In article ,
"Montblack" wrote:

("Wayne Paul" wrote)
It is much easier to build a laminar flow airfoil and complex shaped
wing to fuselage transition using composite construction. These wing have
a better lift to drag ratio. The decrease in drag aerodynamic drag of
the wing and static drag decrease associated with the wing/fuselage
transition allow faster speeds.


Can you reword this (for some of us "Huh?" lurkers) especially the wing to
fuselage transition part?

How good/efficient are Cherokee, Ercoupe, Cessna (aluminum & rivet) wing
root fairings vs. what could be achieved with complex composite shapes?

Same question with the wing shape - to hold up the same plane, ALL else
being equal?

So ballpark - how much more efficient would the use of complex composite
construction (wings and wing root transition areas) make these planes - ALL
else being equal?

Paul,
Go to airliners.com or any other site that will have "new" and "old"
airplanes. Pay particular attention to the wing-fuselage junction.
On the old airplanes, the fuselage seems to be just stuck to the wing.
On the new aiplanes, there are HUGE fillets fore and aft of the wing.
This really became a design consideration in the mid-1980's.