Stone to Silicon

Materials · 2011

Composite airliner (787)

An airliner built half from carbon fiber composites.

The Boeing 787 entered service in 2011 with about 50 percent composites by weight. Lighter structure cut fuel burn about 20 percent versus the aircraft it replaced.

See it in the living treeWikipedia

Arcs above join it to what it stood on, arcs below to what it led to. The bar places this stretch on the tree's whole timeline.

What it built on 2