AN Isle of Wight firm has been awarded a contract to help build aircraft wings for Boeing that will significantly reduce drag, lowering fuel costs and reducing emissions.
GKN Aerospace in Cowes is to build "blended winglets" for both the Boeing 767-300ER and the Boeing 737-300/500 jets following an agreement with US group Aviation Partners Boeing.
The new style 11ft-long wing tips should offer around six per cent fuel savings per flight, while reducing harmful CO2 emissions and extending the range of the aircraft.
Jeff Armitage, VP and Director at the company, says it is the most significant development programme the firm has ever been involved in, with the first wings due to be fitted to American Airlines aircraft from next year.
The wingtips will be made from composite materials and should be made at the rate of ten sets per month once full production is up and running.
Mr Armitage added: "This is a technology that is expected to gain total acceptance across the aviation industry globally. By 2010, only three years from now, APB has predicted blended wingtips will have saved the world's airlines over two billion gallons of fuel."
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