The characteristics, properties, manufacturing, and application of 3-D composites for aircraft structures are outlined. The 3-D composites are classified into weaving, braiding, knitting, stitching, and others by their preform architectures. The characteristics, properties, and manufacturing of each architecture are explained briefly. The application of the 3-D composites for aircraft structures at home and abroad is introduced.

Drastic weight reduction of airframe structures is needed for realization of the practical reusable space transportation systems. Utilization of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) for cryogenic propellant tanks would be one of the most promising enabling technologies on this purpose. So far there has been very little information or data to verify feasibility of this technology, although some very ambitious demonstrations like DC-XA and X-33 have been carried out. The expected weight reduction of general aerospace primary structures by using composite materials would be 20% to 30% if compared with conventional aluminum materials. This report overviews research on CFRP materials for cryogenic use and discusses important technological issues to realize successful application to the RLV cryogenic propellant tanks.

Recently, aircraft jet engines have been required higher efficiency, lower noise, lower emission, less weight, and cost saving. Efficiency and low noise design requirements present larger fan diameter and increasing of high temperature super alloy parts. However, these designs result in the increasing of engine weight and the reducing of the thrust to weight ratio. Polymer matrix composites (PMC) has excellent specific strength and stiffness, and using PMC parts on engines is effective to save weight, especially for the large size high bypass turbo fan engine. Application examples and design/production issues on PMC engine parts are summarized in this paper.

Filament wound (FW) pressure vessel is one of candidates to improve rocket structural efficiency without increasing manufacturing cost. Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic (CFRP) has been selected as a material of pressure vessel for solid rocket. This paper describes development of a superior material system for filament wound pressure vessel.

Composite material parts in aircraft structures offer the benefit of weight saving, which improves fuel efficiency and available pay load. It is forecasted that the use of composite material parts will be increased on future aircraft supported by adoption of newly developed composite materials, improvements in parts manufacturing processes and so on. The composite material parts differ from metallic material hardware in damage characteristics, inspection and repair methods. In order to ensure maintaining safe operation of the aircraft, it is indispensable for the airlines to adequately keep up with this trend and to secure and maintain maintenance capability for the composite materials as well as metallic ones. This article explains an outline for the composite materials application of the Boeing 777, types of inservice damage and current maintenance activities such as inspection and repair programs, at airlines.

Firstly, the history of airship is briefly described on the viewpoint of the transition of envelope materials. The property and performance of various fiber materials used for the present and future airship envelopes are studied. The property of the fabrics, coating materials and laminating films, which compose the cross-section of envelope material, is discussed showing two examples of the photograph of cross-section of actual airship envelope materials. Finally, six items, they are tensile strength, tensile strength of the seam, strength to crack propagation and others, of mechanical performance which is very important for the design of envelope material are picked up and explained.