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The Aircraft Manufacturing Industry

Satisfactory Essays

During the years post World War II, the Aircraft Manufacturing Industry took-off. According to Dr. Bright (1978), “by the year 1944 it was the largest industry in America” (p. 1). It soon declined in the years following, but the material flaws and much needed improvement in the overall design and production manufacturing were on the rise. One contributing factor was metal fatigue, this occurs when “metal parts that undergo many repeated strains eventually fail at a loading far below their original ultimate strength”, Garrison (2005) (p. 1). Manufacturers at the time primarily used aluminum and steel, because of their overall strength and how readily available they were. What engineers did not consider was the abuse the airframes would take over time. This factor went overlooked resulting in numerous crashes with fatalities. Although cheaper to manufacture, piston type airplane engines more maintenance than than their jet engine counterparts in fact the jet engine can go for “3,000 hours while an overhaul for a piston aircraft is generally 2,000 hours”, Piston Engine (2011). This source goes on to compare the average top speed of a piston engine driven aircraft which is usually around 200 KIAS. This is slow when compared to the average jet engine that can reach 300 KIAS.
The manufacturing industry took a big hit after the war, Bugos (2001) found that “total sales by American aircraft firms were $16 billion in 1944; by 1947 they were only $1.2 billion,”. However finances

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