A Boeing 747 Can Carry 200 Tonnes of Fuel
We know airplanes carry passengers, cargo, and military equipment, and we know that some birds can carry impressive amounts of weight for absurdly long distances. But did you ever stop to think about how much fuel aircraft can carry, or how much that fuel weights? Of course you didn’t—you only think about yourself. Jerk.
In reality airplanes carry impressive amounts of fuel—up to 60,000 gallons for larger commercial aircraft. How much does that weight? Well it depends on the type of fuel and its composition, the temperature at the time the plane refueled, and . . . you get the idea. The short answer is that a fully loaded commercial airliner may be carrying as much as 200 tons of fuel, depending on the flight time needed. Makes you wonder why they charge so much for an extra suitcase, doesn’t it?
And the fuel they use isn’t the 87 octane you feed your second-hand minivan. The most common commercial airline jet fuels go by the monikers Jet A and Jet A-1. The former is most commonly used in the US and Canada, while the latter is more widely found in the rest of the world. Why the difference? It has to do with a lot of boring aviation history, so let’s just say to each their own.