Taking Aircraft High-Lift Systems to the Next Level

摘要

They may be used only for takeoff and landing, but high-lift systems are among the more complex of aircraft subsystems to assemble and maintain, requiring precise alignment of complicated mechanisms that are important to performance and reliability.Collins Aerospace Systems, formerly UTC Aerospace Systems (UTAS), the leading supplier in this segment, has launched a £6.5 million ($8.5 million) project to develop the next generation of high-lift systems, with half the funding being provided by the UK government. Collins Aerospace was formed in late November on completion of the merger of UTAS with Rockwell Collins.The project, led by Collins Aerospace's Actuation Systems division in Wolverhampton, England, is aimed at taking simpler, lighter and less costly high-lift systems to a technology and manufacturing readiness level that will enable their use in airliners entering service from the mid-2020s. Boeing's new midmarket airplane, or NMA, is one potential application.