Author name: Kirsten Propitius

Measuring setup in aircraft cabin
Safety and Human performance

22 June 2021

Study of the risk of corona on board aircraft

Royal NLR has carried out a joint study with RIVM into the risk of a passenger falling ill by breathing in the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 while on board an aircraft. Measures have been implemented to reduce the risk of an infectious passenger boarding an aircraft. If despite measures an infectious passenger is on board the cabin, then on average fellow passengers - within a section of seven rows around the infectious passenger - run a relatively low risk of falling ill from COVID-19. For example, a lower than in unventilated rooms of the same dimensions.

NLR main building Marknesse.

22 April 2021

Change of name in the statutes NLR

Our name in the statutes will be changed. This formality has no consequences for our partners and clients. NLR will continue to fulfil the role as applied research centre that you are accustomed to from us.

Sustainability and Environment

06 April 2021

Sustainable alternatives to kerosene: the facts

Why are CO2 emissions from flying still rising although planes are becoming more economical? What would be a logical distance for flying battery-powered electric aircraft? What techniques are there for flying on hydrogen? The facts, plain and simple.

NLR Fibre Placement Machine
Construction and Manufacturing

31 March 2021

SUSTAINair is investing in circular aviation for the green transition

The SUSTAINair project is investigating and developing solutions for sustainably using raw materials and improving the performance of aircraft. This Horizon 2020 project, which recently got off the ground, is aiming at the same time to achieve circular aviation by drastically reducing the waste and material costs throughout the lifecycle of the aeroplane.

The relevance of public acceptance for drones
Air Traffic Management

22 March 2021

Blog: The relevance of public acceptance for drones

When a friend or relative asks me what I do, I usually just say that I work on drone research stuff. If they seem receptive, I may explain a little bit more: how drones will operate, what they will be used for and how they will soon be commonplace in of cities. This usually raises a lot of questions and confusion: what do we need drones for? Aren’t cities congested enough already? How will drones avoid birds? The list of questions goes on and on.

ESA Galileo satellite system
Defence and Security

09 March 2021

More space in the Defence Department’s future

By 2035, the Dutch Ministry of Defence needs to be a smart and technologically advanced organisation that takes action based on the best information. Not only on land and sea and in the air: according to the new Defence Vision, threats are also affecting the cyber and space domains. Michel Keuning, on behalf of SpaceNed, and Peter Huis in ’t Veld of NIDV are pleased with this move by the Defence Department and see an important role in it for the Dutch commercial sector.

Take-off KLM vliegtuig vanaf Schiphol Airport
Sustainability and Environment

19 February 2021

Blog: Trust in aviation is about more than noise nuisance alone

The past year has been an exceptional period for aviation: the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has sharply reduced air travel world-wide. At Schiphol Airport, the number of flights has fallen by 54% in comparison with 2019. Little or no air traffic means less exposure to aircraft noise. This is a situation that is unheard of for local residents around Schiphol. It may be somewhat similar to the short-lived peace that descended when the Icelandic volcano eruption in 2010 grounded air traffic for days, or even further back, after the ‘9/11’ terrorist attacks in 2001. The difference, however, is that the present pandemic has been cutting air traffic for a year now, rather than for a few days or up to a week.

ACM Pilot Plant at NLR Marknesse
Construction and Manufacturing

17 February 2021

Digital twins in the aircraft manufacturing industry

Digital twins are a derived virtual item that can have a positive effect on automated production processes. Royal NLR is using this innovation to optimise the production process for composite components and human-machine interactions.

Royal NLR and TU Delft present vision for route to sustainable air transport.
Sustainability and Environment

16 February 2021

Royal NLR and TU Delft present vision for route to sustainable air transport

In the white paper published today NLR and Delft University of Technology present their joint vision on the most promising technologies for achieving a climate neutral air transport system by 2050. The European Green Deal states that Europe should be a climate neutral continent by then; a goal that comes with complicated challenges in terms of human behaviour, consumption, economics and technology. Aligned with this great challenge the white paper also presents a view to support setting up a dedicated national research and innovation programme for sustainable aviation.