For pre-flight planning purposes what is the required take-off fuel for 2 h Commercial Air Transport flight with a turbine engine jet aircraft? Assume the Basic Fuel Scheme WITHOUT variations applies.
| Taxi fuel: | 160 kg |
| Climb fuel: | 400 kg |
| Cruise fuel: | 1 500 kg/h |
| Descent fuel: | 200 kg |
| Approach & landing fuel: | 300 kg |
| Go-around fuel: | 260 kg |
| Climb fuel after go-around: | 130 kg |
| Alternate fuel: | 2 390 kg |
| Holding fuel: | 1 200 kg/h |
| Extra Fuel: Discretionary Fuel: Time from top of climb to top of descent: |
0 kg 0 kg 1 h 40 min |
IMPORTANT NOTE: The modifications resulting from the updated fuel policy regulations, which came into effect on October 30, 2022, are only changes in wording but nothing really new. The terminology "extra fuel" has been replaced with "discretionary fuel." EASA has clarified that the calculations and procedures pertaining to fuel calculations will remain unchanged, and there will be no new questions regarding the new "extra fuel" concept.
- extra fuel, include anticipated delays or specific operational constraints that can be predicted
- discretionary fuel, include a quantity at the sole discretion of the commander
For reference, additional information can be found in EASA's AIR OPS documentation.
Regulation (EU) No 965/2012
AMC1 CAT.OP.MPA.150(b) Fuel policy
PLANNING CRITERIA — AEROPLANES
The operator should base the defined fuel policy, including calculation of the amount of fuel to be on board for departure, on the following planning criteria:
(refer to the last paragraph of the explanation for full Regulation details)
| (a) Basic procedure The usable fuel to be on board for departure should be the sum of the following: |
| (1) Taxi fuel | Question asks for Take-Off Fuel, so Taxi is not considered. | ------------------------------------------- |
| (2) Trip fuel | "Cruise fuel: 1500 kg/h Climb fuel: 400 kg Descent fuel: 200 kg Approach & landing fuel: 300 kg Time from top of climb to top of descent: 1h40" |
1 h 40 x 1500 kg/h = 2500 kg 400 kg 200 kg 300 kg = 3400 kg |
| (3) Contingency fuel | "the higher of: (A) 5 % of the planned trip fuel (...); OR (ii) or an amount to fly for 5 minutes at holding speed at 1 500 ft (450 m)" "Holding fuel: 1 200 kg/h" |
(A) 5% x 3400 kg = 170 kg (B) 5 min x 1200 kg/h = 100 kg |
| (4) Alternate fuel | Alternate fuel: 2390 kg | 2 390 kg |
| (5) Final reserve fuel | "(ii) for aeroplanes with turbine engines, fuel to fly for 30 minutes at holding speed at 1 500 ft (450 m)" "Holding fuel: 1 200 kg/h" |
30 min x 1200 kg/h = 600 kg |
| TOTAL | -------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 6560 kg |
Regulation (EU) No 965/2012
AMC1 CAT.OP.MPA.150(b) Fuel policy
PLANNING CRITERIA — AEROPLANES
The operator should base the defined fuel policy, including calculation of the amount of fuel to be on board for departure, on the following planning criteria:
(a) Basic procedure
The usable fuel to be on board for departure should be the sum of the following:
(1) Taxi fuel, which should not be less than the amount expected to be used prior to takeoff. Local conditions at the departure aerodrome and auxiliary power unit (APU) consumption should be taken into account.
(2) Trip fuel, which should include:
(i) fuel for take-off and climb from aerodrome elevation to initial cruising level/altitude, taking into account the expected departure routing;
(ii) fuel from top of climb to top of descent, including any step climb/descent;
(iii) fuel from top of descent to the point where the approach is initiated, taking into account the expected arrival procedure; and
(iv) fuel for approach and landing at the destination aerodrome.
(3) Contingency fuel, except as provided for in (b), which should be the higher of:
(i) Either:
(A) 5 % of the planned trip fuel or, in the event of in-flight replanning, 5 % of the trip fuel for the remainder of the flight;
(B) not less than 3 % of the planned trip fuel or, in the event of in-flight replanning, 3 % of the trip fuel for the remainder of the flight, provided that an en-route alternate (ERA) aerodrome is available;
(C) an amount of fuel sufficient for 20 minutes flying time based upon the planned trip fuel consumption, provided that the operator has established a fuel consumption monitoring programme for individual aeroplanes and uses valid data determined by means of such a programme for fuel calculation; or
(D) an amount of fuel based on a statistical method that ensures an appropriate statistical coverage of the deviation from the planned to the actual trip fuel. This method is used to monitor the fuel consumption on each city pair/aeroplane combination and the operator uses this data for a statistical analysis to calculate contingency fuel for that city pair/aeroplane combination;
(ii) or an amount to fly for 5 minutes at holding speed at 1 500 ft (450 m), above the destination aerodrome in standard conditions.
(4) Alternate fuel, which should:
(i) include:
(A) fuel for a missed approach from the applicable DA/H or MDA/H at the destination aerodrome to missed approach altitude, taking into account the complete missed approach procedure;
(B) fuel for climb from missed approach altitude to cruising level/altitude, taking into account the expected departure routing;
(C) fuel for cruise from top of climb to top of descent, taking into account the expected routing;
(D) fuel for descent from top of descent to the point where the approach is initiated, taking into account the expected arrival procedure; and
(E) fuel for executing an approach and landing at the destination alternate aerodrome;
(ii) where two destination alternate aerodromes are required, be sufficient to proceed to the alternate aerodrome that requires the greater amount of alternate fuel.
(5) Final reserve fuel, which should be:
(i) for aeroplanes with reciprocating engines, fuel to fly for 45 minutes; or
(ii) for aeroplanes with turbine engines, fuel to fly for 30 minutes at holding speed at 1 500 ft (450 m) above aerodrome elevation in standard conditions, calculated with the estimated mass on arrival at the destination alternate aerodrome or the destination aerodrome, when no destination alternate aerodrome is required.
(6) The minimum additional fuel, which should permit:
(i) the aeroplane to descend as necessary and proceed to an adequate alternate aerodrome in the event of engine failure or loss of pressurisation, whichever requires the greater amount of fuel based on the assumption that such a failure occurs at the most critical point along the route, and
(A) hold there for 15 minutes at 1 500 ft (450 m) above aerodrome elevation in standard conditions; and
(B) make an approach and landing, except that additional fuel is only required if the minimum amount of fuel calculated in accordance with (a)(2) to (a)(5) is not sufficient for such an event; and
(ii) holding for 15 minutes at 1 500 ft (450 m) above destination aerodrome elevation in standard conditions, when a flight is operated without a destination alternate aerodrome.
(7) Extra fuel, which should be at the discretion of the commander
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