Technology Issues For High-Speed Civil Transports

Current efforts to prepare the technology for a new generation of high-speed civil transports are focused primarily on environmental issues. This paper reports on studies to provide: 1) acceptable engine emissions; 2) reduced airport/community noise; and 3) sonic-boom minimization. Attention is also given to technologies that allow a lighter, more efficient vehicle and to other high-payoff technologies, such as supersonic laminar flow; these have the potential for yielding not only better mission performance but also enhanced environmental compatibility for these new vehicles. The technology issues are reviewed in terms of the technologies themselves and their impact on the equally crucial need for economic success.