Multi-million pound project to design aircraft wings of the future led by Airbus

Airbus is leading a new £17.7 million project to develop an innovative way of designing and manufacturing aircraft wings of the future.

More than 30,000 new aircraft are expected to be required in the next 15-20 years, replacing existing in-service models and also to expand airlines’ fleets as the number of air travellers increases.

The project, called Wing Design Methodology Validation – or WINDY – has been made possible thanks to joint industry and UK government investment from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), supported by the Aerospace Technology Institute (ATI).

“Aircraft wing design is a hugely complicated process and this project will look at ways we can increase the robustness of the design and test process while also reducing the time this takes,” said Airbus Chief Operating Officer Tom Williams. “Developing state-of-the-art technology will be at the heart of achieving these improvements and this investment is vital for that.”

The project will be led by a team from Airbus in Filton, Bristol, which is a global centre of excellence for wing design, development and testing.

WINDY will look at aerodynamic modelling of wings, the potential for use of complex 3D-printed components in wing structures and the possibility of innovative loads control on aircraft for better efficiency in flight.