I was fortunate to be able to tour the Dornier Oberpfaffenhofen facility to see this wing under various stages of construction. A new airfoil was developed for this wing which embodies an increased leading edge radius, a flattening of the wing upper surface, and a dramatic curvature at the rear part of the airfoil. The 228 STOL wing is entirely wet, being of one piece construction with central spar and formed stringers. The wing tips are designed on a trailing edge bias for low induced drag. The 228 is designed to compete in the highly competitive civilian commuter market.
Military applications are possible under a co-production arrangement.
The potential for a STOL assault transport is interesting. It can operate off of dirt strips, rough and soft terrain, and roads. Oxford Develops New SEM . A new type of scanning electron microscope is being designed which will produce the first high resolution images of non-conducting surfaces. Not only will specimen charging be reduced, but damage or changes in the surface due to beam heating will also be diminished.