Definition
The fuel tanks installed by the manufacturer as the baseline factory configuration for a particular aircraft model, holding the standard published fuel capacity used in performance and weight-and-balance charts.
Plain English
The regular fuel tanks the aircraft came with from the factory, before any optional larger tanks were added.
Context Anchor
Seen in aircraft loading graphs, fuel capacity notes, and weight-and-balance data.
Why Pilots Care
Performance charts, range calculations, and weight-and-balance graphs are usually drawn for either standard tanks or optional tanks. Using the wrong chart for the tanks actually installed gives wrong numbers for endurance, range, and useful load.
Intuition Check
“Standard” does not mean the tanks are full or that the airplane is automatically within limits. Here it means the normal tank setup assumed by the aircraft data.
Example Sentence 1
With standard tanks, the aircraft holds 38 gallons of usable fuel; with optional long range tanks, it holds 48.
Example Sentence 2
With standard tanks full, the weight-and-balance calculation uses the manufacturer's listed fuel capacity.