Riblet films developed by Lufthansa Technik and BASF reduce frictional resistance leading to fuel efficiency and reduction in emissions.
LufthansaTecknik will be providing the AeroSHARK equipment for SWISSAir Boeing fleet. Starting during the Mid year, a total of twelve Boeing 777-300ERs will gradually be fitted with the riblet films developed jointly by Lufthansa Technik and BASF. The frictional resistance is greatly reduced by this modification thereby making the sub-fleet more than one percent more fuel-efficient and lower in emissions.
Swiss International Air Lines (SWISS) is the first passenger airline in the world to use the innovative surface technology to significantly reduce fuel consumption and emissions of one of its existing fleets, thereby improving both economy and ecology. With an approximate of 950 square meters of riblet film, the changes of the “long” Boeing 777-300ER will be even larger than the 800 square meters on the Boeing 777F of AeroSHARK’s launch customer Lufthansa Cargo. The savings potential for fuel and CO2 on this scale will be 1.1 percent. Converted to the operational profile of the twelve Boeing 777-300ERs at SWISS, this means yearly savings of more than 4,800 tons of kerosene and roughly 15,200 tons of carbon dioxide, that is generated on an approximate estimate covering 87 long-haul flights from Zurich to Mumbai.
Dieter Vranckx, Chief Executive Officer of SWISS said “Reducing our environmental footprint is one of the biggest challenges facing the aviation industry, and becoming carbon-neutral until 2050 is an important strategic goal for SWISS. We are keen to actively promote and invest in the use of new technologies. We are pleased to be the world’s first passenger airline to offer the innovative AeroSHARK technology on our Boeing 777 fleet, making another important contribution to more sustainable air travel in the future.”
“Due to the long lifecycles in our industry, we cannot only rely on new aircraft generations to reduce our environmental footprint, but also need to specifically optimize existing fleets towards sustainability. AeroSHARK makes a significant contribution to this, and I am very pleased that SWISS is leading the way“, explained Dr. Johannes Bussmann, Chief Executive Officer of Lufthansa Technik.
“In developing our Novaflex Sharkskin surfaces, the focus was on a robust yet functional solution that meets the stringent requirements of aviation and also helps our customers achieve their sustainability goals,” said Uta Holzenkamp, head of BASF’s Coatings division and in this position also responsible for functional films. “The fact that SWISS is convinced by our solution shows that economic action and sustainability go hand in hand.”
SWISS will install AeroSHARK on its Boeing 777-300ER fleet successively from mid-2022 during suitable maintenance layovers. The airline had already supported Lufthansa Technik and BASF during the development phase of AeroSHARK: In the summer warm season of 2021, a Boeing 777 wing was precisely measured for the entire duration of a regularly scheduled flight between Zurich and San Francisco. With the data collected, Lufthansa Technik was subsequently able to create highly accurate 3D models for flow simulations, on the basis of which the AeroSHARK modification is to be extended to the wings of the Boeing 777 in the near future in order to realize further savings potential. SWISS will also provide one of its aircraft for the so-called STC flight to obtain the required Supplemental Type Certificate from the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
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AeroSHARK is a surface technology developed jointly by Lufthansa Technik and BASF that consists of ribs around 50 micrometers in size – known as riblets. It specifically imitates the properties of sharkskin, which has particularly favorable flow characteristics, and thus optimizes aerodynamics at relevant points on the aircraft. Due to this, less fuel is needed overall. Lufthansa Technik and BASF intend to systematically develop the new technology further in the direction of additional aircraft types and even larger surfaces, so that in the future they will be able to provide airlines around the world with even more extensive support in achieving their emissions targets. In initial model calculations, the sharkskin technology in its maximum expansion stage could even avoid CO2 emissions to the extent of up to three percent.
