'Several Hundred' Citation Retrofits, Says Garrett

Garrett Aviation Services expects to fit "several hundred" Citation 500s and 501s with FJ44 engines, according to vp sales and marketing Keith Phillips. The FJ44 Eagle II "is a tremendous enhancement to the basic airplane," he says.

Owned by General Electric since 1997, Garrett Aviation Services is a major part of GE's plans to grow toward $1 billion in annual sales in the corporate market. Garrett is banking on RVSM (reduced vertical separation minima) retrofits as well as re-engining, says Phillips. RVSM retrofits can be worth up to 25% as much as a re-engining program.

GE Aircraft Engines is looking at more acquisitions, particularly companies that contribute to "smart engine" technology, the company's vision for engine support in the future. Gordon Fraser, general manager for the CF34-3 engine, says here that "one of the lessons we learned from Honeywell"-in the merger that was aborted last summer-"was that some technologies really attracted us, particularly sensors, controls and monitoring."

Smart engine technology includes the use of advanced monitoring devices to track conditions inside the engine and compare them to a single database of experience, making it possible to detect and repair emerging faults before they affect the operation of the engine.

Fraser still sees a strong corporate aviation market for the CF34-3, which powers the Bombardier Challenger and CRJ-200. The company expects to see 90 more Challengers sold between now and 2005, and, says Fraser, the use of the engine on the RJ improves support for the corporate user: "We have a common production base and we're building time quicker." Service innovations developed for the airline business, such as on-wing service and engine leasing, will be extended to corporate customers, he says.