Screen Designed To Protect Commercial Plane Engines?

It would create more problems than it would solve. Not only would there be a problem with ice build up, but it would allow the ice particles to get bigger before they got sucked into the engine, potentially doing more damage to the engine.

They would seriously restrict airflow into the engine and that flow would be turbulent, so no, not one of your better ideas!

However, some aircraft, I can think of the A37 Dragonfly as an example, do have screens fitted for ground running, to stop object being sucked in during maintenance.

In the 1950s a Test Pilot called Michael Daunt was accidentally sucked into the intake of a Gloster Meteor, and miraculously survived, because he was too broad in the shoulders to go down the hole!

The RAF came up with a screen to cover the intakes when ground running, which of course, became known as a "Daunt Stopper"!

That was thought about after the US airways A320 landed in the Hudson shortly after take off at JFK due to bird strike. The reason they didn't proceed was due to numerous reasons:

- in cold environments if ice build yo on the nets problems would be caused

-if the net came off by any means and got stuck in the engine it would cause more harm than a bird strike, and the net coming off is much more possible

-and many more reasons

Instead of using nets to avoid situations such a s bird strike, some commercial airports (including JFK) are trailing a radar system designed to detect small obstacles such as birds and warn aircraft.

Hope this helps :)

Jet engines need to draw in MASSIVE amounts of air to make the engines run and create thrust to move the airplane forward. ANYTHING in the way of those air intakes will reduce air flow and reduce available power to the airplane. A screen in font of the engine intake would slow air flow all by itself, and even more if ice were to build up on it during flight. Even worse, anything like a bird, or a plastic bag blowing across the tarmac would catch and stick to the screen, slowing air flow even more.

Face it. This is NOT one of your best ideas.

That suggestion has been made since 1946 to engine manufacturers -

So far without success -

The worst problem would be ice accretion on that screen during flight -

Be aware that engine inlets have various types of anti-ice protection (heat) -

Bleed air for the engine inlet or electrical heating of nacelle lips -

it's generally a good idea to make sure a problem actually exists before attempting to "solve" it.

"No"

you win a cookie.