Airbus reveal 'plane of 2050'

[Chucaro]

Interesting plane

YouTube - ‪Airbus reveal 'plane of 2050'‬‏

[dhc4ever]

Yep and we were all going to be flying around in our own planes and helicopters by 2000. ( have a look at the 1920's movie metropolis)
I'm a bit dubious about transparent plant based airframe construction.
They are still trying to get a largely carbon fibre airframe under control, life expectency, load limits and inspection methods.
Having said that technology is accellerating expodentially, so who knows given enough money and determination it may be possible in 40 years.
Doesnt bode well for those afraid of heights or flying :)
Thats if we still have air travel after the carbon tax swindle is imposed.

[Landy110]

WHY??Have you ever looked out the window of an aircraft at 30,000 feet ??
Everything....same ! starboard, port, above, ahead, behind......same!
SAME, SAME !
It's all either Blue, Black or White...........SAME !

[stallie]

Yes, a lot of the time it is the same. But from my seat, I have seen some sights from 30,000 that are very memorable and would love to share with the pax. Mind you, I don't normally fly MEL -SYD, or over the GAFA. Mind you on a good day, the latter is fantastic.

Having said that, sometimes the view out the front might scare the pax (and I'm not talking about my landings!) so an opaque function might be in order!

[Chucaro]

Landy110, if you ever have the chance to fligh above the Amazons or approach Santiago de Chile with Los Andes behind you would change your views ;)

[VladTepes]

stallie - what about Kamchatka?

Overflying that was always a bad idea... anyone care these days ?

[stallie]

I haven't flown over Kamchatka when it's been clear sadly, but that would be one hell of a view. And, yes the Russians still do care as they are a bit tetchy in that part of the world. I was once arrested there after inadvertently skiing into an unmarked, unmapped secret military base, about 3 weeks after the military decided to shell the volcano we were climbing on, just because they could.

But a bloody incredible place, especially from the top of their tallest volcano - and it even looks stunning from one million feet (http://earth.jsc.nasa.gov/scripts/sseop/QuickView.pl'directory=ESC&ID=ISS004-E-13790), let alone from 30,000 feet. :)

[stallie]

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[mudmouse]

Since windows are 'lifed' I think that belongs with Mr.Jetson. Who's going to buy a pressurized motorplane that needs half its skin replaced every thousand cycles or whatever life they put on them.

I'm not a fan of composites......me like metal.

Matt.

[ramblingboy42]

Since windows are 'lifed' I think that belongs with Mr.Jetson. Who's going to buy a pressurized motorplane that needs half its skin replaced every thousand cycles or whatever life they put on them.

I'm not a fan of composites......me like metal.

Matt.

any company that can fly any type of aircraft (have no idea what a motorplane is)economically over any distance will buy and operate any type of aircraft offered to them with those attributes. That is why Boeing is reinventing the 737....the worlds most successful aircraft ever.
oh and btw....it wont have much metal in it.

[popemobile]

Since windows are 'lifed' I think that belongs with Mr.Jetson. Who's going to buy a pressurized motorplane that needs half its skin replaced every thousand cycles or whatever life they put on them.

I'm not a fan of composites......me like metal.

Matt.


Oh dear, Dont fly in the Airbus A380 then. There all composite skins. Composites are definitily the most viable materials technology for advancing many things, however old technologies are the best in certain applications. F1 still uses wood where its best!! As the plank that rubs on the road under the car. IF composite was better thats what would be there. But for the attributes they need wood is best. I would rather wear kevlar body armour than DO A NED KELLY and my last name is KELLY!! Each material has its own properties and they qualify it best for each application. Get the application right and your on a winner.

Get it wrong and your in an irish submarine made out of potatoe skin paper mache with water based glue powered by nuclear requiring you to wear a lead lifejacket to comply with safety regulations. :)

Sorry last time I checked the Irish navy had no boats (oh no here come the irish in the canoes, they will out manouver our larger ships
"we will finish our game of bowls and still have time to defeat the spanish armada" ) :)

By the way, me like metal too, Mild steel pref so I can weld it without preheat :)

[dhc4ever]

Well the Irish navy does have patrol boats, no subs.
The A380 is running a lot of composite reinforced alloy skin to get under the law of physics that says if you're too heavy you cant fly. Turns out lighter and hopefully stronger than alloy on it own.
The windows on pressurised aircraft have always been lifed, changed on a time cycle and / or if found damaged.
The interesting thing about new materials is you will need to produce new ways to inspect them for ,cracks, de-lamination and fatigue, although there are some problems you get with metal structures that you wont get with composites and visa versa.
Hopefully we wont have a Comet type disaster to highlight an unforeseen problem with the new composite building techniques or materials.
I like mild steel as well to weld, I keep leaving puddles when I try aluminium :(

[mudmouse]

...and that's my issue - composites cannot be inspected to the degree of alloys (metal), nor can a catastrophic failure of a complex composite structure be analyised to determine the point of failure like metals can.

So, that's why me like metal in my motorplane (moto-plane: endearing term from Indigenous Aussies who'd say, 'me like dat one moto-plane'). Ever tried welding fibreglass:p

...and if the bulk of the structure of the a/c is lifed, then why would a company buy one. They only put windows in the things so people can have something to look at - clouds, black nothing, curvature of the earth....

DHC4 - that was (is) a cool motorplane :D

Composites are here to stay (and have been used in a/c for 70+ years), I'm just a fan of aluminium overcasts....

M