Aviation Systems Research

The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) has declared a goal for the international aviation sector to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, marking a significant step towards a decarbonized aviation industry. The requirements for aviation are diversifying and expanding, encompassing responses to natural disasters and enhancements in the convenience of mobility and logistics. In line with these global trends, a number of new aircraft and applications have been proposed that go beyond the boundaries of conventional aircraft.

JAXA, in light of these global trends, is systematically working to promote research and development and improve efficiency by exploring future aircraft concepts and the technologies needed to realize them, conducting system-level performance evaluations of elemental technologies, and facilitating the standardization and sharing of design tools.

Conceptual Design

Hydrogen aircraft

The feasibility studies on three potential aircraft configurations with liquid hydrogen-propulsion system are in progress, reflecting intensified global efforts for the carbon neutrality.

• Subsonic passenger aircraft with electric hybrid propulsion system, including hydrogen gas turbine and fuselage tail BLI (Boundary Layer Ingestion) fan.
• Blended Wing Body (BWB) shaped passenger aircraft including electric distributed propulsion systems with hydrogen fuel cells.
• Hydrogen gas turbine propelled supersonic passenger aircraft with low sonic boom technology.

In each case, system specifications and aircraft shapes are being developed while maintaining the cruising range and passenger capacity of the reference aircraft as the baseline. To contribute to carbon neutrality through hydrogen aircraft, we will identify feasible technological elements and set clear objectives to ensure efficient research and development.

Disaster relief aircraft

To achieve a safe and secure society, concept design for aircraft capable of quickly and accurately extinguishing the increasingly frequent forest fires is underway. In Japan, over 1,000 forest fires occur annually. Local fire departments are being consulted to clarify their requirements. Based on these needs and the characteristics of the national landscape, the design of these aircraft is being advanced.

Advanced Air Mobility

The use of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) is expected to expand in the future as a new means of transportation that enhances the convenience of mobility and logistics. Discussions are underway among the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), and various other stakeholders in Japan and abroad.

As the concept of operations (ConOps) for AAM is being developed, we have identified issues and conducted quantitative feasibility studies based on the systems engineering (SE) approach. This aims to advance the concrete implementation of AAM to the phase of entry into service in urban areas, which will lead to improved convenience.

Common and shared design tools

Design, evaluation, and analysis software developed within the Aviation Technology Directorate are cataloged and promoted for the common use across the division.

Conceptual design and system evaluation tools for aircraft are currently under development. This initiative aims to facilitate system evaluation by integrating technologies from various fields. For instance, applying a combination of aerodynamic drag reduction technology and engine fuel efficiency improvement technology to an existing aircraft allows for evaluating potential improvements in overall fuel efficiency. Conversely, this system evaluation can also be used to set technology development targets by analyzing how much the individual elemental technologies (e.g., aerodynamic drag) need to be improved to achieve the target fuel consumption reduction for the aircraft as a whole.

July 24, 2024