Shenyang FC-31 / J-31 Fighter Demonstrator
- Thread starter RedSky
- Start date
by78
General
On second examination, I'm not so sure about my original translation.
Could someone take a look at the video, starting around 12:53 mark and ending 13:27?
I'm interested to know if the cited figure of 26.8% is the ratio of internal structural weight to empty weight; or is it the ratio of empty weight to max takeoff weight; or is it internal structural weight to max takeoff weight?
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Copying my reply from the J-20 thread.
If I’m hearing this segment right I think we have a false alarm on our hands. As I understand it, that segment is saying that typically the structural weight of the aircraft is usually about 30% of the aircrafts takeoff weight (they don’t say max, so I suspect this is standard), with exceptional cases able to reduce this down to 28%. With 3D printing SAC has been able to reduce the structural weight to take off weight ratio down to 26%. The interviewer even asks if this reduction might be trivial. I think it’s also implied, given how the narration and interview is spliced together, that they’re talking about the J-15, not the J-31.
No it won't, and yes I am smirking,,, Happy Thanksgiving Brother, and may all of God's Blessings and Love fall on you, and all of my Sino Defense Bros, I do love you guys, yep even you brother.
but dreaming that the J-31 or J-20 weigh 25% less than their contemporaries is just a fan-tasy, and you're right, if it did that would be amazing, but no matter how you close your eyes and wish, or hold your breath, the J-20 is still probably gonna be heavier than the F-22!
It is a claimed 26.8% percent reduction in the weight of each individual part! which is indeed quite significant, and that overall might indeed result in a 3 to 7% overall weight reduction in the final aircraft. Think Boeings 737 Max, new aircraft do have a performance edge due to what is indeed a game changer.
by78
General
Before this gets out of hand, the video never said the reduction was 26.7%. Rather, as latenlazy pointed out, for an unnamed Shenyang aircraft, the ratio of its structural weight to its takeoff weight is 26.7%. The original video stated that it's optimal that an aircraft's structural weight be capped at 30% of its takeoff weight. Achieving a 28% ratio is considered very good, and with Shenyang's 3D printing techniques, they were able to shave the ratio down to 26.7%.
vesicles
Colonel
It sounds to me that your initial interpretation was good. They managed to decrease the structural weight from 28% to 26.8% of the total weight of the plane.
When the interviewer made a comment that the decrease might sound a little trivial, the engieneer said that, on a fighter, cutting down even one gram is very significant.
NO!