Air In The Tanks

Ive owned Cessna T210s since 1977; first a 1969 J model and then a 1979 N model with a TSIO-520-R engine. In the 1980s, there were a number of fuel exhaustion accidents in 210s, all of them attributable to not getting a full fill and resulting in being shorted an hours supply when fueling stops after fuel backs up out of the filler port. The outboard sections of the fuel tanks are slightly higher than the bottom of the filler port. To get the last one-plus gallons in the tanks requires the slowest of fueling until reaching the real full point.

Editorial Staff

Thursday, November 29, 2018 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Cessna 210 pilots (and similar aircraft) must be aware of potential under-fueling issues due to tank design, where tanks may appear full but be significantly short, and should calibrate fuel flow transducers for accurate fuel management.
To enhance search and rescue, pilots should proactively activate 406 MHz ELTs in flight during an emergency, in addition to squawking 7700, as this ensures location transmission before a potential crash and ADS-B Out is not a substitute for ELTs.
Mitigate engine failure risks on takeoff by avoiding intersection departures, requesting full-length runways, and familiarizing oneself with potential emergency landing sites beyond the runway end.

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Just read October’s Learning Experience entry, “Air In The Tanks.” This account has two lessons that weren’t expanded upon.

I’ve owned Cessna T210s since 1977; first a 1969 J model and then a 1979 N model with a TSIO-520-R engine. In the 1980s, there were a number of fuel exhaustion accidents in 210s, all of them attributable to not getting a full fill and resulting in being shorted an hour’s supply when fueling stops after fuel backs up out of the filler port. The outboard sections of the fuel tanks are slightly higher than the bottom of the filler port. To get the last one-plus gallons in the tanks requires the slowest of fueling until reaching the real full point.