%"></TD>
<TD id=3DINCREDISOUND vAlign=3Dbottom align=3Dmiddle></TD>
<TD id=3DINCREDIANIM vAlign=3Dbottom align=3Dmiddle></TD></TR></TBODY></T=
ABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE><SPAN id=3DIncrediStamp><SPAN dir=3Dltr><F=
ONT face=3D"Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size=3D2>______________________=
______________________________<BR><FONT face=3D"Comic Sans MS" size=3D2><=
A href=3D"http://www.incredimail.com/redir.asp?ad_id=3D309&amp;lang=3D9">=
<IMG alt=3D"" hspace=3D0 src=3D"cid:7373D18D-AFA9-402A-8EA8-6A9C0114E613"=
 align=3Dbaseline border=3D0></A>&nbsp; <I>IncrediMail</I> - <B>Email has=
 finally evolved</B> - </FONT><A href=3D"http://www.incredimail.com/redir=
=2Easp?ad_id=3D309&amp;lang=3D9"><FONT face=3D"Times New Roman" size=3D3>=
<B><U>Click Here</U></B></FONT></A></SPAN></SPAN></FONT></BODY></HTML>
--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJRN00000000000000--

--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJWCW0000000000000
Content-Type: image/gif;
  name="IMSTP.gif"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-ID: <7373D18D-AFA9-402A-8EA8-6A9C0114E613>
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--------------Boundary-00=_CWYJWCW0000000000000--