Originally Posted by
Jagboi
One for pilots: On aircraft with multiple fuel tanks, will the computers automatically switch to a full tank when the current one being drawn from is empty, or does the changeover have to be done manually?
All automatic! On the Airbus we have a section on the overhead panel for Fuel, but we very rarely make selections apart from on the ground. There are 2 fuel pumps in each tank (Left wing, Centre, Right wing) and a Manual/Auto selector. The normal selection is to have all pumps on and the system in automatic mode. This uses fuel from the centre tank first (keeping fuel in the wings helps reduce the strain from flexing) and then feeds each engine from its respective wing tank. If we end up with an imbalance of fuel we can switch off pumps on one side to help balance the load. The manual/automatic switch just allows us to control whether or not we use the fuel in the centre tank. In the event of an electrical failure fuel is fed by gravity to the engines from their respective left or right tanks! Clever, huh!