Monday, October 24, 2011

Planes travelling at five times the speed of sound could be with us by the end of the century

Passenger planes designed to carry people direct to their front door could come to pass by the end of the century, according to a new report today.

A report by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IME) talked of a system called 'a sort of Ark Royal for the skies' that could see the UK at the forefront of future aerospace innovation.

Looking towards 2075 and beyond, the report talked of advances that could be made in aircraft design such as Scramjet planes able to fly at around 4,000mph - five times the speed of sound - and commercial aircraft flying in a V-shaped form designed to save power by making use of airflow generated by the plane in front.

Scramjet planes contain a type of jet engine, that allows them to 'combust' fuel and decelerate the incoming air to produce speed and thrust.

The fastest air-breathing aircraft is a Scramjet designed by NASA, which reached a velocity of Mach 9.8.

The report also discusses looking at ways to create a 'aircraft carrier' system in which a large aircraft carries individual units that can be released over a destination to float down to the designated area where a passenger needs to go.

Other ideas are a 'flying wing' design, where the plane's main body, wings and engine blended together and a 'flying fuel station' so future planes do not have to take off with full tanks.

IME chief executive, Stephen Tetlow chief executive of UME said that even in the next 20 years, there were potential sales of 25,000 new aircraft set to be worth more than £2,000 billion.

He said: 'Now is the time for industry and government to focus on sectors that can help lift the country's economy.

'The UK aerospace sector already employs over 100,000 people around the country and is worth over £29 billion a year to our economy, but we need to take action now to ensure this sector can continue to thrive and grow.

'There is great potential for new UK aerospace technologies, but in order to compete with emerging nations, we need to set up a strategic vision for UK aerospace, establish a new dedicated aerospace research body and restore research and development funding to pre-recession levels.'

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