Future by Airbus

A whole new way to fly...

Through innovation, and out-of-the-box thinking, Airbus will continue to meet its eco-efficiency goals, and ensure that air travel continues to be one of the safest, and most eco-efficient, means of transportation.

As the air transport sector continues to grow, Airbus believes that the industry as a whole must concentrate on technological advances, while also advancing solutions that will meet passenger and market demands, the growing population and its demographic profile, and respect all aspects of the environment.

In Airbus customers opinions are very crucial. People were asked their opinions what they expect in the future. In 2010 customers answers were "cheaper, greener and more fun!" but in 2012 it was "more sustainable; less stressful; and more of it, despite social media revolutionising how we keep in touch". 

Airbus is continuing to assess the feasibility for future operations, including studies in collaboration with Bristol, Cape Town and Stanford Universities. The study with Stanford was borne out of a proposal on the subject from its students that reached the final of the Airbus Fly Your Ideas challenge in 2009.  It employed simulation and aerodynamics analysis to explore the optimum number of aircraft in several configurations or geometries.

These included a two-aircraft formation, three-aircraft "skein" (the symmetric V-shaped formation associated with geese and ducks), an inverted-V and echelon formation.  The results suggest fuel burn savings of 10-12 per cent are possible, with emissions cut by up to 25 per cent.

Airbus already is looking into cooperative flight scheduling and conducting research into aircraft stability and control.  In parallel, a new breed of sensors able to detect the wake of the previous aircraft and rapid state changes must be developed. Avionic technologies already make this possible in principle.  Lightweight remote sensing equipment such as LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) and Infrared cameras allow aircraft to detect the wake vortex – which is the turbulence produced by an aircraft in flight – of those ahead.

For aircraft to autonomously keep station, they will need to communicate with each other.  High-speed, real-time computation, communication and coordination would take inputs from all sources in the air and on the ground.  High bandwidth telecommunications would cope with the increase in data being transferred around the network.

Improvements on the plane

Longer and slimmer wings better glide through the skies, as the flow of air over the wing surface reduces drag and in turn, improves fuel efficiency.

New manufacturing methods will reduce the cost and environmental impact of building the aircraft despite the new advance materials and complex shapes.

Engines will be more reliable, quieter and fuel-efficient. The positioning of the engines, at the rear and semi-embedded, fully optimises the aircraft for lower fuel burn. The engine placement also boosts cabin comfort through decreased noise levels. The engines can be incorporated into the aircraft body because technological advances will have reached such a level that superior engine reliability will diminish the need for immediate access to its components.

The electrical system will continuously monitor its own state of health, anticipating any need for maintenance and automatically scheduling this well in advance. Electronics and other systems on board will be entirely self-sufficient, requiring minimum to zero maintenance.

The fuselage (central body of the aircraft) is no longer a simple tube but is curved and shaped to provide more internal space for various cabin configurations, with better aerodynamics outside to improve flight. The fuselage and entire aircraft structure is manufactured entirely from composite to take advantage of the easy-to-shape characteristics of the material.