On the climbout yesterday morning I noticed an absent left wing fuel cap and fuel streaming back over the wing. The tank was full.
Tight circuit to land back on and it only lost ~5-10 litres at the most.
Eventually found the cap on the runway close to the lift-off point. Amazing that, assuming it was left on the wing after I refuelled, it managed to stay there all the way through the taxi from the pumps to the hold, through the power checks, backtrack, and most of the take-off roll.
Surprising also that I did not notice it during the full-and-free check, when I recall looking properly out at the aileron as I always do.
Many years ago I saw a Cessna 172 landing without the fuel caps on either tanks, with fuel flowing out of them… They had done a 30 minutes flight and used most of the fuel in that short time! Since that day, I’ve been extra cautious in check the fuel caps before getting in the aircraft.
I was once back seat pax in a 172 where the cap was in place but not properly seated. It took me about 30 seconds in the take of to realise what the fine mist was – immediate return to land and ensure the cap was correctly seated.
This is a problem with high-wing aircraft where it isn’t easily checked, especially if someone else did the filling.
I used to know a UK Maule owner who lost 3 out of 4 tank caps in Italy, and a lot went overboard before he noticed it on the fuel gauges. To get back home he taped over the filler neck openings then punched a small hole as a vent.
Peter_Mundy wrote:
I was once back seat pax in a 172 where the cap was in place but not properly seated. It took me about 30 seconds in the take of to realise what the fine mist was – immediate return to land and ensure the cap was correctly seated.
When I was doing the night rating, my instructor had the brilliant idea that I should do a solo cross country to airport X, while he (as airline pilot) did a scheduled flight to X and would supervise me on his #2 COM. At that time with less than 100 hrs I still had too much respect for instructors to object.
Immediately after takeoff I heard a loud BANG. Then another BANG. And another. The aircraft was controllable, so I told ATC I had a problem and needed to return for landing, Afterwards my instructor told me he almost had a heart attack as he heard the whole conversation and couldn’t do anything. (Not to mention what the CAA would have said if I did crash.)
After landing, I found that the left wing fuel cap was hanging in the airstream on its securing chain and had been banging against the wing surface making the wing a big drum. As your head is next to the wing root on a Cessna 172, the sound was impressive! I secured the fuel cap and took off again. The rest of the flight was uneventful.
One of the tanks of the type I fly most has a lateral fuel cap. The aft tank, so the cap itself is vertical (its axis of rotational symmetry is lateral), behind the cabin.
At the time of the event, I was in the habit that the fueller would open and close the fuel cap; that day I opened this one myself… and didn’t put it back. Amazingly, after about one hour flight, not even a fraction of a cm of fuel was missing. The tank was still full to the brim. I think the slipstream actually acted as a “seal” and kept the fuel from going out, even in turns. Note that it is Jet A1, so much less volatile than avgas. And the cap is not on top of the wing, where I’m told (and easily believe) one would have a suction effect.
While in an initial climbout in a PA-19 (Army Cub, 90 hp Continental 8F), my student pulled out the fuel cap from his pocket (as it annoyed him).
Obviously, we returned to land. We then refueled, and we put on six liters. Fuel capacity is 68 liters.
4-5 minute flight I guess. A bit more than normal, as it burns 18-20 liters an hour, regardless of what you normaly do.
I could not see any fuel leaving the aircraft. And I really watched!
High-wing aircraft, if anyone wonders.
There is a video out there where an SR22 lost both fuel caps after takeoff, so it’s been done before…
I once took off from an Irish airfield where I’d refuelled and after settling in the cruise noticed one fuel cap missing! But no fuel departing the aircraft (PA-28) despite full tank. A quick return resulted in the missing cap being found on the grass runway and the other one, placed in postion, not tightened. Maybe the local culture is that they are left like that so that the pilot can close them!!!
Hmmm. Moral: pay more attention and avoid distractions.
Aveling wrote:
Maybe the local culture is that they are left like that so that the pilot can close them
I don’t think it’s any culture issue.
