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A B737-800 captain reported difficulty balancing fuel when a crossfeed valve apparently failed in the open position.
| Attributes | |
| ACN | 983379 |
| Time | |
| Date | 201112 |
| Local Time Of Day | 0601-1200 |
| Place | |
| Locale Reference | ZZZ.ARTCC |
| State Reference | US |
| Aircraft 1 | |
| Make Model Name | B737-800 |
| Operating Under FAR Part | Part 121 |
| Flight Phase | Cruise |
| Flight Plan | IFR |
| Component | |
| Aircraft Component | Fuel Distribution System |
| Person 1 | |
| Function | Captain Pilot Flying |
| Qualification | Flight Crew Air Transport Pilot (ATP) |
| Events | |
| Anomaly | Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical Inflight Event / Encounter Fuel Issue |
Narrative:
Enroute with 2;000 pounds left in center tank; selected crossfeed to open. No blue valve light indication was observed. Tested lights; pressed to test; and changed bulbs with no success. When center tank fuel was exhausted; the main tank fuel began to rapidly go out of balance; nearly all fuel being burned from the left tank. Contacted [maintenance control] for guidance and they recommended to balance fuel even though the position of the crossfeed valve was unknown; but thought to be failed open. Crossfeed valve circuit breaker found to be open. Fuel was successfully balanced but rapidly went out of balance when all main tank pumps restored. We estimate about 15 minutes from in balance to 1;000 pound imbalance. We elected to declare an emergency and divert to [a nearby airport]. We did not request arff. On approach FMC weight indicated 143.2 pound. At gate; the closeout ZFW of 130.5 plus our landing fuel of 14.2 would have made us overweight by 700 pounds.
Original NASA ASRS Text
Title: A B737-800 Captain reported difficulty balancing fuel when a crossfeed valve apparently failed in the open position.
Narrative: Enroute with 2;000 LBS left in center tank; selected crossfeed to open. No blue valve light indication was observed. Tested lights; pressed to test; and changed bulbs with no success. When center tank fuel was exhausted; the main tank fuel began to rapidly go out of balance; nearly all fuel being burned from the left tank. Contacted [Maintenance Control] for guidance and they recommended to balance fuel even though the position of the crossfeed valve was unknown; but thought to be failed open. Crossfeed Valve Circuit Breaker found to be open. Fuel was successfully balanced but rapidly went out of balance when all main tank pumps restored. We estimate about 15 minutes from in balance to 1;000 LB imbalance. We elected to declare an emergency and divert to [a nearby airport]. We did not request ARFF. On approach FMC weight indicated 143.2 LB. At gate; the closeout ZFW of 130.5 plus our landing fuel of 14.2 would have made us overweight by 700 LBS.
Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of April 2012 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.