Thierry Dubois is a freelance writer specializing in helicopters, business aviation and aerospace technology. He earned a degree in fluid dynamics from an engineering school in Toulouse, France in the mid-1990s. At an unexpected crossroads, he found his first job in journalism. In 1997, he started working for French aerospace weekly Air &amp; Cosmos in Paris. This lasted until 2000, when he moved south to Lyons. He then became a freelancer, working for various aerospace publications and has been part of the AIN team since late 2000. In addition to writing about business aviation, Thierry shares responsibility for the rotorcraft section. He also is a regular on-site writer for AIN’s daily editions at international airshows such as the Paris, Farnborough, Dubai and Singapore shows, as well as at EBACE in Geneva.
In 2007, he won the Honeywell award for “Best systems or technology submission” at the Aerospace journalist of the year awards. In 2013, he won an Aerospace Media Award for the "Best Safety, Training &amp; Simulation Submission."
In other activities, Thierry moderates international conferences on aviation technology topics. Thierry is married and has three children, who seem to begin enjoying the mountains–as their parents do.

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Thierry Dubois

French aerospace research agency Onera (Stand A321) is exploring a new way to cut noise inside the cabin of an airplane. Researchers have used a principle that simply is the reverse of the usual one.

“We first defined the material that would best reduce the noise and then we synthesized it,” Michel de Gliniasty, Onera’s general scientific director, explained recently. The optimization process led to a particular structure, now patented and very efficient at low frequencies. The structure is called a periodic one because it repeats itself.

Steel panels using this structure and only two centimeters (0.79 inch) thick have been manufactured. They fit inside a large business jet’s fuselage, as an insulation blanket. The results are unexpectedly good, according to Onera researchers. For example, they have managed to cut the noise by 12 dB between 300 and 600 Hz.

The material is said to be the lightest available for this level of performance. Daniel Osmont, the Onera researcher who is leading the team in charge of the project, is now looking forward to using the same structure with other materials. Replacing steel with thicker composites would better absorb noise.

Onera searches for peace and quiet 

French aerospace research agency Onera (Stand A321) is exploring a new way to cut noise inside the cabin of an airplane.

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