Definition

The state in which the aircraft has become devoid of useable fuel.

Source: ATSB

Description

This article explains the reasons for and the measures against fuel exhaustion.

Fuel exhaustion, is a situation where there is no more fuel onboard. Unlike Fuel Starvation there is nothing to be done about re-establishing the flow of fuel. Most of these occurrences lead to a forced landing or a ditching. Nevertheless, an ATSB study from 2015 (see Further Reading) showed that fuel exaustion results in fewer fatalities than fuel starvation. A possible reason for this could be that the pilots involved in fuel starvation scenarios consider more options than just a forced landing, sometimes leading to inappropriate choices and fatal outcomes.