Fuel conservation.?

Question

At busy airports one often sees long lines of aircraft waiting for takeoff clearance or a space at the terminal gate to open up.

I remember once sitting on the tarmac for 1/2 an hour waiting for a thunderstorm to pass so that we could approach the gate. This was an AIR CANADA flight and they did not shut down. Is there a policy about this?

Do pilots ever shut down engines if the wait time is long or do they just let the boss pay for the fuel?

Answer 1

The problem with shutting an engine off, is the time required afterward to start it again- if they did turn it off, they might take a long time to re-starts and taxi into the stand.

Answer 2

You might have to shut one or all down. This will depend upon whether you think that you'll be close to minimum brake release fuel by the time that you get to the end of the runway. Sometimes the lines are long and the delays are unforeseen as well. Just do what ya gotta do to make sure that you take off with enough fuel.

You can always ask ground or tower for a 5 minute heads up.

Answer 3

I don't think a pilot would shut down his engine while in a line-up for take-off. Usually the fuel loaded there is always an extra 200 gallons for taxi fuel. No pilot in his right mind would shut down his engine and then re-start like a car as he received his clearance to proceed for take-off. In an airline world the last man to touch the aircraft is the one responsible for any delays the aircraft may incur. Let us say that in his desire to save the company the 200g taxi fuel and shuts his engine off and when he re-starts it doesn't starts, He  will then be towed out of the runway into the taxiway, and into the gate  and the disembarking of pax as well as the snacks or breakfast or lunch depends on the time of departure plus the refueling again of the aircraft.A 30 min delay would creep in and would cause a succession of delays because the aircraft will fly again when he returns. Now which is cheaper for the company ? For the love of economizing a 200gal taxi fuel the airline would give the pilot a commendation or a suspension.

This is when the pilot will receive something like this "I didn't hire you to do some economizing, I hired you to fly my plane, you stupid fool."

Answer 4

Without at least an APU running, they have no power and no air conditioning. They could run off battery, but it would get pretty heard to breathe comfortably in the cabin.

Answer 5

Shutting down the engines is a prerogative of the captain. I have know some that will and some that will not. A lot depends on circumstances. Most know that it is pointless to just waste fuel, and will do what they can to help save it. It is possible for the crew to shut down one or several engines without the passengers knowing it. The APU provides AC and electrical power, and can restart the engines as well.

Regards,

Dan

Answer 6

It's up to the pilot, and is done according to the particular airline or corporation paying the bill.

Personally, I don't shut down an engine if I am having to wait to take off.

Answer 7

They shut down the engines if that is your question because at 4.10$ a gallon its not cheap