A commonly used design approach to enable higher wing spans whilst reducing the effect of the increased bending moment is to use a strut or truss structure to support the wing. Many studies have considered the conceptual this configuration, in particular the SUGAR project in the USA. Whereas most of the work has indicated the benefits of such designs with relation to wing weight and aeroelastic response, little work  has considered the aerodynamic drag resulting from the join of the wing and the supporting structure and much more detailed work is required, which might be even more stringent as we consider transonic flight. Similarly, there have been no studies investigating the effect of the strut and truss structures on aero-acoustic noise generation. Starting from 2013, ONERA developed an extended research activity focused on this configuration, leading to the ALBATROS concept. The project covered the conceptual preliminary design phase, including many parametric studies aiming at the optimal configurations. In the U-HARWARD project, some key engineering and scientific challenges will be: identification of appropriate level models for structure (end fittings, local reinforcement) and aerodynamic penalties (potential decoupling local/global aerodynamics, corner flows and wave drag) for deployment into an OAD tool, exploration of the potential of a multi-function strut (spoiler, load alleviation), exploration of potential gains through use of composite wings (including bending/ twisting coupling).