The continued trend of increased weight and landing speeds of modern aircraft has strengthened the demand for improved materials for the manufacture of aircraft brakes.

The aircraft brake is similar to the car disc brake since both represent a medium for the conversion of kinetic energy to heat energy by means of friction. There are, however, unique problems which confront the aircraft brake designer since he is required to provide an acceptable mechanism involving components of minimum weight. The present paper discusses some general aspects of aircraft brakes and deals in more detail with some of the materials and material requirements for aircraft brakes; in particular it is hoped to show the manner in which advanced materials can provide some answers to the problems of the most recent development in design.