Collins to supply thermoplastic composite ventral fins for U.S. F-16 fighter jets

Collins to supply thermoplastic composite ventral fins for U.S. F-16 fighter jets

Collins Aerospace has been selected by the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory for a contract to build a high-impact ventral fin for the F-16 military fighter jet using its thermoplastic welding technology, which will significantly reduce the weight and cost of the current design, according to a news release on the company's official website Oct. 13.

Collins will invest approximately $100 million over the next five years in the development of its thermoplastic technology and plans to qualify and process thermoplastic materials for military and commercial use. Under this three-year contract, the proposed work includes a specialized welding process, component design and prototyping of the F-16 ventral fin. This work will leverage best practices from similar programs, including the recent composite horizontal stabilizer for the F-16 fighter jet.

We are seeing an increased demand and opportunity to replace traditional aircraft components with thermoplastics," said Stan Kottke, vice president and general manager of aerospace structures at Collins Aerospace. The current trend is to use advanced thermoplastic materials to reduce cost and weight while reducing our overall environmental footprint, and these benefits will be passed directly to our customers."

With automated processes on the production floor, Collins can expect cost savings of more than 30 percent using thermoplastic composites. Thermoplastic resins are inherently tougher than the thermoset resins typically used today.

The stronger material reduces overall weight, resulting in thinner designs and a greater payload range. Thermoplastic materials have an indefinite shelf life, can be stored at room temperature, and can be reused or recycled. This eliminates the need for energy-intensive cold storage required for thermoset raw materials.