Brough Branch: Advancing active flow control technologies for more efficient aircraft

Brough Branch Lecture: Advancing active flow control technologies for more efficient aircraft

This hybrid event, held on 14 October 2026, explores active flow control technologies designed to enhance aircraft aerodynamic performance. The lecture will focus on pulsed jet actuation, a particularly promising advancement that demonstrates significant advantages over traditional steady jet injection methods.

Active control of airflow over aircraft wings can substantially improve aerodynamic efficiency. Pulsed jet actuation is capable of suppressing flow separation far more effectively than conventional approaches whilst requiring substantially reduced mass flow. The lecture will present outcomes from the Clean Sky 2 WINGPULSE project, which aimed to demonstrate pulsed jet actuator concepts exceeding current state-of-the-art standards—specifically, those reducing net mass flow by a factor of at least 3.

Attendees will hear detailed results from wind tunnel testing and high-fidelity simulations conducted throughout the project.

The speaker is Mark Jabral PhD MEng MRAeS from the University of Nottingham, who served as Principal Investigator on the WINGPULSE project. His research focuses on fluid flow control for drag reduction, encompassing experimental aerodynamics, optimisation, and vehicle system integration studies. Mark holds both MEng and PhD degrees in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Manchester and serves as Vice Chair of the Royal Aeronautical Society Aerodynamics Specialist Group.

The event runs from 19:30 to 20:45 BST and is available both in person at Cottingham Parks Golf Club, East Yorkshire, and online via Microsoft Teams for those unable to attend physically.