For the average aviation traveler are often considered the main, so much so that they They lit a few Dramatic skirmishes in the middle of the flight over the years. But this does not quite apply to the manufacturers of aircraft who have long considered these desired oval portholes, which should overcome designer obstacles.
While windows are pleasant for passengers, they create structural weak points that require additional reinforcement and increase weight. In combination with their curved form, they also increase resistance, which means more energy and fuel consumption. All this in the long run is a more expensive trip. Now after Years are mostly unsuccessful efforts To eliminate the windows from the cabs, one luxurious manufacturer of reactive work seems to be on the verge of this.
This week, Texas Otto Aerospace announced the deal with Flexjet, a private supplier of luxurious jet aircraft to put 300 elegant and economical economical Ghost 3500 Airplanes to their fleet by 2030. These ultramodern aircraft, still in development, completely eliminated traditional passenger windows in battle, replacing them with virtual ones, which demonstrate real -time -clay -clay chambers installed around the appearance of the aircraft. The result is a panoramic digital experience, which the company's leaders describe as a “supernatural vision” and accessible to each passenger on board.
In other words, no one has a window seat – but every Gets virtual. (The representative of Otto said Popular science The pilots still have ordinary windows in the cab.) Although questions remain about how passengers will actually react to what may seem like a more claustrophobic cabin, successful deployment from OTTO can inspire similar designs from other manufacturers seeking to reduce costs and lower emissions.
“You have these wonderful digital windows that we call a supernatural vision,” said Otto Aerospace President and Chief Operations Director Scott Drennan Scott Drennan Popular science. “This is experimentally, and we think that it is really important along with a voluminous hut, so that our customers enjoy the trip.”
“You no longer need to absorb one window to see Mount Reinir or some other beautiful site that is on your flight path,” Drennan added.
The news about the deal with Flexjet were first reported Wall Street JournalField
The windows were sacrificed in the battle against aerodynamic resistance
Otto’s decision to abandon Windows is part of a wider design philosophy focused on maximizing the laminar flow. The laminar stream, the opposite of the turbulent stream, belongs to the smooth, ordered movement of air above the surface. IN aircraft Design, various components can protrude from the body of the aircraft and violate this smooth air flow, introducing turbulence and increasing resistance. Traditional windows are one of these components.
With the Phantom 3500 OTTO claims that he developed a plane to maximize the laminar flow throughout the body, which, according to them, is for a commercial aircraft. This is done, the company claims, using super -eyed surfaces made from advanced composite materials developed for both strength and durability, with a minimal surface distortion.
“Unlike gradual improvements in aviation, the laminar flow is an evolution in how planes are developed, created and operated,” – Otto writes on his webField
The resulting plane is noticeably quite small. Its cabin has a length of only 22 feet and 6 feet 5 inches in height –shorter than the average player NBAThe two -year -old engines of the aircraft allow it to travel at an altitude of 51,000 feet, the maximum range is 3682 miles, which is about the distance from Denver, Colorado, to Gonolulu, Hawaii. In the cabin to nine passengers, and the absence of windows allows a large internal tuning, whether for relaxation or performance. And Otto claims that the effectiveness obtained as a result of a small selection of the frame and design of the aircraft (including windows) reduces the total fuel burn by 60 percent compared to other jets of a similar size.
The elimination of windows can also reduce steps in the construction process, which, according to the company, should help reduce production costs. Theoretically, these savings in production and fuel can once lead to the fact that travelers seeking to get carried away with private reactive experience.
Fake windows can reduce costs, but will travelers want?
Aerospace companies are studying methods for eliminating windows for most of the decade. In 2014, in the Boston engineering company called Spike Aerospace I presented his own virtual screen design. Even earlier, the emirates from Dubai presented what he called “Fully closed first class private luxury“Shows the technology of the fiber -optic chamber in real time.
Meanwhile, researchers studied the implementation of certain medium-level aircraft (for example, Boeing 737-800, Airbus A320, ATR 72 and Embraer 190) with windows without windows and reported some promising results. One study of 2020, Published in International Journal of Interactive Design and ProductionIt is assumed that the replacement of windows with simulated versions can save millions of tons of carbon dioxide annually if it is taken on a scale.
But it is still unclear how passengers (especially financially gifted) will respond to extended periods of time in flight without access to “real” visual lines. It is also not known how travelers will respond to other possible use options presented by these screens. The representative of Otto said Popular science The screens should not always display a living channel from external cameras and said that it was “possible” that they can even display a video safety video, entertainment in flight (for example, films and shows) or advertising. It is also possible that the press secretary added that the displays can be used for virtual meetings or other applications related to work. Despite this, passengers will be able to control and regulate these settings, the representative said.
“This is a cinematic, worldly, similar to freedom,” Drennan said about the virtual screen. “And then, when you start launching applications and entertainment packages, there will be a whole new world that you experience.”
OTTO has some time to release exactly how all these tools will work. The first Phantom 3500 flight is not expected until 2027, and even then he still needs to receive the approval of the FAA before he can commercially transport travelers.
So, for all private jet suppliers, enjoy traditional windows while you can.
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