[cobra bill]

Originally Posted by NeoConMan

Sport/aerobatic aircraft of the Extra/Edge/Sukhoi pedigree are state of the art.
If you could remove the skin to see the structural members inside, you would probably crap your pants when you saw how little metal is actually used.
Seriously, those planes are mostly air inside!

There's an insanely thin beam that gives the wings strength - passes thru the fuselage.
Commonly called the wing spar, it's made of aluminum on most aircraft, sometimes titanium and such.
This is the ONLY thing in there that can withstand the bending loads of the landing gear.

The engine mounts consist of a lattice-work of tubes extending back to this junction, giving a 3-D box of sorts when it's all done.

Anyhow, it is an art to put just enough metal in the framework and then use the skin for the final strengthening, with no more material (weight) than absolutely necessary.

There is no spare support or bracework, lose anything and it all comes apart like a house of cards.
From the cockpit back, it's simply a sheetmetal tube with stringers under the skin for stiffness.

Like I said - state of the art....

VERY WELL EXPLANED!