The biggest advances in aviation have always come from the engine makers, who innovate to reduce fuel costs with every turn of their fan blades. Rolls-Royce is one such innovator; the longtime plane engine maker has the Spitfire’s Merlin piston engine and the Trent 1000 (which powers some of the Boeing 787 Dreamliners) to its credit. Just consider that a Trent engine moves 1.2 tons of air per second, with 90 tons of force on each fan blade at full thrust. Jet engines are an engineering marvel and you can learn more about them with this BBC documentary.
