Starting in December this year, Austrian Airlines will be the first airline to use the fuel-saving AeroSHARK surface film on its Boeing 777-200ER aircraft. The product is expected to save the fleet around 8,300 tonnes of CO2 over the next four years.
The surface technology (developed jointly by Lufthansa Technik and the German chemical company BASF) consists of “riblets” about 50 micrometers thick that mimic the structure of shark skin and its friction-reducing properties. “By applying about 83 square meters of the riblet film to the fuselage and engine nacelles of the Boeing 777-200ER, a saving of about one percent of the total fuel consumption per flight can be achieved,” explained Lufthansa Technik.
To date, 17 Lufthansa Group aircraft have been equipped with AeroSHARK technology (including a 747-400 from Lufthansa Airlines, 12 777-300ERs from SWISS and four 777Fs from Lufthansa Cargo). Harald Gloy, Chief Operating Officer at Lufthansa Technik, described the introduction of the film on Austrian’s 777-200ER as “great news for other operators of this type”.
“One percent efficiency potential of shark skin may not sound like much, but in total it saves thousands of tons of CO2 per year on long-haul flights,” emphasizes Francesco Sciortino, Chief Operating Officer of Austrian Airlines. “Even though our Boeing 777-200ERs are in their final years of service, this investment brings us one step closer to our CO2 reduction targets.”
Each of Austrian’s 777-200ERs will be fitted with around 830 square metres of Riblet foil on the fuselage and engine nacelles, with the aircraft being converted gradually. The conversion is scheduled to be completed in March 2025.
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