It will come as no surprise to business executives that our bodies do not like to be stuffed into an aluminium tube and hurled through the air at 900 kilometres an hour.
It will come as no surprise to business executives that our bodies do not like to be stuffed into an aluminium tube and hurled through the air at 900 kilometres an hour.
And it will also be no surprise that, according to Boeing studies, while memories of our first flight bring pleasure, recollections of our last flight bring anguish.
For the first time in designing aircraft, Boeing is striving to bring back the pleasure of our first flight with its new 787.
The 787, currently under develop-ment, will be a mid-size jet seating between 223 and 279 in a three-class configuration, with the range to fly from London to Perth non-stop.
To put the pleasure back into flying, Boeing has studied the effect of flight on passengers to better understand design criteria.
The results have been fascinating.
Special pressurised chambers to study the effects of altitude on passengers found that, up to 1,980 metres pressurisation has no effect on passengers, but at 2,440 metres – the normal pressurisation altitude for most jet aircraft – for some, the effects were similar to mild altitude sickness.
Because the 787 will be built of stronger composites – not aluminium – Boeing will be able to increase the cabin pressurisation to a 1,980-metre level.
The combination of the composite structure, which does not corrode, and the pressurisation means that the 787’s cabin will have a much higher humidity mitigating the effects of dehydration – a major factor in jet-lag.
Airbus is also working to achieve similar results with its new A350, which will compete with the 787.
Boeing and Airbus have also made enormous strides in making the air in the cabin fresher.
The challenge is to get volatile organic compounds out of the cabin because Boeing found that VOCs, more than humidity, affect how people feel at the end of a flight.
Aircraft manufacturers have done a good job with particulates (airborne particles) using high efficiency particulate filters but getting gaseous contaminates out of the air has been more of a challenge.
VOCs dry you out and alcohol is an astringent.
Boeing found that just having the alcohol in the air is a problem. (Alcohol is even released from the handy wipes that passengers use at mealtime.)
But it is not just alcohol. There is also hair spray and perfume.
Boeing turned to Donaldson Company Inc for a new filtration system that will remove gaseous irritants and odours from the aircraft cabin, as well as allergens, bacteria and viruses.
With the physical side of travelling taken care of, the aircraft manufacturer is also focusing on the psychological aspects.
According to Klaus Brauer, Boeing Commercial Airplanes project director, passenger revenue development, passengers have to endure clogged freeways on the way to the airport, a check-in line and then security queues before they get to the aircraft door.
Passengers will feel relief when they finally board the aircraft and see the interior as a sanctuary.
“In the 787, we have found ways to enhance the best ideas from the interior on the 777 with the latest technology and innovations,” Mr Brauer said.
That innovation and technology are combined with ingenuity to create a tranquil atmosphere.
As you enter the 787, you will be greeted by an entirely different cabin with an LED skylight…then you will be struck by the enormous windows that bring soft light streaming into the cabin.
So what is in a window?
Not a lot? Well think again, because it can change your entire travel experience, according to Captain Miki Katz, who flies for El Al.
Captain Katz is an international expert in the fear of flying and stress. He has run courses and seminars since 1993. His advice to passengers with a fear of flying is to ensure they sit by a window.
At 48 centimetres by 28cm, the 787 windows will be so large that all passengers, no matter where they sit, can see out, thus significantly reducing the effects of claustrophobia.
Boeing has been able to add the larger windows because of the strength of the composite fuselage.
“Focus groups told Boeing that passengers consistently gave aircraft with larger windows higher ratings than cabins with smaller windows,” Mr Brauer told WA Business News.
“We believe that a good experience casts a halo over the whole airline.”
The 787 windows will not have typical shades. Instead, their transparency will be controlled by photo-chromatic technology seen in some business jets.
Flight attendants will control the overall range of the windows’ transparency and passengers will use seat dimmers to make individual adjustments. However, the dimming effect will be more like having sunglasses on the window to take out the glare.
And the journey on the 787 is going to be significantly different from any other aircraft, with a smoother ride and a ‘library quiet’ cabin.
The 787 will feature vertical gust suppression for significantly improved ride quality.
The 777 has lateral gust suppression with pressure sensors on either side of the wings’ vertical fin to sense pressure differential, which actually moves the rudder before the aircraft reacts, so the rear of the aircraft does not vibrate sideways.
In an industry first, Boeing is taking that same concept and applying it in the vertical axis on the 787 wings. This will cancel out the bump [caused by turbulence] before it happens and the aircraft will hardly move. Boeing claims the 787 is going to be “the smoothest ride in the sky”.
And not only will it be smooth; it will be extremely quiet.
In fact, it may be too quiet. Passengers actually want some reassuring noises and do not want other passengers overhearing their conversations.
On the 787, Boeing claims it will virtually eliminate irritating sounds from pumps and motors along with the sometimes alarming aerodynamic noises when flaps are deployed.
Passengers will just hear a reassuring hum from the engines, suggests engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce.
The 787 will give airlines a new era of flexibility because it will have the same seat costs as the giant 555-seat A380 while only carrying 223 passengers – perfect for flights from Perth.
Until now, aircraft that could fly longer ranges were typically four-engine 400-seat 747s, or more recently the 320-seat 777-200ER, although neither aircraft has the range of the smaller 787-9.
The 787 will give airlines new economical options to open new routes that previously could not support a daily 747 service.
The 787 will fly in 2007 and will enter service in 2008.
