One day in the not-so-distant future, semi-autonomous airplanes will fly through the skies like flocks of geese, reducing drag and saving fuel. This concept is part of a broader plan by airplane maker Airbus to modernize the industry over the next three decades.
“Our engineers are continuously encouraged to think widely and come up with ‘disruptive’ ideas which will assist our industry in meeting the 2050 targets we have signed up to,” Airbus’ engineering chief Charles Champion says. “These and the other tough environmental targets will only be met by a combination of investment in smarter aircraft design and optimising the environment in which the aircraft operates.”
While planes presently fly with about 1,000 feet (300m) of vertical separation between them, computer-controlled planes could fly much closer. The planes’ flight control systems could also ingest weather and atmospheric conditions and adjust to constantly fly the best available route, while at the same time maintaining a safe distance from other nearby planes.
This all may sound like an attempt at removing the pilot from the flying process, but Airbus cautions that is not the case.
The pilot is still in control of the aircraft, but the enhanced computer system will act as a backup, smoothing out the natural pilot error. Flying in such close formation obviously requires precision, far more than even the most experienced pilot can provide. Accidents and issues do happen, so Airbus sees it as important for the pilot to still have control. The goal here is efficiency, and the company’s research shows that’s exactly what such a system provides.
On average, thanks to reduced air resistance — just like a flock of geese flying in a V formation — flights will be about 13 minutes shorter, and about 9 million tons of aircraft fuel will be saved. Billions of dollars a year will be saved in fuel costs, which hopefully would have the effect of making air travel cheaper too. There’s also an environmental benefit here: 28 million less tons of CO2 emissions would be put into our atmosphere each year.
Besides the more advanced computer systems in planes, Airbus has other concepts that it plans to test, and has set a goal of the year 2050 to deploy these technologies.
In addition to computer controlled flying, Airbus proposes a superfast ground vehicle to launch aircraft into the sky, and free glides into airports. In both cases, this would require much less runway, which means airports could be constructed in highly-populated areas where land comes at a premium. Another time and fuel saving measure is optimizing the taxiing of planes around the airport, by using robotic taxi vehicles powered on renewable energy.
Champion says that while Airbus is serious about making air travel more efficient and cost effective, his company will not be able to do it alone. “The future of sustainable aviation is the sum of many parts and success will require collaboration amongst all the parties who are passionate about ensuring a successful prospect for aviation,” he says.