On the Record with
JEAN-PAUL BECHAT, CHAIRMAN,
SNECMA GROUP

Snecma, Rolls May Join on A400M Engine

Snecma Chairman Jean-Paul Bechat.

ILA 2000: The two rival teams competing for the engine on the Airbus Military A400M transport-one group is led by Snecma, the other by Rolls-Royce Deutschland-will likely form a single partnership to power the aircraft.

"We've been competing against Rolls-Royce on this for 1-1/2 years, and are now in the final stages," Snecma Group chairman Jean-Paul Bechat told Show News. "But the customer-Airbus Military-and their customers, the seven governments involved, have asked if we can do this as a common project."

More specifically the UK government, in being the first to place a commitment for the A400M with an order for 25, made it clear it wants Rolls-Royce involved.

"I fully understand that. So we should find a way to have a common project," Bechat said.
It is, however, easier said than done. The 13,000 shaft horsepower M138 engine-the most powerful turboprop in the western world-is based on the core of the Snecma M88 fighter engine that powers the Rafale. The Rolls-Royce contender utilizes the core of the BR700 engine developed for regional airliners.

Snecma's partners-MTU of Germany, FiatAvio of Italy, ITP of Spain and associate partner Techspace Aero from Belgium-will all be involved in the compromise with the Rolls-Royce consortium.

"This should not be a battle," said Bechat. Luckily, engines nowadays are modular, and this may help reach a solution. In any case, there is plenty of time to get together with Rolls-Royce and design and certify the engine before it is needed by the A400M.

Bechat pointed out that the engine will depend heavily on lessons learned in commercial rather than military programs, and this will facilitate its development.

He added that Snecma and Rolls-Royce have long been partners on commercial engines, with Snecma subsidiary Hispano-Suiza providing power transmissions and accessory gearboxes for a wide range of engines, including the BR700 series, and the Trent 500, 700 and 800. "And we are also discussing a joint venture for military aircraft engines of the future," he said.

"In this respect we already work well with Rolls-Royce; a program on the engine for the A400M will be a follow-on."

Bechat likened the situation on the M138 to that in the US on the Joint Strike Fighter, where governments are prepared to share a program among competitors in order to maintain an industrial base.

The situation is similar in space, where Snecma and Pratt & Whitney have agreed to jointly develop the new 45,000-60,000 lbs thrust SPW2000 cryogenic liquid oxygen-hydrogen rocket motor for the Ariane 5, Delta and Atlas launch vehicles.

"Military and space programs are limited in quantity and by national budgets, so it will become more necessary to work together with competitors," Bechat said. "These are very different markets than for commercial aircraft, where there is room for competition."

©Show News 2000