Smarter planes could cut costs and save planet

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Aircraft giant Airbus says steeper takeoffs, smarter planes and bird-like formations could cut flight times and save fuel. But it also estimates that total flight times could be cut by five million hours today just by making better use of existing on-board technology.

The suggestions come in a document predicting how aircraft technology and practices could change by 2050. The clear emphasis is on cutting flight time and using fuel more efficiently, measures that could cut costs as well as reducing carbon emissions.


One suggestion is to have takeoff assisted by propelled acceleration using energy on the ground. It’s a similar idea to the way space rockets use “disposable” fuel but would involve a more ecologically sound propulsion that didn’t mean dropping spent fuel containers onto the airport.

The technique would mean planes carried less fuel for the flight itself and were thus much lighter (further reducing the fuel needs.) It would also mean planes could take off at a much steeper angle because they wouldn’t need to climb in multiple stages. That would allow for shorter runways and quieter takeoffs, both of which could allow for airports closer to city centers.

Another suggestion is for aircraft to communicate automatically with one another and figure out the most efficient routes, taking account of the atmosphere and weather. It’s even possible planes covering busy “main” routes could href="http://www.airbus.com/innovation/future-by-airbus/smarter-skies/aircraft-in-free-flight-and-formation-along-express-skyways/">arrange themselves in a bird-like formation, effectively getting the same slipstream benefits seen in cycling races.

Airbus estimates this could work with the planes being 20 wingspans (a little over a mile) apart; it acknowledged this is much shorter than current limits but says it could still be safe.

It could be an administrative nightmare however. Rival air carriers would not only have to establish the main routes (which would be designed to be much more direct), but would have to figure out which planes would be in the position benefiting most from the reduced drag, and whether there’d be any compensation payments to share these savings.

While these changes are years away if they ever happen, Airbus does say more efficient use of today’s technology could be a starting point. It says the average flight-time for flights in the US or Europe could be cut by 13 minutes and works this out as a saving of 9 million tonnes of fuel a year, in turn cutting CO2 emissions by 28 million tonnes.

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