Future of Aircraft--The FanWing?

An inventor in the UK has developed a new type of aircraft called the Fan Wing that uses blades that look like they were swiped off a wheat harvester to increase lift and allow for a more flexible propulsion system so it can carry heavier loads than regular airplanes. It's in development now and we might see one in commercial use in less than 5 years. Some in the aircraft industry are already hailing the FanWing as "the fourth great breakthrough in aeronautical science", but if we've gone from the Concorde to this you can't expect us to be just a little bit disappointed.

[via BoingBoing]