Can you imagine airliners with engines that have no nacelles? Airbus can. In fact, the potential of “open fan engine architecture” to increase engine efficiency and reduce CO2 emissions is so tempting, Airbus and CFM International have launched a flight test demonstrator program.
Following extensive ground testing, a double-decker Airbus A380—the world’s largest airliner—will be used to mature and accelerate development of open fan engines, the company announced Tuesday at the Farnborough International Airshow in England. Flight test validation is expected to take place at GE Aviation’s Flight Test Operations Center in Victorville, California.
