Airbus Adds Winglets to Improve Fuel Efficiency

The Airbus A320 airliner – a staple of the modern airline industry – is to be made more environmentally friendly – aircraft manufacturer Airbus announced on Sunday November 15th.  Through adding new wingtip features, the airliner’s efficiency will be augmented and, thus, its fuel consumption lowered, Airbus said.  Its announcement was made at the Dubai International Air Show – a showcase event for the military and civil aircraft industries which takes place every two years in the Middle East.

Airbus: Fuel Efficiency

Airbus refers to its wingtip design as a ‘sharklet’ – a reference to the way it resembles a shark’s fin.  The new technology will provide the Airbus A320 with a sleeker profile as it cuts through the air and, therefore, reduce drag and improve fuel efficiency.  Together with its main competitor in the commercial field, Boeing, Airbus has been looking into how to replace its top-selling designs (the 737, in Boeing’s case), but lengthy backlogs have offset any impulse to introduce entirely new models to the marketplace.  In fact, Airbus recently stated the advent of a 100 per cent new airliner might be 15 years away.  For the moment, then, the likes of Airbus are adapting present designs, and giving them an environmental edge to boot.

The fuel-saving sharklets will feature on Airbus A320 airliners from 2012 onwards – at a cost of $900,000 per airframe.  The launch carrier will be Air New Zealand, which currently operates 12 aircraft. 

Aircraft Fuel Consumption

Airbus itself envisages that, once in place, the winglets will lower aircraft fuel consumption by three-and-a-half per cent – sufficient to reduce airline operating costs by approximately $220,000, annually, per airframe.  Related CO2 emissions are forecast to decrease by 700 tonnes a year. 

“The new Sharklets will enable our Airbus fleet to benefit from lower fuel burn and carbon emissions, both across Air New Zealand's domestic network and especially on the longer trans-Tasman sectors”, chief executive of carrier Air New Zealand, Rob Fyfe, stated in a company release to the media.

“The eco-efficient A320 Family just keeps getting better”, chief operating officer at Airbus, John Leahy, commented.  “We are delighted that Air New Zealand recognizes that our single-aisle family will remain the most profitable product in its class for years to come.”

See also:

Airbus Alternative Fuel Flight Trials