Quote:
Originally Posted by netwr
Is composite material replacing aluminum as the sole material used on future aircraft?
also, what material does the a380 use? the fuselage does not show any bare silver panels before gets painted...is it composite like the 787?
P.S. why do airlines only remove the paint off from cargo liners and not the passenger jets? Example, CX & JAL cargo, their cargo liners originally had paint on the fuselage, but most have been removed recently
if there's a really fuel-saving advantage, why don't the airlines get the paint off their pax jets as well?
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All of the airliners built in the last 20 years have used composites in much of their airframes. The 787 is the first to use it almost exclusively. Aluminum/magnesium and other metals still play a big role in the frame of the planes, but the use of epoxies and composites will take the place of the aluminum skin in future airliners. Airbus uses a different aluminum alloy, more prone to surface corrosion problems which dulls the finish on bare metal, so they paint all their airliners. AFA the A380, not sure about their skin, but it's not composite like the 787.
It's true that removing the base paint from a typical aircraft can save several hundred pounds of weight, but the fuel savings is negligible on smaller airliners, and the airlines and the passengers like the way the planes look painted. I think with the cargo planes, it might be a way to set them apart from the pax planes, but that's just a guess.