<p class="ingestion featured-caption">Passenger blended-wing concepts from Airbus and startups JetZero and Natilus hope to shake up the airline industry.JetZero</p><ul class="summary-list"><li>"Blended-wing" aircraft could be the future of commercial aviation.</li><li>Airbus and startups JetZero and Natilus lead the development of these more efficient flying wings.</li></ul><p>Aircraft manufacturers are <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/natilus-blended-wing-passenger-jet-boeing-airbus-duopoly-2024-10">racing to build the jet of the future</a> as airlines demand more efficient planes. </p><p>Among the most likely concepts is a <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/new-widebody-plane-blended-wing-body-jetzero-pathfinder-2024-4">"blended-wing" body aircraft</a>, which combines the fuselage and wing into one. This deviates from the traditional tube-and-wing design that has been the norm since the start of commercial aviation.</p><p><strong>The all-in-one wing can reduce drag by up to 30%, helping reduce the amount of fuel needed, according to the US Air Force, which plans to use the design in a prototype. </strong></p><p>A handful of companies have announced plans to build these unique vessels by the 2030s, including startups JetZero and Natilus and <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbus-unveils-futuristic-new-airplane-prototype-with-one-giant-wing-2020-2">long-standing planemaker Airbus</a>. Boeing has dabbled in blended-wing research but doesn't have plans to build one yet.</p><p>Natilus and JetZero are starting from scratch and targeting different markets, but they have the same overarching goal: <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/united-airlines-ceo-criticizes-airbus-boeing-duopoly-calls-for-change-2024-6">puncture the Airbus-Boeing duopoly.</a></p><p>Natilus is developing a 200-passenger narrowbody jet called Horizon to fill a perceived aircraft capacity gap over the next 20 years, while JetZero plans to build a giant 250-capacity widebody called Pathfinder to replace aging Boeing 767s.</p><p>Airbus could maintain its market lead with its 200-passenger <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbus-new-zero-emission-aircraft-history-of-sustainable-planes-2020-9">"ZEROe" blended-wing concept</a>. The company has decades of experience designing commercial airplanes — leading the industry with its <a target="_blank" class href="https://www.businessinsider.com/airbus-beats-worlds-most-popular-plane-a320-737-2019-11">best-selling Airbus A320</a> family of similar capacity.</p><p>All three companies have found what they think is the secret sauce in the giant flying wing. It is poised to greatly improve fuel burn, open up a wider cabin, and offer airlines better overall economics while still meeting route and infrastructure needs.</p>