During the lifetime of a helicopter, every superfluous pound of weight costs the owner thousands of Euros. These costs arise due to the additional fuel needed to move the extra mass thus limiting the amount of cargo the helicopter can transport. To build lighter helicopters, Eurocopter, Europe’s largest helicopter manufacturer, use lightweight materials such as composites. However, the design of composite components can be complex as the material consists of different layers oriented in various
directions resulting in countless possible to combine the material.