Boffins at Cambridge University are working on a project to create the world’s quietest passenger jet that cannot be heard once it has taken off.
Scientists at the university have joined forces with British Airways and Rolls Royce for the project, and are aiming for a “radical change” in noise levels.
Professor Anne Dowling, of Cambridge University’s Department of Engineering, said: “The aviation industry is already introducing small, incremental decreases in aircraft noise. But we are aiming for a radical change in noise levels, so beyond the perimeter of an airport, the noise of aircraft flying would be imperceptible to the public.”
She added that one way to drastically reduce sound would be to mount the engines on top of the wings: “The traditional shape of the passenger jet is likely to change to account for this sort of noise reduction. A good example is the way the American military looked at designing the stealth bomber. Their primary concern was reducing the noise, and the shape of the aircraft came after that.”
