During the 20th century, the use of aluminum alloys helped the Allied Powers win World War II and made modern global air travel possible. Continuous improvements in engine technology, alloys, and manufacturing methods enabled the development of practical and efficient aircraft with varying passenger capacity and range capability. Conventional wrought aluminum alloys make up 70-80% of the weight of single-aisle airliners. Aluminum sheet, plate, forgings, extrusions, and castings all continue to be utilized in modern aircraft construction. This article explores a brief history of the special alloys, tempers, and product forms required to meet the unique challenges of flight.

Beyond weight savings, aluminum products offer corrosion resistance, weldability, and ease of maintenance for a wide range of marine vessels. Aluminum was recognized as a promising material for marine construction from the early days of the industry. The development of 5xxx alloys and large production capacity made aluminum use more technically and economically possible beginning in the 1950s. The variety of aluminum vessels ranges from small fishing boats and fast ferry catamarans to cruise ships and military vessels. All benefit from aluminum's relatively light weight, low maintenance costs, and easy repairability. Other benefits of using aluminum in marine applications include formability, corrosion resistance, and availability in various product forms.

The conclusion of this article series reviews the lasting impact of Ford’s extensive use of aluminum on some of its most popular, high-volume vehicles. It addresses future prospects for aluminum auto body sheet (ABS) production and challenges associated with electric vehicle development.

Ford’s aluminum F-150 venture was now entering the development phase, with teams in place that would spend the next 18 months designing both the truck and the facilities to produce it.

Ford begins to reassess its capacity to develop and launch an aluminum-intensive platform on its own. This article discusses the planning for the aluminum-bodied F-150 in the context of the difficult economic conditions that Ford and the rest of the industry were operating under during the 2008-2010 period.

Industry consolidation, lubricant concerns, and springback issues continued to test automakers and materials producers as they worked toward aluminum-intensive vehicles in the first decade of the twenty-first century.

Automakers and aluminum producers make headway in lightweight vehicle development in the 1990s and early 2000s.

Launching an aluminum vehicle into production is a far greater challenge than building a fleet of prototypes. This installment in the series reviews progress made in the 1990s.

The largest and heaviest component in a car is the body structure, so it was only natural to make this the focus of advanced R&D in the 1970s and 1980s for aluminum auto body applications.

When the first aluminum hood launched in 1977, the mills were delivering rectangular blanks separated by paper to protect the delicate outer surfaces. This article reviews important advances in aluminum forming and heat treating in the latter part of the twentieth century.

As the American car companies moved toward the use of aluminum auto body sheet in the early 1970s, they brought with them a mindset very different from that of the aerospace industry.

In the early 1950s, European carmakers faced stringent fuel economy targets that their American counterparts would only confront 20 years later. This article reviews developments in Europe from the post-war period to the 1970s.

When the Big Three automakers started thinking about replacing steel sheet with aluminum, they found an industry vastly different from the Alcoa-dominated world of the pre-war era. This article describes developments from the period after World War II thorough the early 1970s.

The early days of aluminum development occurred between 1886 and 1948, when the aluminum and automotive industries were both new and undergoing rapid changes in technology and scales of production.