title: here goes nothing futilitys song
text: nasa to test in flight folding wing page  link nasa is set to begin testing a new wing design that would change shape in flight bending up or down to increase yaw stability reduce required rudder size and decrease drag the boeing x is set to introduce wingtips that fold on the ground to allow the aircraft to fit in existing gates with a longer wingspan nasa is set to begin testing the spanwise adaptive wing which would add shapememory alloy actuators to the wingtip area that would bend the tips up or down the sma actuators would activate when heated electrically so there is no need for complex hydraulic lines or actuators beginning in spring of  nasa will start flying the areai ptera uav it has a  inch wingspan with the outer  inches moving as far as  degrees up or down ptera is not set up for saw but it appears that it could see a  rudder authority the idea behind saw is similar to what was done with the xb with the wingtips angled down boeing will introduce folding wings to commercial aviation when the x airliner enters service at the end of  but the devices could become commonplace on future aircraft as wingspans increase in an effort to reduce drag and fuel burn the x has almost  ft more wingspan than todays  to optimize lift distribution and maximize cruise efficiency folding the tips on the ground keeps the larger aircraft compatible with existing taxiway and gate size restrictions but nasa is investigating whether also folding the wing in flight could save still more fuel the spanwise adaptive wing saw concept will be tested on the ground and in flight in a rapid feasibility assessment under nasas new convergent aeronautics solutions project the goal is to show that angling the outboard wing sections up or down can increase yaw stability and control and reduce rudder size and tail drag