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The ELFIN Fokker 100 testbed aircraft with the laminar flow glove fitted. Clearly visible are the infrared cameras mounted on the fuselage and on struts under the wing. Running between the flap rail fairings is the pylon with the wake rakes attached, measuring air pressure downstream from the wing. Precise measuring is crucial in determining the success of the programme. (ELFIN)
Laminar Flow – Final Frontier of Aerodynamics
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Imagine a technology which would enable a 15% reduction in fuel burn or a corresponding increase in range and the tremendous implications such a technology would have on the airline industry and the aviation community as a whole.
This can be achieved by decreasing drag through keeping the air passing over the top of the wing in a laminar, non turbulent state, thus reducing drag. The concept and benefits of laminar flow are well known and research into it has been conducted since World War II. However, it has not been until very recently that advances in technology have enabled the laminar flow concept to become an achievable and commercially viable prospect.
Accomplishing laminar flow has been described as “the last major step in aerodynamic aircraft design” by Deutsche Aerospace’s Bernard Dziomba Millions of dollars and thousands of manhours have been poured into laminar flow research over more than four decades, but it has only been until quite recently that the concept has become potentially viable.
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