Post by WitchBoy on Jul 14, 2002 13:28:41 GMT -5
News report -
Test flights of a revolutionary fast and fuel-efficient bat-shaped aircraft, suitable for military and commercial use, could begin in 2006, the president of Boeing research arm Phantom Works said on Tuesday.
Boeing has been perfecting a plane, called the Blended Wing Body which would do away with the traditional tubular and bi-winged structure, replacing it with a giant wing and hanging belly for passengers and cargo.
Boeing calculates that a 480-passenger version of the plane would use 32 percent less fuel than a proposed A380-700 aircraft by rival Airbus, the main unit of EADS .
"We're shooting for 2006 or 2007," Phantom Works President George Muellner told Reuters at the opening of a Boeing research and technology center in Madrid.
Muellner said a sub-scale demo plane, with a 35-foot wingspan would be tested next year and that a full size test run was expected to take place in 2006 or 2007.
He said commercial and military clients had shown support for the design of the plane, which as well as being energy efficient had a cruising speed of 9/10 of the speed of sound.
"The (U.S.) military have expressed an interest as a tanker (refueling) or for long range transport," Muellner said.
But financial support has not materialized from U.S. authorities or commercial clients and Boeing said it was hoping to launch a joint venture for further development of the plane.
"They've all said they like the design but they haven't put any money up yet," Muellner said.
Boeing thinks commercial clients will like the idea even more now research has shown that one of the major disadvantages of the plane -- that nearly no passenger would have a window view -- is less important than some experts had predicted.
Mike Friend, manager of programs at the Boeing Research and Technology Center in Madrid, said studies had shown passengers did not mind not being able to see out.
"We've been looking at the psychological effects of a cabin without windows. It really wasn't as much of a problem as we thought," Friend said.
Another advantage of the new design, Muellner said, was that the same design could be modified for military and commercial clients and produced in a variety of sizes.
CENTER FOR "GREENNESS" AND SAFETY
Boeing's new center on the outskirts of Madrid will be home to around 30 engineers and scientists and will focus on ways to lessen the environmental impact of aircraft, on safety and air traffic control.
One of the main projects is developing an environmentally friendly electricity source using a fuel cell generator that produces electricity using hydrogen taken from kerosene -- already used as a fuel in planes -- and expels only water.
Friend said greater demand for electricity on planes stemmed from increasingly complex on-board electronics.
"It's more important than ever to think of how to develop electricity generation. Fuel cells are getting better quickly and more electricity is needed."
Plans for "quiet climbing" planes, which could control noise levels as they took off over populated areas, would also be developed in Madrid.
Friend said Boeing would develop air traffic control systems at the center and use Madrid's Latin American connections as a bridge to develop such mechanisms in a continent which has an air accident rate some six times higher than the U.S.
Test flights of a revolutionary fast and fuel-efficient bat-shaped aircraft, suitable for military and commercial use, could begin in 2006, the president of Boeing research arm Phantom Works said on Tuesday.
Boeing has been perfecting a plane, called the Blended Wing Body which would do away with the traditional tubular and bi-winged structure, replacing it with a giant wing and hanging belly for passengers and cargo.
Boeing calculates that a 480-passenger version of the plane would use 32 percent less fuel than a proposed A380-700 aircraft by rival Airbus, the main unit of EADS .
"We're shooting for 2006 or 2007," Phantom Works President George Muellner told Reuters at the opening of a Boeing research and technology center in Madrid.
Muellner said a sub-scale demo plane, with a 35-foot wingspan would be tested next year and that a full size test run was expected to take place in 2006 or 2007.
He said commercial and military clients had shown support for the design of the plane, which as well as being energy efficient had a cruising speed of 9/10 of the speed of sound.
"The (U.S.) military have expressed an interest as a tanker (refueling) or for long range transport," Muellner said.
But financial support has not materialized from U.S. authorities or commercial clients and Boeing said it was hoping to launch a joint venture for further development of the plane.
"They've all said they like the design but they haven't put any money up yet," Muellner said.
Boeing thinks commercial clients will like the idea even more now research has shown that one of the major disadvantages of the plane -- that nearly no passenger would have a window view -- is less important than some experts had predicted.
Mike Friend, manager of programs at the Boeing Research and Technology Center in Madrid, said studies had shown passengers did not mind not being able to see out.
"We've been looking at the psychological effects of a cabin without windows. It really wasn't as much of a problem as we thought," Friend said.
Another advantage of the new design, Muellner said, was that the same design could be modified for military and commercial clients and produced in a variety of sizes.
CENTER FOR "GREENNESS" AND SAFETY
Boeing's new center on the outskirts of Madrid will be home to around 30 engineers and scientists and will focus on ways to lessen the environmental impact of aircraft, on safety and air traffic control.
One of the main projects is developing an environmentally friendly electricity source using a fuel cell generator that produces electricity using hydrogen taken from kerosene -- already used as a fuel in planes -- and expels only water.
Friend said greater demand for electricity on planes stemmed from increasingly complex on-board electronics.
"It's more important than ever to think of how to develop electricity generation. Fuel cells are getting better quickly and more electricity is needed."
Plans for "quiet climbing" planes, which could control noise levels as they took off over populated areas, would also be developed in Madrid.
Friend said Boeing would develop air traffic control systems at the center and use Madrid's Latin American connections as a bridge to develop such mechanisms in a continent which has an air accident rate some six times higher than the U.S.
