Airbus Planning Transparent Planes 488
goG writes "European aircraft manufacturer Airbus has come up with the idea to build a passenger flight with a completely transparent fuselage. The central body of the aircraft will allow passengers to the see the stars above and city lights below. 'The planes of the future will offer an unparalleled, unobstructed view of the wonders of the five continents — where you will be able see the pyramids or the Eiffel Tower through the transparent floor of the aircraft,' Airbus said while unveiling the concept 'The Future By Airbus' earlier this year."
Re:Waste (Score:3, Informative)
Maybe whole-plane parachutes? I'd take that before a transparent one any day.
They exist; they're just so heavy and so unlikely to be useful that no-one is willing to take the performance hit for installing such a system on an airliner. If I remember correctly, the proposed system I saw some years ago for a 747 required 14 large parachutes spread around the plane.
Plus you're more likely to scare people off by doing so than gain new passengers; who wants to fly on an airline which is so scared of their planes crashing that they fit parachutes to them?
Re:This would scare the hell out of me (Score:2, Informative)
You're ignoring issues with the weight of glass or the strength of polycarbonate.
Re:I for one (Score:3, Informative)
And you all missed this part FTFA.
"walls that become see-through at the touch of a button"
Sounds a lot like those windows you can make transparent or tinted at the push of a button.
Niven not Star Trek (Score:3, Informative)
Clearly, ( :-D ) , they haven't a clue (Score:3, Informative)
Toronto's CN Tower has a glass floor, about a 1/4 mile above street level and there are many, many people who can't muster the nerve to walk out on it.
I can only imagine how relaxing it'll be for Joe Sixpack to have an unrestricted view of a flock of geese flying into the engine before all goes hurtling to that most
welcoming of places we call Terra Firma.
Not to mention just how much more gruesome plane crashes will be since anyone within visual range will have a lovely view of the innards, both the planes and the
dead or dying passengers.
Good plan, Mr Airbus Man.
Re:I for one (Score:3, Informative)
There are several Russian companies that suck even more. After them... Well, there aren't a lot of companies putting really new designs in the air, lot like there were 30 years ago when just the US manufacturers included Boeing, McDonnell-Douglas, and Lockheed. Europe had its own set, and the Soviets had a few more. Kind of a shame that the competition isn't like that anymore.
Re:Right... (Score:3, Informative)
Puppeteer should be capitalized, as it is a proper noun in this context- it's not some puppeteers, it's the Peirson's Puppeteers that are complaining.
(And usig an a Android tablet to post with sucks.)
Re:Painted ransparent planes (Score:2, Informative)
The weakpoints what window holes are causing would demand that there is no skeleton in the fuselage but it is just aluminium and blastic.
We all should know that every passenger jet has a big strong skeleton. It is aready needed for different floors and to have strong body/wings connection (what btw, is the weakest point in the whole plane). There is no such material what can be as strong as titanium and other metal materials for the skeleton and still offer a 90% invisibility like a glass and plastic.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Boeing_747_Le_Bourget_FRA_002.jpg
As you can see, the fuselag frames and stringers are very much filling the whole space. Skin is just small portition of the fuselag.
But the back part is littlebit different thing. There it would be easy to replace the skin with transparent material, but still you would have frames etc there.
The skin itself does not make so big difference for the weakpoints, it is everywhere else. Thats why airplanes windows are so small that you can fit them between frames and stringers. Causing no weakpoints. And the plastic used them is so thik that you can not even benetrate them with 9mm gun (9mm is designed with strong stop power, but very weak penetration power, so you can use it in hostage situations inside easily, without worring does it make a whole to a wall. It does penetrate tables, light wooden doors or hollow metallic doors).
And what Boing really is doing, is to make the upper part of the fuselag transparent. From floor level to middle where is going to be a strong string from back to the front. And where the cables, lights and other stuff will be places, like passengers handbacks and backpacks and so on.
So only partically you can add a transparent parts to fuselag, not the whole fuselag.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Airbus_A340_Intérieur_Fuselage_Arrière.JPG
Re:That gives me e great idea (Score:3, Informative)
Uh, have you SEEN most nudists and/or airline passengers? No thanks!