The Aircraft Research Association Research Capital Equipment Projects

This project, led and managed solely by the Aircraft Research Association (ARA) in Bedford was focused around the investigation of a number of industrially-linked challenges. The organisation’s main tool of research is the Transonic Wind Tunnel (TWT), which has been operational since the 1950’s and is the only industrial-scale capability in the UK for transonic testing and one of only a handful worldwide.
The tunnel has seen a large number of civil and military research programmes during this time and continues to modernise its facilities to remain efficient and meet the needs of its industrial and government clients.
This project supported upgrades and modifications to the existing world class Transonic Wind Tunnel (TWT) facility at ARA in Bedford. This included improvements to the tunnel control systems, more high-performance computing capacity for calculations and additional capability for workshop model manufacture to produce accurate and representative aircraft models.