Windowless aircraft

[megan]

many sub-optimalities of the blended-wing concept

This old study would suggest the BWB has many advantages over and above the current tube with wings. Boeing has certainly invested some serious money in the concept, having built a BWB wing box and air freighted it by Guppy from the west to east coast for testing.

http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc...=rep1&type=pdf

http://www.dailypress.com/news/scien...212-story.html

[megan]

"new requirements"

Something the FAA does when the occasion arises, as with new requirements for FBW helos. I wonder if the burgeoning market for air travel, clogged airways, real estate available for airports, will see a movement towards larger aircraft.

engines are high-up

Return of the 1011 & DC-10. No problems with routing fuel, all three engine jets managed, and most, if not all jets, have pax sitting on top of fuel tanks - centre wing box and maybe tanks in the hold.

[tdracer]

PDR, the FAA (and EASA) routinely issue "Special Conditions" and Issue Papers during the development of a new aircraft. Special Conditions are typically used when new technology isn't adequately covered by the existing regulations. For example, when FADEC was first introduced, there were no meaningful regulations regarding Electromagnetic Interference (EMI), so there were special conditions for HIRF/Lightning resistance (it took another 20 years before the FAA actually finalized regulations for HIRF - so all the Boeing FADEC and FBW installations prior to the 787 were covered by Special Conditions. Issue papers are used similarly when meeting the letter of the regulation may not be 'adequate' and to make sure that the method of compliance used is acceptable. There is also the ever popular "Equivalent Safety Finding" - where the design may not meet the letter of the regulation but meets the safety intent of the regulation (Boeing thrust reverser installations post-Lauda have all used an EFS - the FAR says the aircraft must be controllable - that's not practical (maybe not even possible with big high bypass engines) so Boeing has instead designed the system so an in-flight deployment won't happen. Granting an ESF requires an Issue Paper on the subject.
This is all long standing SOP (due to all its advanced technology, the 787 had a huge number of Special Conditions, Issue Papers, and ESF). Boeing would be negotiating with the FAA and EASA on the requirements long before it formally launched any blended wing/body aircraft.
IMHO, if we see a blended wing aircraft, the first one(s) will be for the military - likely some sort of cargo aircraft.