Definition
The location inside a fuel tank where fuel is drawn out and sent to the engine, typically through a pickup tube or port positioned at a specific spot in the tank. Because the pickup is fixed in one place, the fuel must actually be sitting over that spot for the engine to receive a continuous supply.
Plain English
The spot inside a fuel tank where the engine sucks the fuel from. If the fuel slides away from that spot — for example during a slip or skid — the engine may briefly stop getting fuel.
Context Anchor
Encountered in discussions of slips, crosswind approaches, and fuel system limits, especially when fuel can shift to one side of the tank.
Derivation
“Pickup” in this use means “to take up” or “draw in.” The phrase points to the exact place where the airplane draws fuel from the tank, not to a place where fuel is bought or loaded.
Why Pilots Care
If the pickup point uncovers during a prolonged slip, fuel flow can stop and the engine may quit at low altitude.
Analogy
Think of drinking the last bit of a milkshake through a straw. If you tilt the cup the wrong way, the straw is suddenly sucking air instead of milkshake — even though there's still some left in the cup.
Intuition Check
Do not read “fuel pickup point” as a refueling location on the ground. In this context, it means the place inside the tank where the airplane draws fuel for the engine.
Example Sentence 1
With low fuel and a long slip into a strong crosswind, the fuel can move away from the fuel pickup point and starve the engine.
Example Sentence 2
In some low-wing trainers the fuel pickup point is located at the center of the tank to reduce the chance of starvation during uncoordinated flight.