I think you're too dismissive. I work in aerospace now. For the majority of parts, 3D printing is not the best process, whether it's due to strength or toleranc

I think you're too dismissive. I work in aerospace now. For the majority of parts, 3D printing is not the best process, whether it's due to strength or tolerance requirements, a standard profile or sheet being more suitable, and most importantly it often not being the most time or cost effective method. But some parts are well-suited to being 3D printed, and all of the design processes, review, analysis, testing and documentation you mentioned can be (and is) applied to 3D printed parts just like any other. A few examples I've seen: - 3D printed engineering plastic to transition honeycomb in a composite panel to another shape - 3D printed engineering plastic housings for connectors, etc - 3D printed titanium and aluminum component mounts. Designed using topology optimization, and therefore not really achievable using machining. Really useful when you've got a part mounted on an fixed interface plane, and after a few design changes, the part needs to be mounted 50cm away in a mass-efficient way. - 3D printed blanks which then go to final machining. For metals this is not much different than casting + machining, but better suited when you need 10 parts rather than 1,000 and a gamechanger when you need 100 slightly different version of a part - Jigs, moulds, test fixtures, prototype parts. 3D printing is a gamechanger here. The problem is in the media, and often times in the maker community and therefore general public, "3D printing" is described as the one process that will replace all others. You don't need to take this notion of 3D-print-everything seriously, but 3D printing is here to stay in virtually every industry including aerospace. I should note that I work in space, not aviation. Right now we are seeing more 3D printed parts on spacecraft every year. Most spacecraft are made in quantities of 1-2. Most aircraft are made in much larger quantities and so can benefit from all kinds of mass manufacturing techniques, meaning 3D printing is probably suitable less often. But not never. And a quick google search shows Boeing and Airbus are already using 3D printed parts for passenger flight today.