|
An interesting drama
is playing out in the commercial aircraft industry that could have implications
for boatbuilders. Airbus and Boeing are developing radically different
next-generation aircraft to respond to what they each see as the future
of commercial aviation.
Airbus believes a dearth
of gates and landing slots will force airlines to cram people into very
large aircraft that take them between hubs. Consequently, its airplane
of the future is the A380, a twin-deck, two-aisle, four-engine behemoth
that will seat 555 passengers in the standard three-class configuration.
Boeing believes the
future lies in smaller, fuel-efficient aircraft taking passengers from
destination to destination instead of hub. Smaller planes will be easier
to fill, it says, and superior fuel efficiency will allow them to travel
as far as either a 747 or A380. Thus Boeing’s airliner of the future
is the 7E7 Dreamliner, a two-engine, two-aisle design with a range of
7,000 to 8,000 NM and seating 200 to 250 passengers.
There’s a lot riding
on who prevails, but Boeing’s strategy is notable because part of
it could conceivably be applied to boats. It aims to achieve a new level
of fuel efficiency via more efficient engines and next-generation composites
that will reduce weight by as much as 20 percent compared to conventional
aluminum construction. As for engines, Boeing enjoys an advantage no boatbuilder
has. The world’s largest manufacturer of commercial aircraft can
virtually dictate to jet engine builders such as GE, Rolls Royce, and
Pratt and Whitney. In fact, Boeing told them that if they wanted to sell
engines for the 7E7, they’d have to come up with significantly more
efficient engines. It would be wonderful if Sea Ray or Feadship could
exert such leverage, but both are mere blips on the screen of corporations
like General Motors (which builds the basic engines for MerCruiser) and
MTU.
More applicable is Boeing’s
construction strategy, by which 60 percent of aluminum components on today’s
aircraft will be replaced with composites. Indeed, the 7E7 will be the
first commercial jet with both wings and fuselage made of composites.
The main material will be a blend of graphite and epoxy resin, and the
wings will be a titanium-graphite mix, but a good deal of aluminum will
still be used. In fact, Boeing has found that in many cases aluminum components
were lighter than composites and, just as surprising, in some cases composites
were not significantly more expensive than aluminum.
Boeing engineers have
great faith in the quality and strength of very light composite components.
But just to cover their bets, they’ve designed a network of sensors
that will provide early warning of structural problems, obviating costly
visual inspection.
Advanced construction
won’t be totally responsible for the 7E7’s reduced weight; lighter
hydraulics will play a part, too. But this airplane is proof that advanced
composites can result in significant weight reduction at a reasonable
cost and with no trade-off in structural strength. More important, it
announces that the next generation of practical composite construction
has arrived. The same breakthroughs that will create the world’s
most fuel-efficient jetliner could also create a new generation of boats
and yachts that can go faster and farther on every gallon of fuel.
|