Dear Capt Lim,
Once, me and my family flew from New York to Buenos Aires in Argentina. It was my first time in a Boeing 777. The flight was smooth. Here is my question. If a plane runs out of fuel, how long does it have to make it to another airport?
I am 11 years old and I know a lot about airplanes (yes, I do have permission to email you)
Thanks a lot for trying to answer my question!
Chris.
Hi Chris,
If you have read one of my FAQ on Fuel Leak, you would have got part of the answer. If the airplane runs out of fuel, it is also similar to having all the engines failed in flight. This answer can be found in my FAQ too. Okay, just for your sake (being a 11 years old and very interested about airplanes), I will repeat. How long will a plane stay in the air when it runs out of fuel depends on the height at the time when the fuel runs out. The higher the airplane, the further it will glide and hence it would stay a little longer.
For example, if the airplane was at 35,000 feet or about 7 miles high, it would glide at about 5 miles a minute at a descent rate of about 4000 to 5000 feet a minute. At this gliding speed and descent rate, it would travel between 35 to 45 miles depending on whether there was a tail or head wind. So you have about 7 minutes to make it to another airport!