The planes of the future could have something very similar to feathers

These findings could have a significant impact on the future of the aeronautical industry. Climate change is causing meteorological conditions to be more unpredictable and extreme. In the last four decades, the frequency of severe turbulence has increased by 55%. To guarantee the safety of passengers, airplanes must be more resistant and capable of executing agile maneuvers in difficult conditions without compromising the stability of the aircraft or safety on board.

At the same time, the volume of air traffic continues to increase, so it is crucial to explore innovations that improve the efficiency of aircraft and contribute to the decarbonization of flights without depending solely on advances in fuel. Passive systems could not only play a key role in this process, but they would do it without resorting to complex electronic systems.

However, the path to the commercial adoption of this technology is complicated, as has happened with many other innovations inspired by nature. For example, in the 1980s, scientists discovered that sharks have small protuberances called Ribletsthat cover their skin and reduce the resistance when moving in the water. They wondered if applying a design similar to airplanes could significantly reduce fuel consumption. In 1997, researchers quantified that Riblets Shark skin can reduce aerodynamic resistance of airplanes by almost 10%. However, commercial evidence in real aircraft did not begin until 2016.

Lufthansa Technik, a German aerospace company, finally developed Aeroshark, a surface technology inspired by shark skin. “Today, 25 airlines airlines have been modified with our shark skin technology, and the number continues to grow,” says Lea Klinge, spokesman for Lufthansa Technik. He adds that this type of innovations require decades of research and that integrating new solutions into existing fleets without interrupting operations remains an important challenge.

When climbing these feathers inspired by feathers, “there are some logistics challenges in terms of the type of materials with which we can manufacture them or how to adequately fix them to the wings,” says Wissa. Implementing such an innovation would not be as simple as simply adding a plastic film to the small prototype of the team experiment. “Often, integrating innovative solutions at the commercial level a complex and multidisciplinary process can become quickly,” says Ruxandra Botez, aerospace engineer at the ETS Montreal University. An airplane must overcome a series of safety tests and certifications, which can easily take several years. Boat also points out that Most modern aircraft are built on gradual improvements of previous modelsand manufacturers are usually reluctant to deviate too much from existing designs.

Lentink, however, argues that focusing solely on commercial scalability is a wrong approach. He adds that if only innovations are tested with clear scalability, researchers will not dare to think beyond. “If we really want to innovate in the aerospace sector, we must propose totally crazy ideas,” he says. “Staying too close to the final application limits the capacity of engineers to create new things.” In his opinion, ailerons inspired by the feathers cover, in their current form, are probably not close to an immediate application. “But I don’t see it as a criticism,” he clarifies. “I see it as researchers developing key ideas that can now advance in this technological pipe towards an application.”