In my meager time flying King Air 200's but my long time flying lots of other aircraft I cant for the life of me figure out why so many different pilots and operators refuse to sump their tanks on the first flight. The saying allways goes: "Maintenance always does this because the drains get stuck and you will spill fuel all over the ramp". Like us pilots are to stupid to figure out how to get the drain unstuck. I have had this happen lots on piston aircraft and by gently ramming the drain in a rythmatic fashion with the plastic stickie uppie thinghie comming out of the fuel capturing device while singing the alphabet I have always been able to get it to close.

So whats the deal with this superstition like its going to summon the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse or something. Oh and I never seem to see this mythical maintenance man show up before each flight to drain the tanks either. Perhaps it gets done during the phases if they remember it? Are we all above "sumping" now that we have moved up from those meager piston bangers? Don't want to get any Jet A on our shiny black shoes?

I seem to recall a fatal King Air 200 crash out of KLGB because of water in the tanks and a cry of the surviving pilot that said "Maintenance is supposed to do that" to the NTSB. I wonder if he sumps his King Air tanks now?