{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,3]],"date-time":"2026-03-03T21:52:41Z","timestamp":1772574761647,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":48,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,11]],"date-time":"2020-08-11T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1597104000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Energies"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The race for speed ruled the early Jet Age on aviation. Aircraft manufacturers chased faster and faster planes in a fight for pride and capability. In the early 1970s, dreams were that the future would be supersonic, but fuel economy and unacceptable noise levels made that era never happen. After the 1973 oil crisis, the paradigm changed. The average cruise speed on newly developed aircraft started to decrease in exchange for improvements in many other performance parameters. At the same pace, the airliner\u2019s power-plants are evolving to look more like a ducted turboprop, and less like a pure jet engine as the pursuit for the higher bypass ratios continues. However, since the birth of jet aircraft, the propeller-driven plane has lost its dominant place, associated with the idea that going back to propeller-driven airplanes, and what it represents in terms of modernity and security, has started a propeller avoidance phenomenon with travelers and thus with airlines. Today, even with the modest research effort since the 1980s, advanced propellers are getting efficiencies closer to jet-powered engines at their contemporary typical cruise speeds. This paper gives a brief overview of the performance trends in aviation since the last century. Comparison examples between aircraft designed on different paradigms are presented. The use of propellers as a reborn propulsive device is discussed.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/en13164157","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,12]],"date-time":"2020-08-12T09:14:49Z","timestamp":1597223689000},"page":"4157","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":23,"title":["Aircraft Propellers\u2014Is There a Future?"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2997-8534","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pedro","family":"Alves","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"C-MAST\u2014Center for Mechanical and Aerospace Science and Technologies, University of Beira Interior, Rua Marqu\u00eas d\u2019\u00c1vila e Bolama, 6201-001 Covilh\u00e3, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0675-4124","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Miguel","family":"Silvestre","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"C-MAST\u2014Center for Mechanical and Aerospace Science and Technologies, University of Beira Interior, Rua Marqu\u00eas d\u2019\u00c1vila e Bolama, 6201-001 Covilh\u00e3, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7814-8679","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Pedro","family":"Gamboa","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"C-MAST\u2014Center for Mechanical and Aerospace Science and Technologies, University of Beira Interior, Rua Marqu\u00eas d\u2019\u00c1vila e Bolama, 6201-001 Covilh\u00e3, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,11]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"Rosen, G., and Anezis, C.A. (1984). Thrusting Forward: A History of the Propeller, Hamilton Standard and British Aerospace Dynamics Group. [1st ed.]."},{"key":"ref_2","unstructured":"Laufer, B., and The Prehistory of Aviation (2020, June 01). The Open Court. Available online: https:\/\/opensiuc.lib.siu.edu\/ocj\/vol1931\/iss8\/5."},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Kinney, J.R. (2017). Reinventing the Propeller: Aeronautical Specialty and the Triumph of the Modern Airplane, Cambridge University Press. [1st ed.].","DOI":"10.1017\/9781316529744"},{"key":"ref_4","unstructured":"(2015). World Intellectual Property Report: Breakthrough Innovation and Economic Growth, World Intellectual Property Organization. Available online: https:\/\/www.wipo.int\/edocs\/pubdocs\/en\/wipo_pub_944_2015."},{"key":"ref_5","first-page":"1010","article-title":"The Development and Reliability of the Modern Multi-Engine Air Liner","volume":"39","author":"Douglas","year":"1935","journal-title":"J. R. Aeronaut. Soc."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Valavanis, K.P. (2007). Advances in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles: State of the Art and the Road to Autonomy, Springer.","DOI":"10.1007\/978-1-4020-6114-1"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Dumas, A., Trancossi, M., Madonia, M., and Giuliani, I. (2011, January 18). Multibody Advanced Airship for Transport. Proceedings of the Aerospace Technology Conference and Exposition, SAE International, Warrendale, PA, USA.","DOI":"10.4271\/2011-01-2786"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"101","DOI":"10.1016\/0005-1098(95)00099-2","article-title":"A different look at output tracking: control of a vtol aircraft","volume":"32","author":"Martin","year":"1996","journal-title":"Automatica"},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Erginer, B., and Altug, E. (2007, January 13\u201315). Modeling and PD Control of a Quadrotor VTOL Vehicle. Proceedings of the 2007 IEEE Intelligent Vehicles Symposium, Istanbul, Turkey.","DOI":"10.1109\/IVS.2007.4290230"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1949","DOI":"10.1109\/TAC.2002.804457","article-title":"Global configuration stabilization for the VTOL aircraft with strong input coupling","volume":"47","year":"2002","journal-title":"IEEE Trans. Autom. Control"},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Herisse, B., Russotto, F.X., Hamel, T., and Mahony, R. (2008, January 22\u201326). Hovering flight and vertical landing control of a VTOL Unmanned Aerial Vehicle using optical flow. Proceedings of the 2008 IEEE\/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS), Nice, France.","DOI":"10.1109\/IROS.2008.4650731"},{"key":"ref_12","unstructured":"ACARE (2020, June 01). Strategic Research Agenda. Available online: https:\/\/www.acare4europe.org\/sites\/acare4europe.org\/files\/document\/volume1.pdf."},{"key":"ref_13","unstructured":"Verhovek, S.H. (2010). Jet Age: The Comet, the 707, and the Race to Shrink the World, Avery. [1st ed.]."},{"key":"ref_14","unstructured":"Talay, T.A. (2020, June 01). Introduction to the Aerodynamics of Flight, Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/19760003955.pdf."},{"key":"ref_15","unstructured":"Whitford, R. (1987). Design for Air Combat, Jane\u2019s Information Group. [1st ed.]."},{"key":"ref_16","unstructured":"Proctor, J. (1996). Convair 880 & 990: Great Airliners Series, World Transport Press. [1st ed.]."},{"key":"ref_17","unstructured":"(2020, June 01). Boeing Supersonic Transport: Historical Snapshot Web Page. Available online: https:\/\/www.boeing.com\/history\/products\/supersonic-transport.page."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Mckee, J.W. (1967, January 1). Flight Control System for The Boeing 2707 Supersonic Transport Airplane. SAE Technical Paper 670528. Proceedings of the Aerospace Systems Conference and Engineering Display, SAE International, Troy, MI, USA.","DOI":"10.4271\/670528"},{"key":"ref_19","unstructured":"McLean, F.E. (2020, June 01). Supersonic Cuise Technology. NASA SP-472., Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/19850020600.pdf."},{"key":"ref_20","first-page":"20","article-title":"Hypersonic technology-approach to an expanded program","volume":"14","author":"Hearth","year":"1976","journal-title":"Astronaut. Aeronaut."},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Hallion, R. (2005, January 10\u201313). The History of Hypersonics: Or, \u2018Back to the Future: Again and Again\u2019. Proceedings of the 43rd AIAA Aerospace Sciences Meeting and Exhibit, Reno, NV, USA.","DOI":"10.2514\/6.2005-329"},{"key":"ref_22","unstructured":"Rutherford, D., Graver, B., Chen, C., and Noise and Climate Impacts of an Unconstrained Commercial Supersonic Network (2020, June 01). The International Council On CLean Transportation. Available online: https:\/\/theicct.org\/publications\/noise-climate-impacts-unconstrained-supersonics."},{"key":"ref_23","unstructured":"Bramson, D. (2020, June 01). The Concorde: A Supersonic Airplane Too Advanced to Survive. The Atlantic. Available online: https:\/\/www.theatlantic.com\/technology\/archive\/2015\/07\/supersonic-airplanes-concorde\/396698\/."},{"key":"ref_24","unstructured":"Farokhi, S. (2014). Aircraft Propulsion, WILEY. [2nd ed.]."},{"key":"ref_25","unstructured":"(FLIGHT Int., 1976). Concorde fuel Performance: Better Than It Seems?, FLIGHT Int."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Torenbeek, E. (2013). Advanced Aircraft Design: Conceptual Design, Analysis and Optimization of Subsonic Civil Airplanes, John Wiley & Sons.","DOI":"10.1002\/9781118568101"},{"key":"ref_27","unstructured":"Schulte, D. (2020, June 01). Estimating Maintenance Reserves. Boeing Aero, Q4. Available online: https:\/\/www.boeing.com\/commercial\/aeromagazine\/articles\/2013_q4\/pdf\/AERO_2013q4.pdf."},{"key":"ref_28","unstructured":"Roberson, W., and Johns, J.A. (2020, June 01). Fuel Conservation Strategies: Takeoff and Climb. Boeing Aero, Q4. Available online: https:\/\/www.boeing.com\/commercial\/aeromagazine\/articles\/qtr_4_08\/pdfs\/AERO_Q408.pdf."},{"key":"ref_29","unstructured":"(2020, June 01). Boeing 727-200 Technical Specifications. Available online: https:\/\/www.airliners.net\/aircraft-data\/boeing-727-200\/90."},{"key":"ref_30","unstructured":"(2020, June 01). Boeing 737 Max Web Page. Available online: https:\/\/www.boeing.com\/commercial\/737max\/."},{"key":"ref_31","unstructured":"Ostrower, J. (2020, June 01). Boeing Narrows 737 Max Engine Fan Size Options to Two. FlightGlobal. Available online: https:\/\/www.flightglobal.com\/news\/articles\/boeing-narrows-737-max-engine-fan-size-options-to-two-361438\/."},{"key":"ref_32","unstructured":"EUROCONTROL, and FAA (2020, June 01). U.S.\/Europe Comparison of Air Traffic Management-Related Operational Performance for 2017. Available online: https:\/\/www.eurocontrol.int\/publication\/useurope-comparison-air-traffic-management-related-operational-performance-2017."},{"key":"ref_33","unstructured":"(2020, June 01). Flightradar24 Web Page. Available online: https:\/\/www.flightradar24.com\/."},{"key":"ref_34","unstructured":"Reynolds, C.N. (2020, June 01). Advanced Prop-fan Engine Technology (APET) Single- and Counter-Rotation Gearbox\/Pitch Change Mechanism, Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/19870019119.pdf."},{"key":"ref_35","unstructured":"Sargisson, D. (2020, June 01). Advanced Propfan Engine Technology (APET) and Single-Rotation Gearbox\/Pitch Change Mechanism, Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/19870019120.pdf."},{"key":"ref_36","unstructured":"Hager, R.D., and Vrabel, D. (2020, June 01). Advanced Turboprop Project, Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/19890003194.pdf."},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3","DOI":"10.1080\/01603477.1978.11489099","article-title":"The 1973 Oil Crisis and After","volume":"1","author":"Issawi","year":"1978","journal-title":"J. Post Keynes. Econ."},{"key":"ref_38","unstructured":"Hallion, R.P. (2020, June 01). NASA\u2019s Contributions to Aeronautics, Available online: https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/connect\/ebooks\/aero_contributions1_detail.html."},{"key":"ref_39","unstructured":"EIA (2020, June 01). U.S. Energy Information Administration Web Page, Available online: https:\/\/www.eia.gov."},{"key":"ref_40","unstructured":"United States Department of Labor (2020, June 01). Bureau of Labor Statistics Web Page, Available online: https:\/\/www.bls.gov\/cpi\/."},{"key":"ref_41","unstructured":"Von Schoenberg, A. (2020, June 01). Turboprop Aircraft Insight 2015. Technical Report, The Sharp Wings. Available online: http:\/\/www.thesharpwings.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/12\/The-Sharpwings-Turboprop-Aircraft-Insight-20152.pdf."},{"key":"ref_42","unstructured":"Cawthorne, N. (2008). The Mammoth Book of Inside the Elite Forces, Running Press."},{"key":"ref_43","unstructured":"(2020, July 21). Safran Celebrates Successful Start of Open Rotor Demonstrator Tests on New Open-Air Test Rig in Southern France. Available online: https:\/\/www.safran-group.com\/media\/safran-celebrates-successful-start-open-rotor-demonstrator-tests-new-open-air-test-rig-southern-france-20171003."},{"key":"ref_44","unstructured":"(2020, July 21). Rolls-Royce Shares Next Generation Engine Designs. Available online: https:\/\/www.rolls-royce.com\/media\/press-releases\/2014\/260214-next-generation.aspx."},{"key":"ref_45","unstructured":"(2020, July 21). Israir\u2019s Unbelievably Long Turboprop Flight. Available online: https:\/\/onemileatatime.com\/israir-long-turboprop-flight\/."},{"key":"ref_46","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Hoelzen, J., Liu, Y., Bensmann, B., Winnefeld, C., Elham, A., Friedrichs, J., and Hanke-Rauschenbach, R. (2018). Conceptual Design of Operation Strategies for Hybrid Electric Aircraft. Energies, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/en11010217"},{"key":"ref_47","unstructured":"Polaczyk, N., Trombino, E., Wei, P., and Mitici, M. (February, January 28). A review of current technology and research in urban on-demand air mobility applications. Proceedings of the 8th Biennial Autonomous VTOL Technical Meeting and 6th Annual Electric VTOL Symposium 2019, Vertical Flight Society, Mesa, AZ, USA."},{"key":"ref_48","unstructured":"Hendricks, R.C., Daggett, D.L., Anast, P., and Lowery, N. (March, January 25). Future Fuel Scenarios and Their Potential Impact to Aviation. Proceedings of the 11th International Symposium on Transport Phenomena and Dynamics of Rotating Machinery, Honolulu, HI, USA. Available online: https:\/\/ntrs.nasa.gov\/archive\/nasa\/casi.ntrs.nasa.gov\/20110012886.pdf."}],"container-title":["Energies"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1996-1073\/13\/16\/4157\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T09:59:22Z","timestamp":1760176762000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1996-1073\/13\/16\/4157"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,11]]},"references-count":48,"journal-issue":{"issue":"16","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2020,8]]}},"alternative-id":["en13164157"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/en13164157","relation":{},"ISSN":["1996-1073"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1996-1073","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2020,8,11]]}}}