A Discover Airlines Airbus A330 (D-AIKP) has become the world’s first Airbus to enter regular scheduled service following a large-scale AeroSHARK modification. This marks a new milestone for the surface technology developed by Lufthansa Technik and Surventis. The long-haul aircraft, registered as D-AIKP, completed its inaugural flight to Florida last Thursday.
AeroSHARK is a special transparent surface film with a fine grooved structure modeled on sharkskin. Applied to the aircraft’s fuselage and engine nacelles, it reduces aerodynamic drag in flight. This can lower fuel consumption and CO₂ emissions by around one percent.
The A330 was equipped with AeroSHARK at Dresden Airport in late August. The aircraft then completed a series of extensive test flights. Analysis of the data collected during those flights confirmed that the technology can be used safely and reliably in flight operations.
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