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Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

wsj.com

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Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#171

Post by bongoman37 »

chrisBob wrote: post #23
nicktelford wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A bigger problem with blended wing designs is actually for the people on the peripheral. When the plane banks, passengers further from the axis of rotation will feel a more significant change in their altitude. You literally feel like you're "falling", as the plane banks to your side. This also applies to existing aircraft, but the amount you drop/rise is limited by the your distance from the axis of rotation, which…

The issue isn't the bank angle exactly, it is the acceleration of the roll. Pilots will need to be careful not to throw people or drinks around, but I think it would be doable.

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Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#172

Post by oogetyboogety »

scarier wrote: post #59
nicktelford wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A bigger problem with blended wing designs is actually for the people on the peripheral. When the plane banks, passengers further from the axis of rotation will feel a more significant change in their altitude. You literally feel like you're "falling", as the plane banks to your side. This also applies to existing aircraft, but the amount you drop/rise is limited by the your distance from the axis of rotation, which…

I mean, the rise of low-cost carriers has shown pretty clearly that passengers are willing to put up with a lot for cheaper tickets…

This "falling" feeling is my favorite part about flying

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#173

Post by Haga »

dotnet00 wrote: post #136
PicassoCTs wrote: post #88

Idea: How about a blended wing aircraft - that never has to land? Fuel, Passengers, luggage and waste arrive via shuttles from the airport, while the plane circles slowly, docking in flight? Other passenger and personal on end of shift. Leave the same way, to other shuttle craft and the plane flies ever onward. Only reason to ever land is maintenance which can not be performed mid flight. In theory, a specialized shu…

It might be lighter but how would it be more economical? You'd need a fleet of transport craft just to constantly dock and undock from it and at that point you might as well just make the one plane be able to land.

No post body was provided.

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#174

Post by thedrbrian »

scarier wrote: post #69
VBprogrammer wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Across the wings yes but not across the majority of the fuselage.

How is that a meaningful distinction from either a design or manufacturing standpoint?

Another problem is how planes are designed for different sizes. Say you design your plane with the base / most ordered as the dash 9. Now someone wants a smaller longer range one.

just take some fuselage barrel sections out. Boom dash 8. Want an even smaller one. Take more sections out. Dash 7. Need a huge massive super long range one with loads of seats. Add sections and you get the dash 10 or 11.

Current planes use a uniform fuselage structure for this reason. You're going to make different models within the same model family with a flying wing.

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#176

Post by whatiskolnprob »

scottLobster wrote: post #159
q-big wrote: post #130

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> A bigger problem with blended wing designs is actually for the people on the peripheral. When the plane banks, passengers further from the axis of rotation will feel a more significant change in their altitude. You literally feel like you're "falling", as the plane banks to your side. This is a problem that a market can easily solve: make the more central seats more expensive than the outer ones. If the pricing is…

Totally on board with flying in the outboard cheap seats, at least for any flight where I don't have to sleep. Flights are incredibly boring aside from takeoff and landing, and I love roller coasters. :) I have a feeling there are enough of us to make it work in the market and still fill planes, just instead of first-business-coach going front-to-back it'll go center-out, like a theater.

Man you must like some adventure.

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#177

Post by supernova87a »

Maybe someone here knows, but I'm always skeptical of any such news where there's not a single numerical figure in the story about the cost or operating difference. What is even the order of magnitude of fuel or operating cost improvement envisioned from these new designs? 10%? 30%

Similarly when any story is written about biofuels for example ("airline demonstrates passenger flight using biofuels"), but the article doesn't quote a single dollar figure on the cost per gallon, you know it's just another story that comes and goes every year, but no significant new progress has been made towards actual sustainable/scaled possibilities.

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#178

Post by ordu »

q-big wrote: post #130
nicktelford wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A bigger problem with blended wing designs is actually for the people on the peripheral. When the plane banks, passengers further from the axis of rotation will feel a more significant change in their altitude. You literally feel like you're "falling", as the plane banks to your side. This also applies to existing aircraft, but the amount you drop/rise is limited by the your distance from the axis of rotation, which…

> A bigger problem with blended wing designs is actually for the people on the peripheral. When the plane banks, passengers further from the axis of rotation will feel a more significant change in their altitude. You literally feel like you're "falling", as the plane banks to your side. This is a problem that a market can easily solve: make the more central seats more expensive than the outer ones. If the pricing is…

> This is a problem that a market can easily solve: make the more central seats more expensive than the outer ones.

There are risks to create a "vomit comet". Think about cleaning bills.

Re: Engineers are exploring radical new designs for commercial planes

#180

Post by drewmol »

Retric wrote: post #143
hnuser123456 wrote: post #140

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How about... more rudder? Of course, more control surface area means more drag and less fuel efficiency. Wonder if a flying wing style craft that has enough rudder to match traditional cylinder fuselages bank-and-yank capabilities is still more efficient.

Lateral acceleration is less pleasant for passengers. You don’t want peoples drinks to fall off their tray tables for example. That said there is a fair about of wiggle room so I doubt it’s a significant issue in practice.

Cut a hole for cups to sit in on the back edge of the tray tables?
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