‘Silent jet' making noise in aviation circles
Posted by Paul Collins at 00:41, 07 Nov 2006‘Silent jet' making noise in aviation circles
TENILLE BONOGUORE
Globe and Mail Update
A radical new ‘silent jet' that looks like a giant, flying sting ray and makes the noise of a washing machine is being touted as the quiet, clean future of air travel.
The conceptual design was unveiled in London on Monday by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Cambridge University researchers.
Consisting of a single shell that blends the airplane body and the wings into a seamless flying machine, from outside an airport its designers say it would sound about as noisy as a washing machine.
The original idea was to hugely reduce the noise of airplanes, a move that could spell silent bliss for residents living near airports -- and could let airports expand further into highly populated areas.
In a major bonus, though, the final design also promises to be about 25 per cent more fuel efficient than current planes. The silent aircraft is designed to carry 215 passengers, with a predicted passenger-mile ratio similar to a Toyota Prius hybrid car.
The overall shape of the silent jet is one curved wing with air intake vents on the top of the craft, instead of below the wings. The entire craft contributes to lift, so takeoff and approach speeds can be lower, which lowers the noise generated and improves fuel efficiency.
There are no flaps or hinged rear sections on the wing and engines are embedded in the aircraft. The project aims to develop aircraft by 2030.
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Comments
22 November 2004
3 days 6 hours
There is of course the B-2 in service now, which looks remarkably like this proposed flying wing.
Before that, there was the B-49.
Before that, there was the prototype Horten Ho 229, which you can even find in some flight simulator games, by such unusual software companies as Microsoft.
So the first time someone actually did this, and built a plane (not a model) was a little more than 60 years ago.
I don't buy the thing about no flaps or other articulated wing parts, in the actual plane.
1 June 2004
2 years 16 weeks
That by 2030 the world can do better than a 25% fuel saving. Hopefully a different power source all together.
I don't believe this is the solution to aviation and passenger loads of 200 - 300 will not satisfy commercial operations in the future. Consider that Emirates Airlines have just purchased 45 A380 aircraft that can carry 600+ pax.
The concept of a fuselage providing lift has been around since Pontius was a pilot; nothing new there. Less noise is better, but all new generation jets are quiet and as efficient as kero burning engine technology is going to get.
AAiek