(NewsNation) — Aircraft developer JetZero is designing a plane that is being called “a living room in the sky” and the future of commercial aircraft.
JetZero’s Z4 plane model has a blended-wing body design with its engines on top and is up to 10 feet wider than the Airbus 380 model. The Z4’s design will be able to seat up to 250 passengers.
The Z4’s design will allow for roomier comfort for passengers on board, with a mockup showing various seating bays and wider aisles throughout the cabin. It will be 50% more fuel-efficient than other plane models.
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It will also not require any airport infrastructure updates because the design can work with current jet bridges and runways. JetZero CEO Tom O’Leary says for passengers, the future means a better flying experience.
“There’s a lot about the current experience that is not quite so lovable,” O’Leary said. “We built this mockup so that people could get a feel for what a blended-wing body plane is going to feel like, more spacious, more of a living room than a hallway.”
The Z4 is among other designs commissioned by NASA in a push towards a new generation of low-emission commercial aircraft, including a concept craft with 10 propellers and another with an elongated wing design, which stretches around to connect to the plane’s tail section.
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The Z4 has received a $235 million grant from the U.S. Air Force and attention from United Airlines, which has recently invested in the company and committed to purchasing up to 200 of the planes, contingent on a demonstrator model in 2027 that meets the requirements of a plane.
“This plane fits into the same exact gates as the wide body that we fly today. It can really put more people through the same gate infrastructure,” O’Leary said.
O’Leary also said the planes will be much quieter for communities surrounded by airports because the engines being on top of the plane will radiate noise upward.
Delta and Alaska Airlines have also invested in JetZero. The company hopes to have actual planes in the air commercially by 2030.
