Boeing 787 wing failure test

787milestones.tpninteractive.com...

I was really curious to see how the composite wing would act at its failure point. It pretty much acted like an conventional wing when it failed at 150% of design load. Towards the end of the video they show the failure point and it looks does not look all that bad (obviously not flyable) but I would have expected more damage.



[edit on 11/30/08 by FredT]

I think the main idea with composites is that they've a lighter weight/ strength ratio. That is they're just as strong as aluminum but lighter.

The problem is not the strength of composites, but rather the inability to monitor creeping deterioration. Fracture propagation cannot be detected and repair is an unknown, inexact science.

The other issue is that composites fail soft. They don't fail safe.

i want to see the engine fire test, i bet that bird will burn faster than roman candle with all that carbon and epoxy.

Originally posted by bigspud
i want to see the engine fire test, i bet that bird will burn faster than roman candle with all that carbon and epoxy.

Uhm, huh?

There is no 'engine fire test' - and the CFRP materials used will already be certified to fire resistant standards for Boeing to get even this far.

reply to post by sy.gunson


Neither of those are issues at all.