Airbus has come up with a futuristic doughnut-shaped aircraft design, which is said to address problems associated with pressurised cabins.

The aerospace giant has filed a patent with the European Patent Office for its radical reinvention of aircraft structure.

Called the ‘flying doughnut,’ the design promises to offer more space for passengers, who will be sitting in a 360° cabin with curved aisles.

The passenger cabin is circular with a hole in the middle representing a ring doughnut structure.

"The approximately cylindrical geometry of the structure delimiting the passenger cabin in conventional aircraft is particularly favourable for resistance to pressurisation loads."

The design is particularly focused on the configuration of a structure de-limiting a passenger cabin in an aircraft.

Airbus said: "The approximately cylindrical geometry of the structure delimiting the passenger cabin in conventional aircraft is particularly favourable for resistance to pressurisation loads.

"Furthermore, an approximately cylindrical geometry limits possibilities for increasing the passenger carrying capacity of aircraft."

If an aircraft is ever built with the new design, it would feature wings sweeping back from the nose and encompass the fuselage and tail, reported The Telegraph.

It would serve all the classes of passengers with economy and premium economy seats in the outer ring, and accommodate business class passengers in the inner circle.

The Financial Times quoted Airbus as saying: "This is not something that’s currently under active development."

Defence Technology