Fuel jettison system
AssigneeThe Boeing Company
InventorsPatrick Y. Tang, Sarah Lucia Barrett, Jonathan M. W. Lipstate
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A fuel jettison system for the inflight discharge of fuel from an aircraft, and an aircraft having such a fuel jettison system. Using a venturi effect, the fuel jettison system facilitates the inflight discharge of fuel from the aircraft during an inflight fuel jettison operation at a higher velocity that mitigates the effects of turbulence to thereby mitigate an occurrence of fuel jettison impingement on aerodynamic surfaces of the aircraft.
Claims20
A fuel jettison system for an aircraft, the fuel jettison system comprising:
- a shroud member;
- and
- a venturi pump assembly including a venturi pump housing concentrically received in the shroud member for movement from a stowed position in the shroud member to a deployed position to at least partially project from the shroud member into an airstream environment of the aircraft to accelerate the fuel and facilitate, via a venturi effect, discharge of the fuel from the aircraft.
An aircraft, comprising:
- a fuel jettison system to cause an inflight discharge of fuel from the fuel system, the fuel jettison system including:
- a shroud member;
- and
- a venturi pump assembly including a venturi pump housing concentrically received in the shroud member for movement from a stowed position in the shroud member to a deployed position to at least partially project from the shroud member into an airstream environment of the aircraft to accelerate the fuel and facilitate, via a venturi effect, discharge of the fuel from the aircraft.
A method of jettisoning fuel from an aircraft in flight, the method comprising:
- causing a transfer of pressurized fuel from one or more fuel storage tanks of a fuel system to a venturi pump housing of the fuel jettison system to advance the venturi pump housing in an aft direction relative to a wing of the aircraft and into an airstream environment of the aircraft to a deployed position to accelerate the fuel and facilitate, via a venturi effect, discharge of the fuel from the aircraft.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.