Five big ideas that could change the future of air travel

Green wing

BA says it will buy all 50,000 tonnes of liquid jet fuel set to be produced each year at the former Coryton oil refinery in Thurrock, Essex.

The plant will recycle 575,000 tonnes of waste otherwise destined for landfill sites, leading to claims that this will be a sustainable, carbon-neutral fuel source.

BA’s announcement comes ahead of the Global Sustainable Aviation Summit in Geneva later this month, and it could be the first of many similar announcements by airlines around the world as the industry seeks to reduce its nearly 700 million-tonne carbon footprint.

Some environmentalists are opposed to the use of biofuel by the aviation industry, but usually on the grounds of the carbon cost of growing biomass plants to convert into fuel, rather than using recycled waste or algae.

Dr Jim Gilmour, an expert in microalgal biotechnology from Sheffield University told Channel 4 News: “We have been really stigmatised by the first generation fuels. Ethanol from corn in the US was probably worse than fossil fuels, and palm oil can be disastrous for the rain forest.

“But second generation fuels derived from waste products or algae are a different story. I think the environmentalists should be with us on this one.

“And they have demonstrated that these fuels can be used in aircraft without any modifications.

“The problem is the scale-up. I can produce algal biofuel for you tomorrow, but I won’t be able to guarantee I can make enough of it.”

Sun worshippers

Planes still create carbon emissions even if they burn biofuel recycled from rubbish, but an aircraft that has no need for fuel at all is grabbing a huge amount of attention at the moment.

The sun-powered Solar Impulse 2 was unveiled to the public for the first time earlier this month. It will attempt the first round-the-world solar flight next year.

Solar Impulse 2 has a broader wingspan than a Boeing 747 to accommodate the 17,000 solar cell that drive its four propellers, but it weighs the same as a family car.

Improved technology means it can stay in the air almost perpetually, flying day and night.

In fact the main challenges are human rather than technological. It could take six days and nights to cross the Pacific. How will the Swiss pilots, Bertrand Piccard and Andre Borschberg, cope with such long shifts at the controls in a small unheated cabin?

The pair say they have mastered meditation and polyphasic sleep – taking multiple short power naps – to help them maintain focus over the 10 legs of the 22,000 mile trip.

The plane can manage 88mph with no fuel and zero emissions, but weight is at a premium, so solar-assisted passenger flights may be a long way off.

The airship rises again

The massive hangars at Cardington in Bedfordshire are relics from the 1920s heyday of the inflatable airship, when Zeppelins ferried passengers from Germany to Brazil over a leisurely three days.

Competition from aeroplanes and a string of high-profile airship disasters ended the golden age of the dirigible.

But modern airships, now invariably pumped full of inert helium rather than flammable hydrogen like the ill-fated Hindenburg, have unique qualities that still give them a commercial edge in the age of hypersonic flight.

Now Cardington is home to the 300ft-long Airlander, the world’s longest and tallest aircraft.

Early airships required large ground crews hauling on ropes to drag them down to the ground and secure them. The Airlander can land vertically in secluded parts of the world with no need for an airfield or lots of manpower.

It was originally designed with the US military in mind. The airship was supposed to fly at high altitude over large areas of Afghanistan for days on end, watching out for insurgents planting roadside bombs.

Budget cuts and the drawdown of coalition troops meant the end of that idea, but the Airlander’s creators, British company Hybrid Air Vehicles, are floating many other applications.

Spokesman Chris Daniels said the firm is in talks with unnamed internet giants over the possibility of using airships as floating communications platforms, providing broadband internet access to rural areas.

A larger version capable of lifting more than 50 tonnes could transport machinery to otherwise inaccessible mines in Alaska, or airlift victims from secluded Himalayan earthquake zones.

With a current top speed of 100mph, commercial passengers won’t look to the airship for high-speed travel, but the Airlander’s developers have a vision of luxury cruises where passengers can relax in a noiseless cabin while hovering above migrating pods of blue whales.

The first test flight is scheduled for late this year, and passenger flights could begin by 2016.

New wave

An airship will get you from London to New York in a day and a half. A WaveRider could theoretically manage the trip in less than an hour.

Boeing made history last year when its X-51 prototype hit mach 5.1 – five times the speed of sound or about 3,900mph – during a test flight lasting about four minutes. The unmanned flight was the longest ever in the hypersonic range.

Developed by British engineers working on the aborted UK space programme in the 1950s, a WaveRider uses the shock wave created by its leading edge to increase the amount of air trapped under the wings, improving lift.

With its snub nose and short, stubby wings, the X-51 is more rocket than plane, and there are numerous technical difficulties that put piloted hypersonic passenger flight a long way off.

Flying cars…

…already exist. The US firm Terrafugia markets a plane/car hybrid called the Transition. It is essentially a light aircraft with a cruising speed of around 100mph and range of 410 miles.

On land, the wings fold up to form a street-legal car that carries four passengers and can fit into a suburban garage. The company is taking orders and expects the Transition to cost £279,000 (£166,000).

The only drawback is that you still need a runway to take off from and land on. Terrafugia plans to solve that with its next generation hybrid, featuring vertical take-off and landing like a Harrier jump jet.

It is envisaged that owners will be able to programme the vehicle to fly a route by itself, automatically avoiding other aircraft and patches of bad weather, rather than have to pilot it manually.

The machine is still in the design stages and it could take up to 12 years to develop.

It may not be the greenest option but the company thinks their designs will revolutionise air travel, making the experience of owning a private aircraft more convenient and affordable than ever.