All 7 Series Check yer gas cap gaskets, girls and boys

[kubark42]

The fuel cap gasket was hardened to the point that it physically broke in half. Two new gaskets and we were back in the air several minutes later.

Thank heavens for this forum where I already learned about this problem and was able to stay cool as a cucumber when I saw the blue stains, instead of starting to panic about what could have gone wrong.

 

[Bartman]

I'd be pretty close to panicking if I saw all of that! Glad it was as easy as a couple of gaskets.

Bart

 

[kubark42]

It was amazing how quickly it happened. The tanks were only filled to 3/4, and the flight had 4 TO/LDGs. I'm not sure how much fuel had to flow out to leave that kind of staining, but it certainly wasn't just a couple ounces.

I wish our planes had a dummy "fuel low" light. I check my fuel frequently in the air, but this looks like a non-trivial fuel loss in just a few minutes.

The lesson here is that cutting a gasket is so cheap, quick, and easy, there's no excuse to fly with tired-looking gaskets.