Aircraft

fuel
system
JM. Ygbuhay
 Major
Components
of fuel system
Fuel tank

• Aircraft fuel tanks come in a variety of types and sizes.

• Can be located almost anywhere in the aircraft (wings, fuselage, tail).

• Managing fuel distribution between tanks on large aircraft can be very

involved.
BLADDER
TANKS
• A bladder tank is a fuel container
in the shape of a large reinforced
rubber bag. Installed primarily in
aircrafts, the bladder tank is
placed in areas that can support
the overall weight of the fuel.
High performance, non-combat
aircraft use bladder fuel tanks in
order to store and use as much
fuel as possible.
RIGID REMOVAL
TANKS
• Welded aluminum tanks
inserted into the aircraft.

• Usually fuselage tanks.

• A disadvantage of this type

of tank is added weight.

• An advantage is the ability

to remove and repair.
 INTEGRAL
TANKS
• Integral tanks are made by
sealing off compartments
inside the wings.

• They have the advantage of

utilizing existing aircraft
structure to contain fuel,
which reduces weight.

• Commonly found in large

aircraft.
 • These fuel tanks are mounted externally.
EXTERNAL • Tip tanks at the end of the wingtips.
WING TANK • Underwing tanks: no those aren’t bombs.
• Tip tanks can have an aerodynamic advantage as
they act like winglets.
DRAINERS
• The drain valve
serves to remove
water from the tank
or to drain the fuel.
A very important part
of such
an aircraft drain
valve is also a high-
quality seal.
• all fuel tanks are
required to have a
sump
• and drain installed at
their lowest point. The
sump provides a
convenient location for
• water and sediment to
settle, allowing it to be
drained from the
system.
FUEL VENT

• allows air into the tank

as fuel is consumed.
FUEL GAUGES
• The fuel quantity gauges
indicate the amount of fuel
measured by a sensing unit in
each fuel tank and is displayed
in gallons or pounds. Aircraft
certification rules require
accuracy in fuel gauges only
when they read “empty.” Any
reading other than “empty”
should be verified. Do not
depend solely on the accuracy
of the fuel quantity gauges.
Always visually check the fuel
level in each tank during the
preflight inspection, and then
compare it with the
corresponding fuel quantity
indication.
 FUEL SELECTOR
• The fuel selector valve allows selection of fuel from various tanks. A
common type of selector valve contains four positions: LEFT, RIGHT,
BOTH, and OFF. Selecting the LEFT or RIGHT position allows fuel to feed
only from the respective tank, while selecting the BOTH position feeds
fuel from both tanks.
Fuel Valves

The valves, which are being used to control fuel flow

throughout the aircraft systems include:
1. Check Valves
2. Selector Valves
3. Shut-Off Valves
CHECK VALVES
Check valves are
being used min the
lines from the tank
outlet of many
airplanes. They
prevent fuel from
backing up in a line
where flow in only
one direction is
necessary.
SELECTOR VALVES
• Selector valves either
direct fuel flow from a
particular tank to all
engines or allow an
engine to get fuel from
one or several tanks.
SHUT-OFF VALVE • Shut-off valves have only OPEN and
CLOSED positions. They may be operated
manually, may be motor driven, or may
be solenoid operated.
FUEL LINES

• Fuel flows through a small metal fuel line from the tank to the
engine.

• Fuel lines routed in an engine compartment present

special maintenance consideration.
FLEXI FUEL LINES
• In modern aircraft, flexible
fuel lines are often
constructed from synthetic
materials such as
neoprene or Teflon13,
with the line's diameter
being dependent upon the
engine's fuel flow
requirements.

• A fire sleeve is a hollow

silicone coated fiberglass
tube that is slipped over a
length of
• the hose during
fabrication.
RIGID FUEL LINES
• On aircraft equipped
with rigid fuel lines,
the rigid lines may be
constructed from a
number of materials
including copper,
aluminum, or stainless
steel. Copper lines,
although slightly
weaker than
aluminum,
FUEL STRAINER / FUEL FILTER

• Strainer is also a kind of a coarse filter used for separating solid

particles of a different size. The main difference between a fuel

filter and a fuel

• strainer assembly is that the latter is usually used to remove large

solid contaminant particles while a filter is used for fine filtration

FUEL STRAINERS

• FAR Part 23 requires a

main strainer or fuel
filter to be installed in
the fuel system to
remove contaminants
and to provide a
method for draining
the contaminants from
the system.
FUEL FILTER
BOOST PUMPS
(STANDBY
PUMPS)
• Boost pump also known as an
auxiliary electric pump, is
responsible for delivering fuel
to the aircraft engine before
the engine starts. The aircraft
fuel boost pump can also be used
to supply fuel to the airplane
engine if the engine driven or
primary fuel pumps fails
Engine Driven
Pump

• Engine-driven fuel pumps are the

primary fuel pressure pumps in a
pressure-feed fuel system.

• The purpose of an engine-driven

fuel pump is to deliver a
continuous supply of fuel at the
proper pressure during engine
operation.
CLASSIFICATION OF
FUEL SYSTEM
GRAVITY-FEED FUEL SYSTEM
FUEL PUMP FUEL SYSTEM