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In aircraft, loading less than full fuel for shorter trips is standard practice to reduce weight and fuel consumption. For this reason, the useful load fraction calculates a similar number, but it is based on the combined weight of the payload and fuel together in relation to the total weight.
With a fuel fraction of nearly 85%, the GlobalFlyer could carry 5 times its weight in fuel.. In aerospace engineering, an aircraft's fuel fraction, fuel weight fraction, [1] or a spacecraft's propellant fraction, is the weight of the fuel or propellant divided by the gross take-off weight of the craft (including propellant): [2]
In combustion physics, fuel mass fraction is the ratio of fuel mass flow to the total mass flow of a fuel mixture. If an air flow is fuel free, the fuel mass fraction is zero; in pure fuel without trapped gases, the ratio is unity. [1] As fuel is burned in a combustion process, the fuel mass fraction is reduced. The definition reads as
The maximum zero fuel weight (MZFW) is the maximum weight allowed before usable fuel and other specified usable agents (engine injection fluid, and other consumable propulsion agents) are loaded in defined sections of the aircraft as limited by strength and airworthiness requirements.
In a spacecraft, the destination is usually an orbit, while for aircraft it is their landing location. A higher mass fraction represents less weight in a design. Another related measure is the payload fraction, which is the fraction of initial weight that is payload. It can be applied to a vehicle, a stage of a vehicle or to a rocket propulsion ...
The aircraft gross weight (also known as the all-up weight and abbreviated AUW) is the total aircraft weight at any moment during the flight or ground operation. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] An aircraft's gross weight will decrease during a flight due to fuel and oil consumption.
The weight added to the aircraft above its OEW for a given flight is variable and includes fuel for the flight and the cargo. Cargo depends upon the type of aircraft; i.e., passengers plus baggage for a transport or commuter airplane, materiel for a cargo airplane, stores for fighters/bombers and service loads such as meals and beverages.
The fuel time limit for powered aircraft is fixed by the available fuel (considering reserve fuel requirements) and rate of consumption. Some aircraft can gain energy while airborne through the environment (e.g. collecting solar energy or through rising air currents from mechanical or thermal lifting) or from in-flight refueling.