3 ms·

Ground infrastructure. E.g. for the 777X it fits in Category E. Without folding tips it would be in Category F. Less gates can accommodate Category F. https:/

• adolph 3mo ago
  Yeah, this is the first place my mind went with it. Aside from gate size category, folding wings could tighten up an overall airport like an aircraft carrier. Return to human-scale non-suburban airports (rip Mueller, Meigs et al). The second place was the XB-70: The XB-70 was designed to use compression lift, a phenomenon also referred to as Mach wave riding, which was demonstrated with the help of wind-tunnel tests. It was shown to provide an increase in total lift at supersonic speeds as wingtips folded downward, and would capture the shock waves generated by the aircraft. Wing lift could therefore significantly increase by up to 30% without any drag penalty. https://commons.erau.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1343&context=ijaaa https://commons.erau.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1343&co...