P-51b Fuel Tank Burn Order

[Slade]

Hello,

1. What is the ideal order to burn fuel in a P-51b and why?

2. How does one change the active fuel tank?

Thanks,

Slade 

[Chalenge]

You should burn the AUX tank first until it is at least below 60% (I go to 35-50%) and then switch back to wing tanks (auto-selection). You do that so that you are less likely to spin while in a tight turn. The tank burn should be switched every fifteen minutes in TRW or in the game every seven and one-half minutes BUT the aircraft handling doesnt seem to change if you leave it on automatic tank selection. Dont forget to put it back to auto selection or you will have the engine conk out on you. The game is very accurate as to fuel burns but it does burn at double TRW rate in the main arena. If (for instance) you stick to the USAAF power and rpm settings you will get precisely one-half the duration.

Shift-F I believe is the command.

EDIT: The only reason to change from auto-select is if you are carrying wing tanks which is what I was referring to in my note above. Burn the AUX tank first so that you are not tail heavy. After you burn enough fuel of the AUX tank you can go back to wing tanks and if you are forced to drop them your plane will already be at a better balance.

[uptown]

Hello,

1. What is the ideal order to burn fuel in a P-51b and why?

2. How does one change the active fuel tank?

Thanks,

Slade 

Shift+F selects fuel tank. The tank you have selected will show up in yellow in your fuel gauge. It'll show in white what you go back to auto select.

I've found that with the 51s it's better to leave the tanks on auto, so that the fuel burns more evenly, keeping the plane more stable and balanced.  

[Demetrious]

I don't know about the B model, but the D model had an extra tank behind the pilot (I believe that IS the AUX tank,) and with it loaded with fuel, the normally delightfully stable P-51 was a bloody deathtrap. Given the ranges it was meant to fly, however, this wasn't much of a problem- the pilots would usually empty it to climb to altitude before joining their bombers.

A lot of the LAWL MUSTANG SUX comments come from people who take up a 'Stang with 100% internal fuel, and expect it to maneuver like a 109 or Spit, which both have about a single hour of internal fuel, compared to the Mustang's SIX. (Eight with drop-tanks IIRC.) Fuel loading/burnoff is definitely important for a Mustang- and the P-47, for that matter. The technical manual for the P-51B specifically says to empty that bloody AUX tank first. If burning it to 60% floats your boat, I guess you can go for it, but I'd rather have it empty.

On the other hand I don't fly Mustangs as often, so I'm basing this mostly off what the real pilots did; which doesn't always translate to AH well (understatement of the week.)

[MiloMorai]

This is not aimed at any one person.
Some ppl should read the Pilot's Operating Handbook for the P-51, as well as for other a/c, which can be found online.

Demetrious, late production P-51B/Cs had the extra tank.

[Chalenge]

This is not aimed at any one person.
Some ppl should read the Pilot's Operating Handbook for the P-51, as well as for other a/c, which can be found online.

Demetrious, late production P-51B/Cs had the extra tank.

AND the P-51 is NOT a death trap with the tank full. It does experience control reversal which is completely controllable once you get used to it. The airplane is more prone to spins with more than 65% fuel in the AUX tank but that does not make the plane a death trap. That is also in the POH.

[Demetrious]

AND the P-51 is NOT a death trap with the tank full. It does experience control reversal which is completely controllable once you get used to it. The airplane is more prone to spins with more than 65% fuel in the AUX tank but that does not make the plane a death trap. That is also in the POH.

Perhaps in AH. I usually fly the P-40 in AH, or a 47; most of my stick time in 'Stangs is in IL-2. (I cannot tolerate AH's insistence that the Pony turns like a ruptured buffalo.) And in IL-2, a fully-fueled 'Stang can't make hard maneuvers worth a damn without spinning out. Then again, IL-2 is usually less forgiving then AH's flight model, from what I've seen. You might get away with it, but I'd prefer to empty that AUX tank, trim it tail-heavy, and leave it at that.