Comparison of box-wing and conventional aircraft mission performance using multidisciplinary analysis and optimization

Proper assessment of the disciplinary interactions in box-wing designs is essential to determine any realistic performance benefits arising from the use of such a configuration. This study analyzes both box-wing and conventional aircraft designed for representative regional-jet missions. A preliminary parametric investigation shows a lift-to-drag ratio advantage for box-wing designs, while a more detailed multidisciplinary study indicates that the requirement to carry the mission fuel in the wings leads to an increase of between 5% and 1% in total fuel burn compared to conventional designs. However, the multidisciplinary study identified operating conditions where the box-wing can have superior performance to conventional aircraft despite the fuel volume constraint.