NASA's Office of Aerospace Technology has set goals to reduce the
perceived noise of future aircraft by 50% within 10 years, and by
75% within 25 years, compared to 1997. The Quiet Aircraft Technology
(QAT) Program is discovering and developing the technology necessary
to make those goals a reality.
There are two main areas of aircraft noise production:
- Noise from the airframe systems (the landing gear, wing
flaps, and slats used for takeoff and landing).
There are two primary ways of addressing this noise:
- Stop it from being produced
- Fly the airplane so that the leftover noise doesn't
bother people. (See AFTPro)
Nearly 40% of America's aircraft are between 5 and 15 years old.
They will need to be replaced about the same time that QAT
technology comes to maturity. By 2010, the first aircraft with QAT-developed
technology should be in production, offering some noise reduction.
By 2020 to 2030, enough of the new airplanes-complete with quieter
technology-will be making their way into the air.
For more information on NASA's work on aircraft noise please
visit this NASA Web site: http://www.aeronautics.nasa.gov/vsp
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