The Secret of the Curved Wing: If you look closely at planes parked at the airport, you will notice that the wings are curved at the tips. This development led to a revolution in aviation and even to cheaper flight tickets. How? Here are all the details.
Anyone who looks at a plane’s wing notices the upper curvature and the flatter lower surface. This curvature allows the wing to generate lift. As the plane moves forward, the air above the wing flows faster, creating lower air pressure there. Beneath the wing, the air flows more slowly, resulting in higher pressure. The difference between the two pressures pushes the wing upward and lifts the plane into the sky. This is the basic physics that makes flight possible.
Over the years, however, it became clear that the weak point of the wing is actually at its tips. This is where the two pressure zones meet, creating swirling air vortices. The high-pressure air beneath the wing tries to rise, while the low-pressure air above the wing flows downward. They mix, and their interaction creates a vortex that spins behind the wing.
This vortex holds the plane back slightly, and to overcome it, more engine power is required. In a single flight, the effect is almost unnoticeable, but for an airline with hundreds of planes, it represents a huge difference in fuel consumption.
As early as the 1970s, during the global oil crisis, NASA and the aviation industry realized that expensive energy could not be wasted on unnecessary vortices. Early research showed that bending the wingtip could reorganize airflow. Instead of the air swirling freely at the wingtip, the curved part acts as a barrier that reduces the unwanted interaction between the two pressure zones. This weakens the vortex, reduces drag, and the plane requires less engine power to move forward.
Researchers were able to observe the phenomenon visually through smoke experiments. When a plane without a wingtip device flew in a wind tunnel, a smoke trail spiraled behind it in a thick coil. But when the same plane flew with a curved wingtip, the coil became thinner and farther from the wing. The result: Lower drag, reduced vibrations, and a more stable plane.
Boeing was the first to implement the idea on an industrial scale. In 1988, the 747-400 model appeared with wingtip devices that were tall, sharp, and clearly visible to any observer. Later, more advanced designs appeared, rounded with continuous curvature. Eventually, double devices were developed, where the wingtip curves both upward and downward simultaneously. The result was further vortex reduction and greater efficiency in varying flight conditions.
NASA experiments on a 1960s 707 showed a more than six percent reduction in fuel consumption after installing such devices. This is a dramatic figure for an airline. A plane flying daily medium-haul routes can save thousands of liters of fuel each month. For an entire fleet, the annual savings are estimated in the tens of millions of dollars.
Airbus, on the other hand, took a more cautious approach. In the early 2000s, as part of a European research program, the company tested various devices on the A320 family. The results were mixed. On one hand, there was a measured reduction in drag and improved fuel efficiency. On the other hand, significant reinforcement of the wing was required, adding weight. For Airbus, this was a cost that reduced the technological gain.
Only in 2011 did the company introduce its version of curved wingtips, called Sharklets. The decision had been delayed, but it proved to be important. Installing Sharklets reduced fuel consumption of A320 models by three to four percent. For planes flying dozens of times per week, this is a significant improvement. Later, a legal dispute arose when an American company claimed the design was similar to its technology. Airbus lost the lawsuit and paid compensation but continued implementing the development on new models.
Despite differences in appearance, most experts agree there is no fundamental difference between Airbus’s Sharklets and Boeing’s Winglets. Both are solutions designed to do exactly the same thing. Determining which is better is almost irrelevant in operational reality. Differences between the companies are mainly aesthetic and perceptual.
However, not every plane requires such a device. Advanced wide-body models like Boeing’s 777 and 787 use raked wingtips. These are part of the wing itself and not an external addition. The long, flexible wings of these models produce very efficient airflow, so no additional device is needed. In the case of the 787, NASA estimated that this method reduces drag by about five percent, similar to or even better than traditional solutions.
Airbus chose to implement a refined version of Sharklets on the A350 and A330neo, where they are part of the wing and integrate with its flexible design, allowing it to bend gently during flight and improve aerodynamic efficiency along an entire route.
Behind all these devices is a simple idea. To fly efficiently, you need to reduce the resistance created by air. Air is invisible and imperceptible to passengers, but for aerospace engineers, it is heavy, powerful, and full of energy. The precise arrangement of wings, wingtips, and airflow around the plane determines whether a plane burns more or less fuel.
Therefore, the curved wingtip, which seems like a small detail, is actually one of the biggest revolutions in civil aviation. Thanks to it, flights are cheaper, planes are quieter during landing, and engines work less strenuously. In a world where every liter of fuel matters and every carbon emission is measured, these devices have become a central factor in transforming the industry.