2015年经济学人 英国航天工业 飞行计划

Britain's aerospace¹ industry

Flight plan

Can Britain remain a planemaking superpower?

THE sleek² de Havilland Comet, the world's first commercial passenger jet, was designed and built in Britain 60 years ago.

It is a dozen years since the last passenger jet, a small regional airliner³, was assembled in the country.

This would neatly⁴ illustrate⁵ a familiar tale of industrial tailspin were the industry not in such fine fettle.

Britain is currently the world's second-largest aerospace manufacturer, with 17% of the global market, behind only America.

But staying at that altitude will be tough.

Britain's aerospace industry has a few obvious champions: Rolls-Royce makes engines,

BAE Systems makes fighter jets and AgustaWestland turns out helicopters.

But much of it is hidden and unheralded. Its muscle is in unlikely places like Western Approach,

an anonymous⁶ industrial estate near Bristol, where GKN crafts wing spars for Airbus.

The long, slender beams that carry engines, landing gear and wing structure are made from light but tough carbon-fibre composites.

GKN got the job because of its mastery of the material and its ability to produce in volume. GKN also makes parts for Airbus's arch-rival, Boeing.

Rolls-Royce's engines now provide the thrust for half the world's new wide-bodied jets.

Around a quarter of Boeing's 787 Dreamliner is made in Britain, including the landing gear, fuel pumps and some seats.

British firms are world-beaters in avionics, the electronics that run a modern jet.

In short, Britain specialises in the complex guts⁷ of aeroplanes.

Airbus completes construction of its wings in Wales before transporting them to southern France for attaching to fuselages.

Bombardier, a Canadian firm, builds the wings for its new CSeries of regional jets in Belfast.

Politicians in other countries crow as completed planes roll off production lines on home turf.

French participation⁸ in the Airbus consortium was contingent⁹ on jets being put together there.

But the British are quietly coining it: a measly 5% of the value of an aeroplane is added with final assembly.

Rising global demand for commercial jets means business will boom if Britain maintains its share of the market.

Unfortunately, this is far from guaranteed. Companies are under-investing in research just as changes in the industry make it more vital.

Aerospace is a conservative business, says Glynn Bellamy of KPMG. Projects often have lifespans of 25-30 years, and reliability¹⁰ is paramount¹¹.

As a result the industry has globalised only slowly and Western incumbents¹² have been insulated from the cold winds of competition.

But several things are changing that.

Some big commercial airline projects, such as the Airbus A330 and the original Boeing 777, are coming to an end,

to be replaced by a new generation of narrow- and wide-bodied jets.

That provides an opportunity for the big global manufacturers to look beyond their backyards for suppliers.

Meanwhile the governments of emerging economies like China and India are eager to boost a high-tech¹³, high-value industry.

Technology is advancing and becoming far more costly¹⁴.

Andrew Churchill, who runs JJChurchill, a family firm that makes turbine blades and other high-tech kit¹⁵,

says capital equipment is ten times more expensive it was a decade ago. It also becomes obsolete¹⁶ more quickly.

The solution to all these problems is the same: plentiful¹⁷ research and development to keep British companies at the cutting edge.

At the biggest companies, long-term investment is taken for granted. Rolls is already developing next-generation jet-engine technology.

JJChurchill has ambitious plans to expand. But Mr Churchill says other small firms are failing to raise their game.

If that continues, the industry will decline.

Britain is home to 30% of Europe's aerospace firms, according to Martin Wright of the Northwest Aerospace Alliance, a trade organisation¹⁸.

Germany has only 10% but they are over twice as big on average and invest twice as heavily.

Britain's government has done a good job of nurturing¹⁹ aerospace, says Keith Hayward of the Royal Aeronautical²⁰ Society.

It has set aside cash for an Aerospace Technology Insitute and for large and small firms to invest in new technologies.

ADS, an aerospace lobby group, would like to see R&D tax credits increased from 10% to compare more favourably²¹ with other parts of Europe,

as well as accelerated tax relief on new building to help smaller firms move and grow.

That would help. But convincing small firms to grow is a tough task.

The government can only do so much to reduce the powerful gravitational forces acting²² on a fragmented national industry.

Like the Comet, nothing stays airborne forever.

1 aerospace   

adj.航空的，宇宙航行的

参考例句：

• The world's entire aerospace industry is feeling the chill winds of recession.全世界的航空航天工业都感受到了经济衰退的寒意。
• Edward Murphy was an aerospace engineer for the US Army.爱德华·墨菲是一名美军的航宇工程师。

2 sleek   

adj.光滑的，井然有序的；v.使光滑，梳拢

参考例句：

• Women preferred sleek,shiny hair with little decoration.女士们更喜欢略加修饰的光滑闪亮型秀发。
• The horse's coat was sleek and glossy.这匹马全身润泽有光。

3 airliner   

n.客机，班机

参考例句：

• The pilot landed the airliner safely.驾驶员使客机安全着陆。
• The passengers were shepherded across the tarmac to the airliner.旅客们被引导走过跑道去上飞机。

4 neatly   

adv.整洁地，干净地，灵巧地，熟练地

参考例句：

• Sailors know how to wind up a long rope neatly.水手们知道怎样把一条大绳利落地缠好。
• The child's dress is neatly gathered at the neck.那孩子的衣服在领口处打着整齐的皱褶。

5 illustrate   

v.举例说明，阐明；图解，加插图

参考例句：

• The company's bank statements illustrate its success.这家公司的银行报表说明了它的成功。
• This diagram will illustrate what I mean.这个图表可说明我的意思。

6 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

7 guts   

v.狼吞虎咽，贪婪地吃，飞碟游戏（比赛双方每组5人，相距15码，互相掷接飞碟）；毁坏（建筑物等）的内部( gut的第三人称单数 )；取出…的内脏n.勇气( gut的名词复数 )；内脏；消化道的下段；肠

参考例句：

• I'll only cook fish if the guts have been removed. 鱼若已收拾干净，我只需烧一下即可。
• Barbara hasn't got the guts to leave her mother. 巴巴拉没有勇气离开她妈妈。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

9 contingent   

adj.视条件而定的；n.一组，代表团，分遣队

参考例句：

• The contingent marched in the direction of the Western Hills.队伍朝西山的方向前进。
• Whether or not we arrive on time is contingent on the weather.我们是否按时到达要视天气情况而定。

10 reliability   

n.可靠性，确实性

参考例句：

• We mustn't presume too much upon the reliability of such sources.我们不应过分指望这类消息来源的可靠性。
• I can assure you of the reliability of the information.我向你保证这消息可靠。

11 paramount   

a.最重要的，最高权力的

参考例句：

• My paramount object is to save the Union and destroy slavery.我的最高目标是拯救美国，摧毁奴隶制度。
• Nitrogen is of paramount importance to life on earth.氮对地球上的生命至关重要。

12 incumbents   

教区牧师( incumbent的名词复数 )； 教会中的任职者

参考例句：

• In general, incumbents have a 94 percent chance of being reelected. 通常现任官员有94%的几率会再次当选。
• This arangement yields a wonderful gain to incumbents. 这种安排为在职人员提供了意外的得益。

13 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

14 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

15 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

16 obsolete   

adj.已废弃的，过时的

参考例句：

• These goods are obsolete and will not fetch much on the market.这些货品过时了，在市场上卖不了高价。
• They tried to hammer obsolete ideas into the young people's heads.他们竭力把陈旧思想灌输给青年。

17 plentiful   

adj.富裕的，丰富的

参考例句：

• Their family has a plentiful harvest this year.他们家今年又丰收了。
• Rainfall is plentiful in the area.这个地区雨量充足。

18 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

19 nurturing   

养育( nurture的现在分词 )； 培育； 滋长； 助长

参考例句：

• These delicate plants need careful nurturing. 这些幼嫩的植物需要精心培育。
• The modern conservatory is not an environment for nurturing plants. 这个现代化温室的环境不适合培育植物。

20 aeronautical   

adj.航空（学）的

参考例句：

• Many of the pilots were to achieve eminence in the aeronautical world. 这些飞行员中很多人将会在航空界声名显赫。 来自辞典例句
• The advent of aircraft brought with it aeronautical engineering. 宇宙飞船的问世导致了航天工程的出现。 来自辞典例句

21 favourably   

adv. 善意地，赞成地 =favorably

参考例句：

• The play has been favourably commented by the audience. 本剧得到了观众的好评。
• The open approach contrasts favourably with the exclusivity of some universities. 这种开放式的方法与一些大学的封闭排外形成了有利的对比。

22 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。