'Lay Off or We Will Compete' Williams Warns Pratt Canada

Williams International is working on a new family of larger engines, founder and chairman Dr. Sam Williams tells Show News. The company is not giving any details, but Williams hints at his motives:

"Dollar volume of the business increases for the larger engines and decreases for the smaller. If others start endeavoring to penetrate our engine sector, we will move to bigger engines."

Today, Williams' biggest engine is the 2,400-lbs thrust FJ44-2C, and it owns the market at or below that size range. Pratt & Whitney Canada is moving into smaller engines with the PW625 and is competing with Williams to power the new Cessna CJ3. A larger Williams engine would compete with P&WC's PW500 series.

New technology has given Williams an opportunity to expand its product line. "As we improve the technology, we get more out of a given-size core engine," says Williams. "We can go to higher thrust levels while still building the same size of hardware." This would allow the company to build a new engine without investing in all-new manufacturing equipment or test facilities.
Williams' revolutionary product is the small FJX-2 turbofan and its 770-lbs thrust derivative, the EJ22, designed specifically for the Eclipse 500.

Earlier this year (and earlier than planned), Eclipse assumed responsibility for the design of the aircraft, which Williams International had started under subcontract to the new company. In October, Williams resigned from the Eclipse board; this was a planned move, because Eclipse is now a Williams customer.

Production-model EJ22 components are being rig-tested and the plan is that the first Eclipse will fly with production-standard engines.
Now in its final stages of development is the 1,200-lbs thrust FJ33.

"It's going very well," says Williams. "But it's a misinterpreted engine.

"Some people think of it as another FJ44, but it's a very advanced, high-performance engine with a higher thrust/weight ratio."
Despite the demise of the Century Jet, Williams says that there are "new applications being looked at" for the engine.

Williams is not exhibiting at this year's downsized NBAA show, but had been set to appear with a major presence at the postponed event in September.

By Bill Sweetman