Look, this is the first plane in the world to be created using the new technology of "3D printing". The airplane was built using only a computer--but it can fly at a speed of 100mph and has a two-meter wingspan. It was produced using a special nylon laser printer that builds up something layer-by-layer. The parts were made separately and attached using a "snap fit" technique so the aircraft could be put together without tools in minutes. No fasteners at all were used in the manufacture of the plane. Unmanned and electrically powered, the plane can travel in near silence and is also equipped with a small autopilot system. The special production process used is known as "laser sintering "and allows the designers to create shapes and structures that would normally include costly manufacturing techniques. This technology allows a highly-tailored aircraft to be developed from your own design to first flight in days, while using traditional materials and techniques would take months. And because no tooling is required for manufacture, major changes to the shape and scale of the aircraft can be made with no extra cost. Professor Jim Scanlon, who led the team, said, "The process allows the design team to revisit historical techniques and ideas that would have been too expensive using traditional manufacturing." He added, "This form of structure is very firm and lightweight, but very complex. If it was manufactured traditionally it would require a large number of individually tailored parts that would have to be connected or fastened at great expense." The new printed plane is known as the Southampton University Laser Sintered Aircraft--or SULSA for short--and is part of a wider project using cutting-edge manufacturing techniques. The University of Southampton has been at the leading position of Unmanned Aerial Vehicle development since the early 1990s. Professor Jim Scanlon believes they can   _   with their techniques.
produce firmer and lighter real planes easily connect and fasten tailor parts for real planes copy earlier planes to study their techniques find differences by studying the traditional ones