Honeywell is planning a raft of new engines over the next few
years in a bid to retain its lead as the No.1 propulsion supplier
to business aviation.
Recent wake-up calls, including losses to archrival Pratt &
Whitney Canada on the Falcon 2000EX and 7X, and a decision not to
play in the emerging light jet market, have forced it to evaluate
its future strategy. Adding pressure is news that Rolls-Royce is
studying a direct competitor for Honeywell's best-selling 3,000-5,000
pounds thrust class TFE731 range, and that Williams is moving into
that market with its biggest engine to date, the 3,500 pounds thrust
FJ44-4.
"We are committing significant resources in what the replacement
for the731 will look like," Russ Turner, president of Honeywell
Engines, Systems & Services told Show News. "It will probably
be a development of the AS907 in that thrust range." A core
demonstrator is already running as a precursor of a new 3,000-5,000
pounds thrust AS903/4/5 family.
Honeywell has delivered 11,000 TFE engines of all types, more
than double the number of engines of its nearest competitor.
The brand new 7,000 pounds thrust AS907 is about to enter service
on the Bombardier Challenger 300, flat-rated to 6,500 pounds. It
represents the latest engine technology at Honeywell; designed for
simplicity, reliability, economy, low maintenance and low life cycle
costs, it will enter service with more than 30,000 hours of testing
including a grueling "shake and bake" marathon that uncovered
any weak spots in the engine, components and nacelle.
Honeywell set hitherto unattainable targets for the AS907: it
had to show a 30-40% improvement in cost of operation, cost 20 %
less in dollars per pound of thrust, and enter service with on-condition
maintenance, 3,500 hours to first inspection, and 7,000 hours to
overhaul-about 14 years in the life of a typical corporate business
jet. It would also have 30% fewer parts than comparable engines,
and every line replaceable unit could be removed and replaced in
less than 15 minutes.
"There wasn't a single engine issue on the whole of the Challenger
300 test program," Turner noted, pointing to Honeywell's development
of reliability not just on the engine but the whole propulsion system.
"This will be the best-ever introduction into service of any
engine."
Nevertheless Honeywell is playing it safe. No fewer than nine
flight line and 11 line service centers are ready to support the
AS907, and full stocks of spares, spare engines, nacelles and line
replaceable units have been strategically placed. "We'll probably
be like the Maytag repair man-much of this won't get used for a
while," Turner predicts. "But we want a complete support
structure in place from Day One."
--John Morris
Auxiliary power units (APUs) may not be the
most glamorous topic in business aviation, but to Honeywell
they are a hotbed of technology.
Take the new RE50 APU unveiled here, the smallest
one available for business aviation and one that could be
keeping cabins cool in aircraft as small as King Airs and
entry level Citations as well as helicopters.
Two key technologies-eliminating the gearbox
by putting the power generator on the main shaft, and patented
air bearings-make this the first lightweight gearless and
oil-less APU to come to market. Honeywell regards its innards
as so secret that it will not release even a cutaway drawing,
although a mockup of the outside shape is on view here at
NBAA.
As the Joint Strike Fighter pushes the boundaries
for more-electric aircraft (Honeywell is developing its integrated
APU, generator and thermal management systems), so its technology
is finding its way into other markets. "What we learned
there we used on the RE50," Honeywell's Russ Turner told
Show News, "not the hardware, but the technology and
integration." Technology from Honeywell's turbocharger
business also plays a part, allowing simplicity and low cost.
The RE50 weighs in at just 50 pounds before installation.
It will allow electric engine starts and reduce bleed air
demands on the engines from other systems.
Meanwhile Honeywell continues to improve its
36-100 series of APUs. The latest iteration is the 36-150
for the Falcon 7X and Gulfstream 450; a ported shroud replaces
the variable guide vanes, allowing improved compressor performance
and greater reliability.
