Fuel gauges showing a modest amount of fuel in tanks, but just from sphincter sensations you knew you couldn't have a great deal on board. Then two red fuel low level lights unexpectedly illuminate
If you knew you were low on fuel the lights should not be a surprise they would only surprise you if you thought you had enough.
If you thought the gauges were wrong and believed your sphincter and stopwatch then you should already be considering actions when the red lights come on confirming your beliefs. If you believe the gauges to be true and the lights come on suddenly surprising you then you should be carrying out the actions following their illumination. In both cases once the red low fuel lights come on on the CWP you should be carrying out the actions as laid down. The most important one being get on the ground within the prescribed time.
Lets half the time in the air and give ourselves 4-5 minutes for a cruise. 4 Minutes at a 120 cruise will take me just over 9 miles. I may have some height and take a cruise descent maybe getting 130Kts (I am light after all I have little fuel) so range is somewhere around nine to ten miles from the point I was at when the lights came on and I still have 4-5 minutes to land after this transit if I really need them.
My first thought on seeing the red low fuel lights would be believe them as independent systems very closely followed by my second thought of get somewhere to land and away from a built up area were I over one. Once turned on track and heading to open ground I would carry out the drills remaining such as switch and CB Config. in the hope that I can correct a mistake I may have made earlier and get some fuel back where I want it. If in fact that is not the case I am still heading away from the built up area and towards a landing site. In this situation I would then not have anything to do if my No.2 stopped as I would already have covered it whilst trying to get to a suitable landing site switches checked emergency master made etc. and my hands would be on the controls ready for the second stoppage.
a lot of people seem to opine on here that twin pilots fly along scratching their ass daydreaming about their next holiday
I don't think that is the case but as humans we pilots do make mistakes and under perform at times due to many reasons hence the human factors section of our learning process when gaining a CPL/ATPL. After all if we performed perfectly in every situation and role at work then the leading reason aircraft would crash would be due to major mechanical failure however pilot error is always the top reason for crashes across all types of aircraft. If we can not accept that we make mistakes and learn from them but instead keep looking for an answer that says we the pilot did all we could but it was not our fault then we are depriving ourselves of an opportunity to prevent further accidents and incidents.
The big question to answer is were the red low fuel lights on at impact?
If they were then irregardless of the cause be it pump/fuel system failure or incorrect system operation by the pilot why was the aircraft still over a built up area after 8 to 10 minutes of warning that the engines were going to suffer fuel starvation. What area was the A/C over ten minutes earlier when the lights came on? was it better than the centre of a city.
In all of this one thing that should be remembered is that this talk of fuel may be a complete red herring and have no bearing on the cause of the crash and we await the final report to hopefully answer our questions. In the meantime honest and open discussion of subjects as a result of this incident can lead to improved safety and system awareness from us the pilots who are charged with the safe keeping of our pax and those we fly over.
Tandem, Bladecrack and others my quoting of posts does not mean I disagree with you it is purely to further promote discussion and thought on the various subjects related to this crash and I hope I have not caused any offence. If I have I apologise in advance.