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Advanced ice and rain protection systems include airfoil (wing and empennage) ice protection, engine cowl ice protection, and windshield ice, frost or rain protection. To prevent ice formation during flight, high temperature air is delivered by the engine bleed air system to valves that feed tubes extending along leading edges of the aircraft airfoils and engine cowls. The heated air warms the surfaces, melting the ice before it had a chance to build up and degrade performance.
Technology that enables the system includes closed loop controls, which minimize bleed flow extraction and thus fuel burn while insuring that all flight safety performance requirements are met.