Aircraft

Glass is used in various types of aircrafts: commercial planes, regional commuter planes, helicopters and military aircrafts. Especially for cockpit windows, but also cabin windows, glass is reinforced to a very high strength by making its surfaces permanently compressed. This is achieved through one of two glass-strengthening processes: thermal tempering or chemical reinforcement. With thermal tempering, the surface compression -- and hence the reinforcement -- is limited, whereas chemical reinforcement creates a very strong glass with a high optical quality. Windshields on planes are equipped with heating systems, usually made by conductive coatings or wire-grids, in order to withstand fog and ice.

In planes, specially engineered glass also protects against the static electric charging that can occur during flights, through the means of a conductive coating that drains the static charges. Glass technology applied to aircraft also includes protection against solar radiation, electro-magnetic radar beams, and, thanks to increased durability, the particularly damaging effects of birdstrikes against the windscreen. For helicopters, special weight-reducing yet durable bird-proof glass is used.