The beauty in aircraft design

Planes and other aircraft are a feat of human design. To think that planes of substantial sizes are travelling in the sky at hundreds of feet and at incredible speeds, over and over again each day is an amazing thought. Over the years since the Wright brothers took their first flight, there have been numerous advances in air travel. This has included making planes that travel at incredible speeds, such as Concorde. Planes that have multiple decks and can carry hundreds and hundreds of people on one flight, such as the Airbus and, of course, the great military aircraft that can carry out heart-stopping manoeuvres and be undetected by radars.

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In order to produce all of these incredible aircraft, designs have to be created. These were initially drawings, much like those we have come to expect from architects, and the plans would have then been passed onto those responsible for building each element of the plane and those assembling it ready for its Plasma polymer composite that can be found from companies like https://www.poeton.co.uk/advanced-treatments/apticote-810-plasma-polymer-composite/. Nowadays, the aircraft is designed using specially crafted software that allows for 3D and, in some cases, even 4D rendering of the designs. This has enabled incredible designs to be put in place that would never otherwise have been possible.

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The design phases allow for concept testing where small scale models of the planes or certain elements of the plane are placed inside wind tunnels to see how aerodynamic they are. The results of these tests will then determine whether amendments need to be made to the design or whether they can be passed onto the construction phase. In some cases, it can take up to four years in total to complete the design and early model testing phases.

Once the aircraft has passed into the construction phases, the critical components of the fuselage, engines, wings, empennage and undercarriage are all made. These are often made in separate factories before they are all brought together for the final assembly of the entire plane. Along the way, the elements will all be stress and safety tested, with the plan being given a final inspection before it embarks on the test flights. Once the test flights have been successful, the plane can then receive its branding and the outer coat of paint before being commissioned into action.

Due to the strict safety measures needed for all aircraft, the vehicles will be tested for safety measures throughout their lifespan. Some of these safety measures will take place before and after each flight and others after particular time periods. Each plane only has a set amount of time it is able to fly, meaning that some planes are being decommissioned all the time.

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