"Imagine your long lost dream of flying high in the air between the clouds. Now imagine that dream coming true."

Imagine your long lost dream of flying high in the air between the clouds. Now imagine that dream coming true. Yes that’s what is to be believed is said by Central for Process Innovation (CPI) as they revealed a first look on their concept of windowless airplanes. This concept is believed to change the face of the aviation industry and give a new ray of hope to the process re-engineering and in air entertainment. CPI is an organisation with sites across north-east England that works with companies to develop new and innovative products. It imagines how large, hi-definition, ultra thin and lightweight displays could form the inside of the fuselage; the name given to the windowless airplanes.

This early stage concept hails from technology already used in mobile phones and televisions. In other words, there are no actual windows in the plane's passenger section; the displays create the illusion that the cabin walls are transparent. The display screens mounted together instead on normal windows will show views from around the aircraft.

Entertainment has always been the secondary priority for the innovators at CPI. Their primary ambition was to solve the questions facing the aviation industry for years now; how to reduce the weight of the aircraft thus reducing fuel consumption which will result in lower fares for the consumers. According to the CPI, for every 1% reduction in the weight of an aircraft, there is a saving in fuel of 0.75%. CPI wants to achieve this milestone but without compromising the customer’s leisure needs.

The cameras mounted outside the aircraft will provide the real-time images on the screens inside the plane. OLED screens (a high-end, thin-film display technology) would be used for the displays inside thus reducing weight and making some more space inside the aircraft to increase the comfort level for passengers. Electronics Company LG recently posted a video of an 18-inch (46cm) screen which bends and contorts while the images on screen are broadcast uninterrupted. CPI is believed to be spending a massive £35m on its research and development in its Sedgefield facility towards OLED displays which would not only help the windowless aircrafts but could also be used in “smart packaging” for medicines or food which would contain information that could be displayed on a mobile phone.

The concept of windowless aircrafts with displays isn't entirely new. A company based in Paris has been working on a similar project and is continuously moving forward with its research and development, and there's also a design in the works for a windowless jet. But the UK based company CPI believes the vision could become a reality within 10 years. With the current rate of development, it would not be long before we realise our long lost dream.