62. Weight Trends on High Speed Aircraft
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Paper
Abstract
Since the advent of the jet engine, and the resulting improvements in aircraft performance, radical changes have taken place in aircraft configurations. As a natural result, the complexion of the weight problem has changed considerably. It is important, in the interest of better weight estimation and control, to analyze the weight changes in some detail.
The most obvious weight aspect of new designs is that the ratio of weight empty to gross weight is lower than in the past. A typical reciprocating engine transport has a weight empty which is equal to about 60% of the gross weight, but on jet transports this value is usually about 50%. At a glance, it would appear that airplanes are becoming more efficient weightwise. However, a simple analysis reveals that such a conclusion is not valid.
