Running out of fuel

OK so you have a stand pipe. Well the standpipe must have a flexible connection to the sender right? If there is the slightest chance that the pump can suck air, then it will rather pull that up than fuel. It will then cavitate, and be noisy and get hot if this is allowed to continue.
I suppose the standpipe itself could have a hole in it somewhere above the current liquid line.
I suppose that if the problem was to go away with a full tank, then the pump has primed itself, and any hole in the in-tank system will not show up until the liquid level falls below the height of the hole.