Airline passenger news and views

Boeing are the world's biggest and most successful aircraft manufacturer. For them to run three-years behind schedule, and $8billion over budget, on the 787 Dreamliner project must indicate the technical complexity of this new aeroplane.

There are rumours that Boeing made some rudimentary errors but these happen and, in an organisation of their experience, these are usually resolved quite quickly. There have also been problems with the advanced integrated electrical and control systems.

However, the greatest challenge and the greatest forward step has been the decision to use new composite materials and to outsource that development to a world-wide consortium of companies. Boeing have been used to having all of their key technologies in-house. Composite materials, in this scale, are so new that ground-breaking research is running alongside production targets.

At one end of the scale, composite material engineering is little different from fibreglass construction used by many car enthusiasts.  Layers of fibreglass tape are soaked in resin and bonded together to make a shape.  Repairing the damaged wing of a car is within the scope of most DIY enthusiasts. Moulding a one-piece wing of an airliner is just a bit more difficult.

The payback for success is enormous. Composite materials construction is likely to be 30% of the weight of the equivalent metal framing and there are massive potential savings in future maintenance from the way in which these materials handle temperature cycling during climb and descent.  Interestingly, a number of small British companies are at the leading edge of this work.

With both Boeing and Airbus committed to composite material engineering, the next decade should show serious progress and, as the expression goes, things will never be the same again.

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