Boeing and FAA Collaborate on Efficient Aircraft

US aerospace and defence firm Boeing and the US FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) are set to collaborate on future environmentally friendly aircraft technologies, the two announced on 30 June 2010.

Their collaboration will focus on advancing the creation and introduction of environmental aviation systems that result in less-polluting and quieter commercial aircraft designs.

Within the CLEEN (Continuous Lower Energy, Emissions and Noise) programme run by the FAA, it and Boeing will each invest as much as $25 million over a five-year period into flight tests involving the latest energy efficient aircraft engine and airframe designs capable of lowering associated CO2 and other greenhouse gas emission levels, and of reducing linked noise pollution levels, too.

Energy Efficient Aircraft

Two dedicated aircraft will be involved in these tests: one, a Boeing 737, the other – another twin-engined airliner type, details of which have not been revealed. The energy efficient aircraft tests are scheduled to begin in 2012.

The origins of the CLEEN programme lie in Boeing’s Quiet Technology demonstrations carried out between 2001 and 2005. These involved Boeing 777 twin-engined commercial airliners and showed that reduced-noise aircraft operations were a viable prospect for the aviation industry.

Efficient Aircraft Technologies

As per comments made by Craig Wilsey, Program Manager for CLEEN, a number of different efficient aircraft technologies will be progressed and analysed. These included modified wing trailing edges (the rear parts of the wings), intended to lower fuel consumption levels and thus reduce associated emissions as well.

“By combining our resources and expertise, we believe we can transition promising technologies from development into service more quickly to help reduce the environmental footprint of airplanes”, Boeing Research & Technology’s general manager/vice president stated in an online company press release.

”We recognize the importance of protecting our ecosystem and are looking forward to working with the FAA on a variety of innovative solutions to help define the future.”

Last month, Enviro News reported on a pair of new energy efficient aircraft designs conceived by US researchers at MIT. Both have been submitted to NASA for potential future development.

See also:

Boeing to Develop Sustainable Aviation Biofuels

Boeing Airliner Wears Environmentally Friendly Paint