COMPOSITE WING STRUCTURE AND METHODS OF MANUFACTURE

A method of making a composite skin (199) for a tiltrotor aircraft includes providing a first skin (201) in a mold (220), the first skin (201) having a periphery (201p) defined by a forward edge (201a), an aft edge (201b), and outboard ends (201c, 201d); providing a plurality of honeycomb panels (203) having an array of large cells (205) onto the first skin (201), each cell having a width of at least 1 cm; assembling the plurality of honeycomb panels (203) along the longitudinal axis of the first skin (201) to form a honeycomb core (207) having an outer perimeter (207p) within the periphery (201p) of the first skin (201); positioning a plurality of filler members (209) between the plurality of honeycomb panels and positioning a plurality of filler members on outboard ends of the honeycomb core, wherein each of the filler members is butt jointed to the respective adjacent honeycomb panel; positioning a second skin (211) onto the honeycomb core (207), the second skin (211) having an outer perimeter (211p) within the periphery (201p) of the first skin (201); and curing an adhesive to create a bond between the first skin (201), the honeycomb core (207), and the second skin (211) to form a composite skin (199).