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|| the dynamics of life | THE EVOLUTION OF TRANSPORTATION
many countries, we haven’t yet devised batteries of suf-
ficient capacity.
Another concept plane presented to NASA in their
quest for airplane designs of the future came from the
American company Lockheed Martin, famous for its mil-
itary designs—the fifth-generation F-22 and F-35 fighter
jets. At last report, company specialists were working to
create promising civilian airliner designs. In their pro-
posed Box Wing Jet, Lockheed Martin specialists were
turning to the idea of a closed-loop wing structure and
to lightweight materials that were initially developed es-
pecially for fighters. In a way, this design would imple-
ment the biplane concept at an entirely new level. You’d
think that the famous “stacked shelves” were just an ar-
tifact of the last century, but the idea of increasing wing
area without increasing the dimensions of the plane has
attracted aviation designers: with this approach, there
would be no need to build large airfields because wing
dynamics would permit a steeper takeoff and approach,
meaning takeoff and landing strips could be shortened;
the plane is more maneuverable; fuel expenditures de-
crease; noise on approach is reduced; and fli