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Mustang fuel management


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I know that for startup you need to select the left wing tank, because everything is pumped through that one. But how about after takeoff? How do you manage your fuel? How often do you need ot swap between tanks, and which tanks?

 

I guess the drop tanks should be emptied first, then the aft fuselage tank for better agility?

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I know that for startup you need to select the left wing tank, because everything is pumped through that one. But how about after takeoff? How do you manage your fuel? How often do you need ot swap between tanks, and which tanks?

 

I guess the drop tanks should be emptied first, then the aft fuselage tank for better agility?

 

I seldom used the fuselage tank, and even less the drop tanks, but you're right about that sequence.

 

With only the two main wing tanks filled, I switch between them every 5 minutes at most. If using higher power settings I can switch every 2 minutes, the rational being that I really want to minimize any fuel imbalance effects...

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actually, from what i have found, you don't need to use the left tank on startup, but rather, they use it because the carburetor overflow tube runs to the left tank and if the left tank is full the overflow can't run into the left tank and therefore just leaks out and is wasted. The left tank fills at about 10 gallons/hr when using any other tank, if its full that fuel will just get wasted.

 

Most checklists i have seen on require the left tank to be used when the tanks are full. Of course i dont know how in-depth DCS modeled the fuel system on the mustang.

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I usually use the left wing tank for startup, warmup and take-off. I switch tanks every 15 minutes. It works for me. Fuel imbalance isn't a huge thing, unless one tank is full and the other is empty.

 

The fuselage tank is never used, unless I want to go on a really long flight. Full wing tanks are enough for 1 hour of flight at full throttle, so you have plenty of fuel without the fuselage tank.

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While parked on the ground at a friendly airfield, like right after spawning into the game, open the communications menu--per default <Alt Gr><\>, or simply <\> in easy comms mode, and I'm not sure if you have to actually have the radio turned on and the channel for ATC (should be 'C' if the scenario is set up correctly) selected, but I always do that anyway-- <F8> Fuel and Armament -> Select Fuel percentage and armaments load-out. Fuel at 68% will fill the wing tanks, but leave the fuselage tank empty, with anything above 68% going into the fuselage tank.

 

Once you've confirmed what you want the ground crew to do, you will hear your voice requesting refueling and rearming, and get a confirmation. Then it takes about a minute and you will get first a message saying that refueling has completed, and then one for rearming. If you are adding bombs, rockets, and/or drop tanks, it will take a bit longer before completion.

 

Drop tanks are always full.

 

Some servers may restrict what you may select for refueling and rearming, but generally not.

When you hit the wrong button on take-off

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I seldom used the fuselage tank, and even less the drop tanks, but you're right about that sequence.

 

With only the two main wing tanks filled, I switch between them every 5 minutes at most. If using higher power settings I can switch every 2 minutes, the rational being that I really want to minimize any fuel imbalance effects...

 

Holy crap, no more than every 5 min? That's not really correct. As a rule of thumb, when you're flying aircraft in which you have to manually switch fuel tanks, you'll switch them every 30 min.

 

Each aircraft will tell you when to switch in its own POH and it will be dictated on what constitutes the max fuel difference between the wings.

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Holy crap, no more than every 5 min? That's not really correct. As a rule of thumb, when you're flying aircraft in which you have to manually switch fuel tanks, you'll switch them every 30 min.

 

Each aircraft will tell you when to switch in its own POH and it will be dictated on what constitutes the max fuel difference between the wings.

 

Sniper, my missions in DCS last no more than half an hour, so, I created that mnemonic, and... I also do not have any RW reference on how it should be done in a real p51d :-)

 

I look at the needles, and as most of the time I am climbing like mad behind the AI, believe me that in 5 min they very perceptibly move, so, I switch.... But, as a glider pilot, you can guess that's not my main concern IRL :-)

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