Airplane manufacturers have been using composite materials in general aviation and military applications for decades. Prior to the mid-1980s, airplane manufacturers used composite materials in transport category airplanes in secondary structures (e.g., wing edges) and control surfaces (e.g., panels). In 1988, Airbus introduced the A320, the first airplane in production with an all-composite tail section—including the horizontal and vertical stabilizers and rudder—and, in 1995, the Boeing Company introduced the Boeing 777, also with a composite tail section. (See fig. 1.) More recently, manufacturers have extended the use of composites to airframe structures, such as the fuselage and wings. For example, in 2007, Airbus introduced the A380, which used composite materials in the wings and upper fuselage. Airplane manufacturers have increased their use of composites for a number of reasons. First, composite materials tend to have a higher strength-to-weight ratio than metals, allowing airplanes to be lighter. And because these airplanes are lighter, they offer fuel savings, which are a high priority for air carriers. In addition, the material properties of composites make them more resistant to fatigue and corrosion than metal, which leads to lower maintenance costs. The increase in composite materials has been facilitated by private and federally funded advanced materials research. Although airplane manufacturers conduct the bulk of the aerospace research on composite materials as part of their product development activities, over the years, federal research has contributed to the state of knowledge about composite properties, and federal research centers have studied basic and advanced properties of composite materials as well as their applications. For example, the Department of Defense’s Air Force Research Laboratory has made significant contributions in materials research in developing composite aircraft such as the B-2 bomber and the F-22 fighter. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has conducted both fundamental research and applied composite research since the 1970s and 1980s, when it explored the basic properties of advanced composite materials and in-flight service and environmental exposure of composite components. More recently, NASA began funding research on the aging and durability of aircraft advanced structural materials including composites. FAA funds aviation safety research programs to support its certification and regulatory activities, encompassing a range of topics such as fire safety, crashworthiness, and aging airplanes. For example, it has used its fire test facilities to conduct tests of composite airplane sections to determine whether the fires will emit toxic gas that exceeds safety levels. Since 2003, FAA has collaborated with selected universities in support of its advanced materials research program. The goal of the project is to provide research and training in support of expanding composite applications, which the universities facilitate by partnering with local aviation manufacturers and suppliers. Boeing’s 787 will be the first mostly composite large transport airplane in commercial service. The 787 is about 50 percent composite by weight (excluding the engines). (See fig. 2.) The 787 is the first large commercial transport category airplane to use composite materials for much of its fuselage and wings. As airplane manufacturers are required to do for all new airplane designs, Boeing applied to aviation regulators in the jurisdictions where the airplane will be registered to certify the airplane design. According to Boeing, the fuselage and wing structures require more extensive certification work than other structures of the airplane. Boeing applied to FAA for certification of the Boeing 787 in March 2003 and began the certification flight test program in April 2010. Although its certification application originally called for delivering the first airplanes for service in 2008, Boeing requested that FAA extend its certification application four times because of delays caused by development processes and production challenges. As of September 2011, Boeing had about 800 orders for the 787 and plans to deliver the first 787 to Japan’s All Nippon Airways in the third quarter of 2011. In August 2011, Boeing completed all required flight testing and received type certification from FAA. The significance of type certification is explained later in this section. Boeing also is developing a derivative version of the 787-8 model—the 787-9 is a stretch version that will have more seating capacity than the original version. Ensuring the safety of the nation’s aviation system is the shared responsibility of FAA and the aviation industry. FAA is responsible for, among other things, setting certification standards and certifying that the airplane manufacturers and parts suppliers meet FAA standards, conducting periodic inspections of manufacturing facilities to ensure continued compliance with regulations, and overseeing airplane repair facilities to ensure they follow the proper maintenance and training procedures. Airplane manufacturers are responsible for showing compliance with those regulations and building safe airplanes. Manufacturers help ensure their airplanes remain airworthy throughout their designed service life by developing airplane maintenance programs and repair manuals and providing requested on-site technical assistance. Airplane operators are responsible for maintaining and operating airplanes safely and helping maintain the airworthiness of their airplane fleets by tracking their airplanes’ service history and reporting relevant repair and accident data to FAA and the manufacturers. A domestic airplane manufacturer must seek and FAA must issue a type certificate before a new airplane design is introduced into service. A type certificate signifies that airplanes manufactured to conform to the basic airplane and systems design will meet FAA’s airworthiness, noise, and emission standards for the safe conduct of flights. The standards form the basis for certification, modified as appropriate in accordance with special conditions, exemptions, and equivalent level of safety findings. Airplanes produced under a type-certified design are issued a standard airworthiness certificate. During the certification process, FAA engineers, designees, and test pilots review detailed plans, drawings, compliance plans, test reports, and analyses provided by the manufacturer to demonstrate the airplane’s compliance with FAA’s safety standards. (See fig. 3.) For example, the certification plan for the 787-8 contains 13 individual plans relating to structural components of the airplane, with a total of 904 deliverables from Boeing for FAA approval. During the certification process, the manufacturer must also produce a prototype (or prototypes) of the new airplane and conduct both ground and flight tests. FAA approves newly manufactured airplanes for service by issuing an airworthiness certificate. Typically, airplanes with a type-certified design are produced under an FAA production certificate and FAA will issue a standard airworthiness certificate for each airplane manufactured. Alternatively, airplanes manufactured without a production certificate will be issued an airworthiness certificate on a case-by-case basis through inspection of each airplane to ensure that it conforms to its type design and is in condition for safe flight. As part of the type certification process, FAA evaluates the airplane’s design for novel features and the applicability of airworthiness standards to ensure that the novel airplane features comply with applicable performance standards or safety levels. When it finds technical issues that need further investigation, FAA creates an issue paper to document issues and communications with the airplane manufacturer. In some cases, FAA may exempt the manufacturer from an airworthiness standard when the manufacturer petitions FAA for an exemption and indicates the exemption is in the public interest and will not adversely affect safety. In other cases, FAA may approve an equivalent level of safety finding. A manufacturer requests an equivalent level of safety finding from FAA when the manufacturer determines that it cannot show literal compliance with a regulatory standard or when the standard assumes a particular compliance method that is not feasible for the new airplane design, but can demonstrate that it meets the same level of safety. FAA also may determine that an existing standard is not adequate for a novel design feature, such as when a standard assumes a level of performance based on traditional materials (e.g., aluminum) and the new airplane design utilizes different materials. In such situations, FAA may create special conditions that the manufacturer must meet in order to demonstrate that the airplane meets the current safety level. Special conditions differ from an equivalent level of safety finding in three ways: FAA (as opposed to the manufacturer) originates the action based on a novel design feature, FAA determines that the regulatory standard is not adequate, and FAA generally publishes the draft special conditions for public comment. However, FAA uses the issue paper process to document its evaluation of technical issues in both situations. FAA conducts the assessment process for all certification applicants and creates special conditions when necessary. (See fig. 4.) Prior to developing special conditions, FAA must determine that the following criteria are met: (1) The airplane has a novel or unusual design feature, (2) the airworthiness standards do not contain adequate or appropriate safety standards for this feature, and (3) the proposed special conditions establish a level of safety equivalent to that established in the regulations. Special conditions are unique to the specific certification program in which they are issued and apply to derivative airplane models—later versions of that airplane that incorporate similar novel design features. Airplane manufacturers in the United States may apply for certification of new airplanes from foreign aviation authorities, which are responsible for ensuring that airplanes registered in their countries meet their airworthiness standards. For example, U.S. manufacturers apply to EASA for approval to allow their airplanes to fly in European airspace. This is essential for the commercial success of airplanes that are marketed globally. Boeing applied to EASA for certification of the 787 in 2003. Aviation authorities often use validation, a form of certification, to establish compliance for airplanes designed outside their countries and to issue a type certificate for these airplanes. For example, FAA officials stated that the European Union, Canada, Japan, and Brazil do type validations for U.S. aviation products. According to FAA officials, Boeing has applied for type validation of the 787 with EASA, the Japanese Civil Aviation Bureau, Transport Canada Civil Aviation, and the Chinese aviation authority. FAA uses its bilateral airworthiness agreements with other countries to determine its responsibilities during validation for U.S. aviation products sent abroad.