Is This the Future of General Aviation?
A consortium of European designers and companies are working on a radical redefinition of what a general aviation aircraft is. Modeled after a tuna, the SmartFish flies without slats, spoilers or flaps.
The SmartFish project intends to create a totally new kind of airplane type that can be used for everything from light sport aircraft to business jets to commercial puddle jumpers that carry up to 20 passengers. The goals include fuel economy, safety, visual beauty and a minimization of moving parts. Who's involved? According to the SmartFish web site:
The SmartFish proof of concept will be realized in collaboration with following companies: Extra (world leader in aerobatic aircraft) for system integration and test flights, Leichtwerk for interpretation statics and dynamics, LTB Borowski for composite manufacturing, Liebherr Aerospace for Landing Gear System development, DLR (German Aerospace Center) for flutter analysis and inlet optimization, RUAG Aerospace for wind tunnel testing, and EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (they did a great job for Alinghi) for overall design optimization.The group even has a working prototype. They're also working on a fuel-cell version.
posted by Mike at 7:52 AM
38 Comments:
crazy sci-fi shit
Um, how would a fuel-cell power a jet?
Thats what a tuna looks like?
Wondering why the aircraft industry had not innovated their design for such a long time. This will open the door for more weird-ass designs, which is what we need!
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So this is where the children of the Third Reich have gone?
Sorry, the names of these companies all remind me of V1 and V2 bombs and manufacturers of gas ovens.
Germanic Jah. European Nein
"Um, how would a fuel-cell power a jet?"
This thing runs on a hydrogen fuel compressed in a tank. Fuel cells produce hydrogen, so rather than the tank, this thing would run off the cells.
"Fuel cells produce hydrogen, so rather than the tank, this thing would run off the cells."
A fuel cell combines hydrogen with oxygen to produce water and electricity. The only purpose of the fuel cell would be to provide electrical power to the plane.
i'm never eating tuna again
doesn't pass the b-s test... real airplane announcements include major system suppliers (engine, avionics) plus describe funding... this just seems like a euro-club to keep euro-scientists employed... have fun though !
Working prototype? Does that mean the motor/engine runs or the thing actually flies?
How does the thing fly with no apparent control surfaces, just by throttle?
Sounds "fishy".
impresionante. Me parece impresionante, pero no creo que llegue a volar nunca. Parece un prototipo.
Right. Not much wing & heavy hydrogen tanks & fuel cells for power - sounds like a teen-dream gone mad. It takes a bit more skill than drawing sexy curves and quoting buzzwords to design an aircraft.
aeroplane
whilst it Is nice to see some form of R&D going into general aviation, it is not going to do anyone much good if the resulting aircraft costs $500.000 + and comes over the fence at 80kts!!!!!
What we need is an aircraft that will take 4 pax + bags & 5 hours fuel, cruse @ 200kts 65% power and land @ 55kts, modern aerodynamics make all of the above possible with less than a 200hp engine and the cost would be no more than $150.000, but don't hold your breath. the major manufacturers are quite happy to sell you 1950s designs as long as mugs buy them.
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Looks like a manta-ray...
You could wait for something like this to maybe, possibly, someday almost actually fly...or you could just do what I did and by a Liberty XL2. http://www.libertyaircraft.com
Doesn't cost millions and it is a blast to fly!
Very interesting and well-written
It looked like aviation was heading more to the microjets like the new Hondajet -- and the air taxi service with more beusiess travelers looking to avoid airlines. I think the real future of air travel is tird to he internet. Let's find a way to connect small groups of people who need to fly and allow them to jointly book a corporate jet.
Looks a bit like the Javelin personal jet. We want one for our birthday.
Good design, I admit...but probably a looong time away from realization. And on top of this: Hydrogen generation needs vast amounts of energy. So depending on how thsi energy is produced its not 'vlean' or 'green' at all.
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wow..looks awesome..
The real issue with General Aviation, isn't the innovation and ideas. Proof of that is Oshkosh Airventure. If you enjoy airplanes, it is a must see event.
What the real problem is, manufacturing an aircraft in a way that provides greater reliablity, lower initial cost, less maintenance cost.
In your typical ground vehicle, you have mass manufactured engines, that require their first tune-up at 100,000 miles. Other than oil changes, air filter change, there is no other required maintenance. Just start and go.
Imagine your next generation aircraft, that has an engine that diagnoses any anomalies, and you never have to compression check, set mixtures, worry about timing, etc. Already some of this technology is used in some piston applications, however, a mass manufactured primary aviation use engine would be good news. Imagine an engine swap for $10,000, while flying the aircraft 2,000 hours with nothing other than oil changes?
The technology for aircraft is getting more integrated. The latest Garmin G1000 has a digital autopilot integrated with the rest of the panel. There is the modular box that can be swapped when thre is a malfunction, what we are finding is that the mean time between failure is much less than old fashined instruments.
If manufacturing aircraft used the latest technology, like friction stir welding, an all in one avionics suite, and an airframe that didn't require a 'hand built' format, the airplane may be able to be built for about half price current aircraft are being manufactured, while offering lower maintenance and direct operating cost.
Once this process became the standard of manufacture, General Aviation would thrive once again, whereby private ownership would be much more feasable.
Mike Dempsey
It's funny that i came across this blog because yesterday i spent like 15 minutes wondering how aviation will look like in the near future (20-30 years from now) and some of what i imagined looked like the image posted here.
It's amazing to think that a plane based off the shape of tuna is also very well shaped for good air-flow and pressures. I think scientists and engineers will copy more and more ideas from nature.
Nature is the best engineer of us all!
Woow amazing!
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I've seen a lot models of future planes. I think the most important factor to consider the fuel efficiency because of increasing fuel prices
The design looks good but i've wonder if this would be feasible because i've never seen a design like this before
I wonder if Boeing or Airbus would manufacture an aircraft of this kind of design. It looks sophisticated plane to me
amazing stuff Mike. I think the next generation of aircrafts are just around the corner, and the next Horward Hughes somewhere around building one...;)
BTW, I am almost flattered with your blog. Since I am a student of aviation (I study at Chimes www.caaindia.com) I am nothing but intrigued with the blog.
The design really looks cool but will it be practical to use fuel cells in this generation?
this is kewl....i wish i get to fly such a thing..m still learning a CESSNA 172r at my aviation academy...when will we have such an aircraft for training.."caaindia.com"
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