http://www.triplepundit.com/2009/08/taking-cues-from-birds-to-green-the-airline-industry/Stanford University research group takes biomimicry to whole new heightsAt this summer’s Airbus “Fly Your Ideas” competition, an international call for sustainability innovation in the airline industry, one Australian team of graduate students walked away with the first place cash prize of 30,000 euros for their green passenger cabin concept. Derived from castor oil, their bio-composite cabin is an attempt to reduce dependancy on non-renewable resources in the construction of airplane interiors.While the majority of the finalists at the competition—including the winner—focused on materials and biofuels to offer eco-friendly alternatives to flight travel, one team garnered a significant amount of head-turning by looking at how planes fly. A team of doctoral students from the Aeronautics and Astronautics program at Stanford University conceptualized a way for commercial planes to save fuel by flying in formation. “In principle, the idea of flying aircraft in formation is the same as for migrating birds,” said Tristan Flanzer, one of the team members. “While in formation, birds experience lower drag and therefore can fly further. Aircrafts can take advantage of the same principles to reduce their drag.”
