i found this tv program last night by accident. superb. reminded me of the book on jet engines that rolls produce - simple explanations of a fiendishly complex machine. before i flew planes i was an engineer and know a bit about jet engines, but it always strikes me that, hung on the wing of an airliner they look so simple - just a streamlined pod and a big fan.. thats all the holidaymakers ever see and i'm sure that program was educational and fascinating to many people who didnt know much about the subject.
the level of the technology in the trent engine is just jaw dropping - inflating the metal fan blades with inert gas to make them hollow or growing single crystal turbine blades which run 300 degrees above their melting temperature, and the tiny manufacturing tollerances - its almost magic...
rolls is a company for the uk to be very proud of - the employees featured in the program obviously were. i just wish we could get our act together and reach the same level in automotive engineering and other fields.