If aircraft can copy the way geese fly, they will save fuel
Dec 7th 2019IN THE CUT-THROAT business of civil aviation, every little helps. So researchers at Airbus, Europe’s biggest aircraft manufacturer, have been experimenting with a wheeze which they hope might shave up to 10% off an airliner’s fuel consumption. This is to hitch a ride on the wake of the plane in front.It is a familiar idea. Evolution blundered across it millions of years ago, and it explains why skeins of geese, swans and so on adopt a V-shaped formation when flying in groups. Vortices of air shed from the tips of a bird’s wings represent wasted effort. But that effort can be captured as lift by another bird trailing at the correct distance and angle.Choose us for news analysis that respects your time and intelligenceSubscribe to The EconomistWe filter out the noise of the daily news cycle and analyse the trends that matterWe give you rigorous, deeply researched and fact-checked journalism. That’s why Americans named us their most trusted news source in 2017Available wherever you are—in print, digital and, uniquely, in audio, fully narrated by professional broadcastersThis website adheres to all nine of NewsGuard‘s standards of credibility and transparency.ORContinue reading this articleRegister with an email address