Thread by @chainsawrocks

The #A350's 64.75m wing-span is designed using nature’s perfect understanding of aerodynamics to maximise lift and reduce drag, further optimising fuel burn and lowering CO2 emissions.

Here are 2 ways the #A350 reduces drag & fuel burn.

1. Variable Camber (VC) symmetrically in cruise optimizes wing profile by small flap deflection & aileron droop in order to manage the center of lift of the wing & adjust the camber or the wing in order to reduce drag & slightly improve performance.

👆One can see and hear the flaps actuators work in cruise.

📹 @WorldAviationHD

This gives better control of the longitudinal loads on the wing optimising the lift over drag ratio in cruise.

2. The Differential Flaps Settings (DFS), unique to the #A350, optimises cruise aerodynamic efficiency and lateral loads through the control of the wing centre of the lift position where inner and outer flaps are deflected differentially.

📸 FlightGlobal & Airbus

The Flap Cruise Deployment Function performs symmetrical small deflection (uniform & differential) during cruise in the limited range of -2° (flaps up) to +4° (flaps down) for the inner flap & -2° to +1° for the outer flap.

Asymmetrical small deflections up to 3° generate a roll effect & called lateral trim function.

Together, these 2 functions Optimize the wing camber to reduce wing loads and drag & Perform an optimized Lateral Trim function.

The result is an extremely efficient wing that produces more lift with less weight & is capable of advanced load handling performance that helps reduce fuel burn & CO2 emissions.

Both VC & DFS are fully transparent to the pilots & are embedded into the flight control laws.