Foldable wingtips have been seen in military aviation for a long time and the reason to have such a mechanism is the same on the military and civil side: Minimize the wingspan and space used while taxiing and parked. Boeing has already got the experience of foldable wingtips with its F/A-18 Hornet and the planned introduction of foldable wingtips on the 777-200. Boeing’s challenge will be a blend of proven technologies and new technologies to save weight and maintenance costs while aiming for high reliability and redundancy. Hence, the mechanical principle will remain the same for the 777-X and some of the components for the foldable wingtips are already used in aircraft construction such as actuators or the folding gear. However the combination of parts for the 777-X will differ from former systems.
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