This list has been complied by Bartek M. Rys, (web site URL no longer valid), who said they are all discussed in Randall Whitcomb's book “
”.
By 1958 the construction of the AVRO Arrow led to many innovations in the aircraft
industry including the following:
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1.
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First fly-by-wire aircraft, i.e. electronic signals fed from the stick and pedals.
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2.
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First aircraft designed with digital computers being used for both aerodynamic analysis and designing the structural matrix (and a whole lot more).
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3.
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First aircraft design to have major components machined by CNC (computer numeric control); i.e., from electronic data which controlled the machine.
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4.
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First aircraft to be developed using an early form of "computational fluid dynamics" with an integrated "lifting body" type of theory rather than the typical (and obsolete) "blade element" theory.
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5.
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First aircraft to have marginal stability designed into the pitch axis for better maneuverability, speed and altitude performance.
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6.
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First aircraft to have negative stability designed into the yaw axis to save weight and cut drag, also boosting performance. {Bartek M. Rys}
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7.
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First aircraft to fly with fly by wire AND artificial feedback (feel). Not even the first F-16's had this.
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8.
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First aircraft designed to be data-link flyable from the ground.
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9.
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First aircraft designed with integrated navigation, weapons release, automatic search and track radar, datalink inputs, home-on-jamming, infrared detection, electronic countermeasures and counter-countermeasures operating through a DIGITAL brain.
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10.
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First high wing jet fighter that made the entire upper surface a lifting body. The F-15, F-22, Su-27 etc., MiG-29, MiG 25 and others certainly used that idea.
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11.
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First sophisticated bleed-bypass system for both intake AND engine/exhaust. Everybody uses that now.
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12.
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First by-pass engine design. (All current fighters have by-pass engines)
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13.
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First combination of the last two points with an "ejector" nozzle that used the bypass air to create thrust at the exhaust nozzle while also improving intake flow. The F-106 didn't even have a nozzle, just a pipe.
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14.
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First use of Titanium for significant portions of the aircraft structure and engine.
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15.
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Use of composites (not the first, but they made thoughtful use of them and were researching and engineering new ones).
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16.
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Use of a drooped leading edge and aerodynamic "twist" on the wing.
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17.
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Use of engines at the rear to allow both a lighter structure and significant payload at the centre of gravity. Everybody copied that.
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18.
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First use of a LONG internal weapons bay to allow carriage of specialized, long-range standoff and cruise missiles.
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19.
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Integration of ground-mapping radar and the radar altimeter plus flight control system to allow a serious strike/reconnaissance role. The first to propose an aircraft be equally adept at those roles while being the air-superiority fighter at the same.
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20.
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First missile armed aircraft to have a combat weight thrust to weight ratio approaching 1 to 1. Few have been able to copy that.
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21.
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First flying 4,000 psi hydraulic system to allow lighter and smaller components.
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22.
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First oxygen-injection re-light system.
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23.
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First engine to have only two main bearing assemblies on a two-shaft design.
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24.
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First to use a variable stator on a two-shaft engine.
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25.
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First use of a trans-sonic first compressor stage on a turbojet engine.
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26.
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First "hot-streak" type of afterburner ignition.
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27
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First engine to use only 10 compressor sections in a two-shaft design. (The competition were using 17!!)
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