Aerospace
During the Second World war, polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) was widely used in military aviation as an alternative to glass for airplane windows.
PMMA has many advantages over glass: allows for the design of complex shapes, requires few metal supports that can block the field of vision, prevents optical distorsions, makes the final product substantially lighter.
Altuglas® PMMA sheet can be found on all types of airplanes (gliders, recreational/commercial/military aircraft):
- cockpits
- portholes
- windshields
- exterior lighting
- helipcopter windscreens
The long list of advantages of Altuglas® PMMA makes it the preferred product for aerospace windows:
- Good long-term mechanical peformance
- Resistance to chemicals, heat, cracking, shock, weather and temperature fluctuations
- Superior surface quality (minimum impurities)
- Hardly any optical distortion or deviation
In sectors where safety is a top concern, both the mechanical and optical quality of Altuglas® PMMA and the reproducibility of its characteristics have to be flawless.