Boeing and Airbus Fuel Systems?

[kiwi_pilot_12]

Hi all,

I am struggling to find clear answers on what I thought would be a simple matter: the number of fuel tanks and their locations in several Boeing and Airbus aircraft?

The aircraft I am concerned with are:

- Airbus A330-300
- Airbus A340-300

- Boeing 777-200
- Boeing 777-300
- Boeing 777-300ER
- Boeing 747-400
- Boeing 747-8F

If anyone can help by simply stating how many tanks and their locations for any of these aircraft, it would be much appreciated

[TurningFinalRWY36]

A330-300
Inner and outer tanks in each wing. Fuel tank also in the horizontal stabiliser. No centre tanks, only a feature on the A330-200.

[pattern_is_full]

Image search can be your friend here, since it will often lead directly to diagrams. Although as with anything on the internet, try to get two independent sources.

747-400: http://www.aviationreportglobal.com/...m-1024x542.png

or: http://www.meriweather.com/flightdec...uel-layout.gif

[eckhard]

B.747-400

Four tanks in each wing;

Left wing from root to tip: No2, No1, Reserve No2, Left Surge
Right wing from root to tip: No3, No4, Reserve No3, Right Surge

One tank between the wings:

Centre Wing Tank

Optional extra: One Tank in the Horizontal Stabiliser (actually two tanks, i.e. one in each tail plane, but treated as one tank:

Stabiliser Tank

So, ten tanks in all, or nine if the Stab Tank is not fitted.

[kiwi_pilot_12]

Thanks guys!

So with the 747-400 having 10 tanks total, and the 777 having just 3; was this just to simplify it all?

Seems funny to go from 10 to 3 - big change.

[NSEU]

re the 747-400, it's surprising you're not confused. The surge tanks are not for holding useable fuel, so there are effectively only 3 tanks per wing. In fact, if fuel accidentally gets into the surge tanks on the ground, automatic refuelling is shut down.
The Centre Wing Tank (CWT) is between the wings. Optionally, there is one or even two Auxilliary Tanks fitted in the forward cargo on 747-400ER aircraft. However, I'm only aware of aircraft fitted with one Auxilliary Tank. There are extra "pump" switches on the fuel control panel in the cockpit for these tanks.
The Horizontal Stabiliser Tank (HST) is practically one tank which spans almost the whole stabiliser (including the hidden part in the fuselage) and is normally fitted to passenger aircraft. There is a surge tank in the horizontal stabiliser (on the right hand side).

The 777 normally has 3 tanks for holding fuel. Additionally, there are surge tanks outboard of each wing tank (which are not used for fuel storage). (EDIT) There are references to an Auxilliary Fuel Tank in the aft cargo area in some online documents.

[CCA]

Optional extra: One Tank in the Horizontal Stabiliser (actually two tanks, i.e. one in each tail plane, but treated as one tank:

Stabiliser Tank

Better just clarify it's a single tank in the stab the center section has all the plumbing pumps etc the tank extends outboard partially and there's also a surge tank in the right side tip.

Pictures help.



And the AUX tank mentioned above

[eckhard]

Ok, thanks for the correction about the stab tank.

A couple of reasons that the 747 has more tanks per wing than might seem necessary:

1: with two engines per wing, it's better to give each engine its own tank; and
2: the wing bending relief offered by keeping fuel in the outboard reserve tanks for the initial part of the flight.

[tdracer]

Regarding the 777, the 777-200LR has aux fuel tanks baseline to get the extra range, although I believe they can be removed to get the cargo volume back if the operator doesn't need the range (not sure if anyone actually does that).


The 747-8 has basically the same fuel tank layout as the -400, although the volumes are a bit different due to the new wing.

[spannersatcx]

-8F has no stab tank though.

[16down2togo]

The 747-400F has no stab tank as well! 747-8 has 1&4 reserve tanks.

[tdracer]

None of the 747 freighter variants have stab tanks - it's only the passenger models (it's also SOP to deactivate the stab tanks and remove most of the associated hardware when an older passenger 747-400 is converted to a freighter).
So I stand by my statement - the 747-8 fuel system layout is basically the same as the corresponding 747-400.

[catiamonkey]

You will find what you need in the ARFF charts:
A: Aircraft Rescue & Firefighting Charts | Airbus, a leading aircraft manufacturer
B: Boeing: Airport Compatibility - Airplane Rescue and Fire Fighting

[spannersatcx]

The OP asked about the 747-8F