Blended wing aircraft from Airbus

Airbus has revealed the Model Aircraft for Validation and Experimentation of Robust Innovative Controls (MAVERIC), its “blended wing body” scale model technological demonstrator. At two meters long and 3.2 meters wide, with a surface area of about 2.25 square metres, MAVERIC features a disruptive aircraft design that has the potential to reduce fuel consumption by up to 20 per cent compared to current single aisle airliners. The “blended wing body” configuration also opens up new possibilities for the type of propulsion systems and their integration as well as a versatile cabin for a totally new on-board passenger experience. Launched in 2017, MAVERIC first took to the skies in June 2019. Since then the flighttest campaign has been on-going and will continue until the end of Quarter 2 of this year. Airbus is using its core strengths and capabilities of engineering and manufacturing in close collaboration with an extended innovation ecosystem to accelerate traditional research and development cycles. By doing this, Airbus is able to achieve proof of concepts at a convincing scale and speed, thereby driving forward maturity and increasing their value.