DB:
Would not the "float" float on the water content thus causing the tanks to overread the amount of "fuel" available anyway regards of where the water is in relation to the fuel.
Isn't fuel lighter than water?
It would seem that the floats will float to the top of the total volume of fluid, with the uppermost layer being the fuel. (Pour a little water in a jar, pour some gas on that, let is set for a bit, and see which floats to the top. PS: Elfin Safety says "No Smoking" whilst doing this!
And do it in the garage, as the ball and chain will have a fit if she smells gasoline in the kitchen!
)
That said, any water in the tank is displacing a volume of usable fuel that the level of the float would be indicating by its position, so yeah, set up for a wrong indication of how much gas you have usable ...
Back to the case at hand:
From the points being made in the bulletins, it does not appear to be a problem of a signficant volume of water fooling the fuel indicator or low fuel warning system, but a fairly small bit in the wrong place leading to erroneous signals.
jayteeto:
This post intrigues me. Won't ask how you arrived at that conclusion.
EPAC:
Why should a pilot have to be suspicious of a system's integrity and have to 'second guess' it because it doesn't do what it says on the tin. It should meet the criteria of its design approval under common circumstances. If it doesn't, then it should be improved to meet those criteria and at least have a maintenance/ monitoring programme put in place in the meantime.
The discussion on A330 Thales vs Goodrich pitot tubes strikes a parallel concern. In that case, though, Airbus was in the process of a fleetwide refit ...