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New
Products from P&WC
Pratt
& Whitney Canada is just bursting with new products.
While
it talks up the PW800 geared-fan engine for regional jets,
the company is also seeking a strong launch customer for its
PW600 turbofan (1,000- to 2,000-pounds-thrust) and turboprop
(500-900 shp) for general aviation.
"We
are in advanced discussions with several launch customers
and expect announcements in the near future," says P&WC
president & CEO Gilles Ouimet. "There is a very strong
market interest."
Also new
is the world's most powerful Auxiliary Power Unit, the PW980,
which has been selected by Airbus for the giant A380. "This
is particularly rewarding as it was our first-ever win for
an APU at Airbus," says Ouimet. The engine is a development
of the PW901, currently the largest commercial APU flying,
that is used on the Boeing 747-400.
P&WC
engines have won, flown for the first time or entered service
on an astonishing 21 new airframe applications since the beginning
of 2000. They include regional airliners, transports, business
jets, helicopters, and turboprop military trainers. Among
them: the CASA C295, T-6A Texan II JPATS, Hawker Horizon,
Pilatus PC-21 tactical trainer, the Bell Agusta BA609 tiltrotor,
and the Agusta Bell AB139 helicopter. A significant win was
the ousting of long-term incumbent Honeywell at Dassault Falcon
Jet, as the French manufacturer chose the PW308C to power
the new Falcon 2000EX.
Pratt's
long-term Russian strategy is also beginning to bear fruit
as the Ilyushin IL-114-100 regional airliner enters production
with PW127H turboprops, the Kazan Ansat light twin helicopter
continues flight test with its PW207K engines, and the Euromil
Mi-38 prepares for its first flight with PW127 turboshafts.
Last year
saw delivery of the 500th PW200 turboshaft engine for the
world helicopter market since production began in 1994. Pratt
claims to have powered more than 50% of all light twin helicopters
delivered in 2000.
These
successes take a lot of investment, Ouimet points out. P&WC
devoted 16% of its revenues-some C$400 million- last year
to R&D, and expects to maintain that level for the foreseeable
future. Revenues themselves rose 16.1% last year to C$2.5
billion, and are expected to double in the next decade.
-- J.M.
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The next all-new engine from Pratt & Whitney Canada will be
the PW800, a geared turbofan aimed at 70- to 100-passenger regional
airliners and large business jets.
If it sounds familiar, it is. The PW800 is the next step in bringing
the company's Advanced Fan Technology Integrator engine to market,
following a successful series of tests in anticipation of first
flight in the first quarter of next year. The ATFI can be seen here
in the static display at the United Technologies chalet.
"We are already talking to potential launch customers,"
P&WC president and CEO Gilles Ouimet told Show News.
The ATFI, it turns out, is not just a technology demonstrator or
acquisition program, but the beginning of a determined drive by
P&WC to launch next-generation geared turbofans into a market
that is demanding better fuel consumption, less noise, and fewer
emissions.
Why, one might ask, is an engine company talking to manufacturers
about second generation regional jets of 70 to 100 passengers when
the first generation (which will all be powered by the GE CF34 engine)
in most part hasn't even flown?
"The preparatory work will take a while, and we want to be
positioned for entry into service in 2006," Ouimet says. His
rationale is that if everybody is powered by GE's CF34, then a game-changing
engine that will give a manufacturer an advantage with a differentiated
product can succeed.
The PW800 will be a family in the 10,000- to 20,000-pounds-thrust
range, with specifications of the first model determined by the
launch customer, Ouimet says.
"We hope to launch the engine in about 12 to 18 months,"
he says. "We are getting a lot of interest."
One innovative feature in the PW800 will be its advanced diagnostic
technology. This will make it the first engine designed from the
outset with a true predictive maintenance capability, which Ouimet
believes will bring greatly improved reliability and availability
of aircraft as airlines will be able to plan downtime into their
schedules when the engine signals it needs attention.
Displacing the CF34 will be a tough task (orders for new models
for new regional jets stand at 1,000, plus 1,400 options), as Ouimet
admits. "Success will depend on our ability to persuade a launch
customer that our engine is better enough to result in a significantly
better aircraft," he says. "You don't come in as No. 2
with a me-too product and expect to achieve anything."
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