AERO

WORDS: MI KE DUFF
PHOTOGRAPHY: RAMA KNI GHT
I LLUSTRATI ONS: MAKSYM SHKI NDER
DYNAMI C
THE BEST DESI GNERS TAKE
I NSPI RATI ON FROM EVERYTHI NG,
AND FOR MCLAREN S DESI GN
DI RECTOR, FRANK STEPHENSON,
AI RCRAFT HAVE ALWAYS BEEN
A PASSI ON AND A SOURCE OF
CREATIVE STI MULATI ON. SO WHAT
DO PLANES HAVE I N COMMON
WITH SUPERCARS? WE ASKED
FRANK TO TALK US THROUGH HI S
DESI GN PHI LOSOPHY
AND REVEAL SOME OF HI S
FAVOURITE PLANES
rank Stephensons enthusiasm is contagious.
Were sitting in a borrowed ofce at the McLaren
Technology Centre (MTC) in Woking his ofce is
full of top-secret sketches and models Im not
allowed to see talking about aircraft. Hes brought
models of some of his favourites and frequently grabs one,
hoisting it aloft to illustrate a point. Soon Im holding them
as well. To anyone passing by the glass-sided ofce it must
look like two grown men playing with toy planes.
I grew up near an airport in Morocco, Frank explains
when asked where his enthusiasm stems from. My father
was a pilot for Boeing so I was always surrounded by either
planes, or the noise of planes. They got under my skin.
Its like if youre born by the sea, you always have to
be close to water. I have to be close to planes.
F OKKER DR- 1 T RI PL ANE
GERMAN WW1 F I GHT ER
F
For me, this plane is so inspirational. Theres
the history the Red Baron [famous fghter
pilot] few one but I was struck by the way
someone thought outside the box when they
needed more lift and added another wing. But
its a mess visibility-wise. Ive sat in a replica and
couldnt understand how the pilot few it.
Planes got under my skin as a boy.
The same way that people who
grew up by the sea have to be near
water, I have to be close to planes
So what is it about planes? How can something so
functional look so good? Planes arent designed to look
beautiful, its not their purpose, says Stephenson. The
whole idea behind a plane is that it has to work optimally
they dont cheat on the performance to make it look
better. Thats whats great and inspirational about
aircraft design its so pure its almost innocent in a
certain way. Its never fake.
Its an ethos that fts perfectly with the McLaren brand.
And thats whats so beautiful about McLaren. For me its
100 per cent purpose. Of course, we make an emotional
product and people have to fall in love with the design, but
our cars always have to work optimally just like aircraft.
F 4U CORSAI R
AMERI CAN WWI I F I GHT ER
I love the P-51 Mustang and the Spitfre, but
the Corsair was diferent from everything else
when it frst came out because the wings had
to be folded up. It was designed for aircraft
carriers and had to be stored on deck. It went
beyond what you expected a wing to look like.
Frank picks up one of the models from the desk
a Bugatti 100P. Look at this, he says. This plane never
few its an incredible story. It was built to set a speed
record, but the Second World War broke out and they had
to hide it in a barn. It had swept-forward wings, primarily to
keep the main spar further to the rear, and allow more
room in the engine compartment. It had two engines, both
behind the pilot, and two contra-rotating propellers, which
meant they could have a smaller Y-shaped tail, as they
didnt need to counteract the yaw. Just look at it its like
it came out ffty years from now. A couple of genius
visionaries have been building a replica, as close to the
original as possible, which will fy later this year.
BUGAT T I 1 00P
PURPOS E- BUI LT RACER
They knew that to get speed from a
propeller plane meant minimal frontal
surface area, and this fuselage was an
evolution of that idea making it a teardrop
shape, pretty much. They didnt even
have wind tunnels.
Franks zip-up tie is an
example of his creative
approach: I thought the
design of the traditional tie
is too conventional, so I
came up with this, and
had it specially made

So, getting practical, what have modern cars taken from
aircraft design? So much. You get a huge amount of
inspiration from features such as the cockpits of modern
jets. And the aerodynamic challenge is the same for
cars and planes to shrink the frontal surface area to
make it more efcient, says the designer.
One of the things were pushing for is to have more of
a canopy, to have glass around you, so the area feels big
even if its not. Thats why the McLaren P1 has the moon
roof, the glass above you, to let in more light.
And right now, for example, were looking at details of
exhaust pipe fnishers and what they should look like, says
Stephenson as he picks up and examines a scale model
of an F-22 Raptor. Its very easy to look at something like
this and get inspired by the design of the jet nozzles.
BL ACKBI RD S R- 7 1
COL D WAR LONG- RANGE
RECONNAI SSANCE PL ANE
I cant believe the Blackbird is from the 1960s.
If you saw it for the frst time today it would
still freak you out like it had come from
outer space. This reconnaissance plane
out-manoeuvred missiles by going faster and
higher. It has a rawness I really appreciate.
Frank feels strongly that form
equals function: If something
works well, then it has a beauty
that comes from that
Thanks to TAG Farnborough and Gama Aviation
So does all this mean that, like an aircraft, a cars form
should follow its function?
No. I hugely disagree with that, says Frank, his gesturing
hands communicating nearly as loudly as his voice. I think
that has always been misinterpreted. Actually, I believe
that form equals function.
If something functions properly then the form looks
great. If something works well then it has a beauty that
comes from that. For me its like nature, my other great
source of inspiration. The beauty of an aeroplane comes
from its efciency and its function, and thats the same
with animals timeless beauties. No one looks at horses
from 30 years ago and says they look old-fashioned,
that the new horses look better. Its timeless, and thats
what all designers strive for.
S UKHOI S U- 3 5
MODERN ST RI KE F I GHT ER
This is the best fourth-generation jet and
its pure aggression. It looks absolutely lethal.
Look at them on YouTube performing at air
shows they do manoeuvres that seem
impossible. It would be the ultimate thrill
to ride in one, like a roller coaster times 10.
Hear Frank Stephenson
talk about bio-mimicry and
his design inspirations on
the McLaren website
Go under the skin and
fnd out more about
the groundbreaking
McLaren P1
Next, McLaren customer
Andrew Claxton tries
the Pure McLaren GT
Performance Driving Course
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