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A B767-300 fueling valve did not completely close after refueling so left tank fuel continuously transferred into the center tank requiring the crew to repeatedly re-balance the fuel tanks.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 1079880 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201304 |
| Local Time Of Day | 1201-1800 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZZ.ARTCC |
| State Reference | FO |
| Environment | |
| Flight Conditions | VMC |
| Light | Daylight |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B767-300 and 300 ER |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Fuel Distribution System |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue |
Narrative:
Maintenance problem. We had a fuel transfer in flight from left main to center tank. Accomplished QRH procedure; which basically says to re-balance fuel and make a maintenance log entry. Normally when this happens; re-balancing once or twice fixes the problem. On this flight; we had to re-balance multiple times. There was no external leak and the problem was manageable. I felt continuing was more prudent than diverting and landing overweight. We continued on our flight; landed uneventfully. I wrote up a 3 page maintenance log write-up discussing the problem in detail. There is no QRH guidance for continued operation with this problem. Although we did not violate any procedure or limitation; and all agreed we were ok to continue the flight. My first officers suggested filing a report.a follow-up with maintenance revealed a fueling valve that did not fully close. The only suggestion I would make is to perhaps put some guidance in the new 767 QRH.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A B767-300 fueling valve did not completely close after refueling so left tank fuel continuously transferred into the Center tank requiring the crew to repeatedly re-balance the fuel tanks.
Narrative: Maintenance problem. We had a fuel transfer in flight from left main to center tank. Accomplished QRH procedure; which basically says to re-balance fuel and make a maintenance log entry. Normally when this happens; re-balancing once or twice fixes the problem. On this flight; we had to re-balance multiple times. There was no external leak and the problem was manageable. I felt continuing was more prudent than diverting and landing overweight. We continued on our flight; landed uneventfully. I wrote up a 3 page maintenance log write-up discussing the problem in detail. There is no QRH guidance for continued operation with this problem. Although we did not violate any procedure or limitation; and all agreed we were OK to continue the flight. My first officers suggested filing a report.A follow-up with Maintenance revealed a fueling valve that did not fully close. The only suggestion I would make is to perhaps put some guidance in the new 767 QRH.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2013 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.