Definition
An aircraft wing structure in which fuel is carried directly inside sealed sections of the wing itself, rather than in separate fuel tanks or flexible bladders installed within the wing. The interior of the wing is sealed with fuel-resistant sealant so that the structural cavity becomes the fuel tank.
Plain English
A wing that holds fuel inside its own structure. Instead of putting a tank into the wing, the inside of the wing is sealed up so it can hold the fuel directly.
Context Anchor
You may see this term in aircraft fuel system descriptions, maintenance records, or discussions of fuel leaks from wing seams or fasteners.
Derivation
Called wet because the inside of the wing is in direct contact with fuel, as opposed to a dry wing where fuel is contained in a separate tank or bladder and the surrounding structure stays dry.
Why Pilots Care
Affects total fuel capacity, aircraft weight, center of gravity, and requires close attention to sealing and leak checks.
Intuition Check
Wet wing does not mean a wing that is wet from rain. Here, “wet” means the wing structure itself is used to hold fuel.
Example Sentence 1
The Cessna 182 has a wet wing, so fuel is stored directly inside the sealed wing structure rather than in a separate tank.
Example Sentence 2
Because the aircraft uses a wet wing, the pilot could carry additional fuel without the weight penalty of separate tanks.