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Re:How the Biggest Plane Would Supersize Wind Energy by wolverine876 on Saturday March 16, 2024 @03:26AM (#39723978)
Why can't the blades be broken down into managable segments and assembled on-site? The military folds and unfolds airplane wings all the time on aircraft carriers.

(It's an honest question; you must have thought of it, of course.)

Re:How the Biggest Plane Would Supersize Wind Energy by adrianN on Saturday March 16, 2024 @03:56AM (#39724091)
The tips of the blades travel close to the speed of sound. The blades are quite difficult to manufacture as it is, it's a big challenge to add intentional weak points and/or weight by making them foldable.
Re:How the Biggest Plane Would Supersize Wind Energy by wolverine876 on Saturday March 16, 2024 @05:09PM (#39729477)
The tips of fighter aircraft wings travel faster than the speed of sound, deal with far more stress (from turns, explosions, etc.), and the wings I expect are more complex and difficult to manufacture - but they fold.

I'm not saying you are wrong, but by themselves those factors aren't entirely convincing to me.

(Also, the wings need to fold and unfold repeatedly over their lifetime; the blades could just be, in theory, shipped in pieces and then assembled once).

Re:How the Biggest Plane Would Supersize Wind Energy by HPsquared on Friday March 22, 2024 @08:20PM (#39796212)
Mega budgets and maintenance schedules.
Re:How the Biggest Plane Would Supersize Wind Energy by alexvoda on Monday March 25, 2024 @09:54AM (#39816334)
Fighter aircraft also have a very short lifespan measured in thousands of flight hours and enjoy constant maintenance compared to a wind turbine expected to work 24/7 for decades with minimal maintenance.