Wings

In January, we looked at FlexFoil; a variable geometry airfoil system that seamlessly integrates into the trailing edge of the wing. During the year the system has made the leap from the test bench to the sky, with NASA conducting tests of the FlexFoil on a modified Gulfstream III business jet.

Aaron Wypyszynski, founder of Alabama-based Wyp Aviation, is looking to combine elements of wakeboarding, skydiving and wingsuit flying with WingBoarding, which sees a rider towed behind a plane atop a winged board.

Bird populations around airports, landfills, and farms can be a nuisance or even dangerous; a new robotic flying bird of prey is claimed to be able to control such populations by scaring them away for good.

Michigan-based FlexSys has developed a way to optimize the aerodynamics of wing design with FlexFoil, a seamless variable geometry airfoil system that could deliver fuel savings of up to 12 percent.

Boeing has launched its newest airliner, the 777X, at the 2013 Dubai Airshow. The aircraft is designed with folding wing-tips that will increase wingspan and, as a result, fuel efficiency without limiting access at airports.

Established in 1993 by the first Dutch astronaut, Delft University kite generation systems might find traction in rural Africa.

A team of researchers has developed a morphing leading edge that reduces noise and drag during aircraft takeoff and landing.

AeroVironment's 'Nano Hummingbird' is the first two-wing, flapping wing aircraft that carries its own energy source and relies only on its flapping wings for propulsion and control to achieve controlled precision hovering and fast-forward flight.

An unmanned aerial vehicle named DEMON is able to maneuver using air jets instead of traditional wing flaps.

Jetman Yves Rossy has realized his first flight in formation by flying alongside two Boeing Stearman wingwalker biplanes for more than six minutes separated by distances of only a few meters.

Japanese researchers have successfully built and flown a life-size swallowtail butterfly.

The Gryphon Next Generation Parachute System is a personal winged glider with military applications that has an electronic guidance system and heads-up display navigation with all equipment cleverly tucked away for better “stealth” flights.