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Aviation History
1972
1972 - 0025.PDF
FLIGHT international, 6 January 1972 WORLD AERO ENGINES been supplied to McDonnell Douglas. In August the DC-10 entered airline service on schedule, and in the following month the 49,0001b, 218kN CF6-50A made its first flight in a modified B-52 test-bed aircraft. In October GE gave Snecma and MTU the go-ahead for manufacture and test ing of eight CF6-50As for the A-300B, with delivery scheduled for the second half of 1973. In the same month GE delivered its 100th CF6 to McDonnell Douglas. Early in November Air France signed the first order for the A-300B, for six -2 aircraft, in connection with which Airbus Industrie ordered 50 CF6-50As from GE. On November 28 GE delivered the first production -50A (a flight-test unit) for the DC-10 Series 30, ahead of schedule. FAA Type certification of the engine is planned for the middle of this year and Series 30 aircraft should be ready for airline service later in the year. (Initially, until May 1973, the -50A will be de-rated to 47,3001b, 211kN.) Firm orders for the DC-10 now total 134 plus 95 options, for which 150 CF6s were scheduled to have been delivered last year, 300 will be shipped this year, and 400 in 1973. McDonnell Douglas sees a total world market for trijet transports of around 1,300 aircraft up to 1980, of which the company anticipates winning at least 55 per cent. First flight of the A-330B-1 is programmed for October this year, with the -2 version entering airline service in 1974. By then the CF6 should have accumulated some four million hours flying in the DC-10, mostly on the CF6-6 series. The higher performance 50,0001b, 223kN CF6-50B should become available in May 1974, and the 51,0001b, 227kN CF6-50C in May 1975. The latter engine will power the -3 and -7 versions of the A-300B. To meet this overall schedule, Snecma plans to be producing the CF6 in 1973, subsequently reaching a peak rate of ten engines per month to match the A-300B production of four aircraft per month. Airbus Industrie forecasts a world potential market for wide-body twinjets of close to 1,100 aircraft by 1980. Assuming the emergence of an American competitor, the company assesses the A-300B share as between 475 and 500 aircraft. Major disappointment for P&W with the JT9D during the past twelve months has been the stagnation in sales of the Boeing 747, and the lack of any further orders for the JT9D-powered DC-10 Series 20 beyond the 14 aircraft on order by Northwest Airlines. The situation is high lighted by the fact that just over 1,240 JT9Ds were on order in August 1970, and a year later more than 870 of these had been delivered but with a few additional orders having emerged. Production of the 747 has been reduced to four aircraft per month and may be pared even further, to two a month. By early November last year the 900 or so JT9Ds in airline service had completed two million hours flying in less than 22 months of powering the 747. Flight time is being accumulated at the rate of 5,600hr per day, and four million hours will be reached by the middle of this year. These figures are far in excess of those of previous airline engines after a comparable period of operation, and greatly facilitate in-service refinement of the JT9D. Problems typical of normal development and production engine experience resulted in delayed deliveries of the JT9D-7 for the 747B, and partly contributed to lower-than- forecast sales and profits for P&W's parent company's first-half-year figures for 1971. The JT9D-7, which has dry and water-injection ratings of 45,5001b, 202kN and 47,0001b, 210kN respectively, received FAA certification in June. Shipments to Boeing started the following month, and the first 747B was delivered last October following FAA approval of the -7 installation. The JT9D-7 also powers the 747F freighter version of the Boeing aircraft, first flight of which took place last November. Further development of the -7 to higher ratings is planned as the JT9D-7B to be available next year for higher-weight versions of the 747F. In parallel with the -7, the first similarly rated JT9D-15s Rolls-Royce Rb.211 turbofans of 42,0001b, !87kN being prepared at Derby prior to despatch to Lockheed for the TriStar. Five TriStars are now participating in the flight-test programme were delivered to McDonnell Douglas in June for the DC-10 Series 20. First flight of the aircraft is scheduled for next month, followed by delivery to Northwest in November and entry into service in January 1973. The cost to P&W of re-engineering the JT9D to suit the DC-10 and certification of the engine in its new installation has been quoted as around £20 million, without at the moment any signs of more orders being forthcoming for the Series 20. The JT9D-15 is also reported as being still on offer for the A-300B, but is likely to be taken up only if sufficient orders materialise over which to write-off the additional installation costs. It is anticipated that the more powerful 50,0001b, 223kN JT9D-25W will become available next year in time to power the majority of DC-10 Series 20 aircraft now on order. For the Rolls-Royce RB.211, third of the turbofan trio, 1971 has been a traumatic year but one of miraculous survival. By the end of November more than 10,000hr testing had been completed, including nearly 2,500hr in over 400 flights in the first four of five Lockheed TriStars now flying. By the end of last month Lockheed was scheduled to have received 40 flight engines, including 18 required for the TriStar's certification programme. These units are 42,0001b, 187kN RB.211-22Cs, flat-rated to ISA + 3-8°C, corresponding to the rating at which the engine will enter service in April this year. By April 1973 the engine will be certificated to its full RB.211-22B rating of 42,0001b, 187kN up to ISA + 13-9°C. Rolls-Royce has a contract from Lockheed for engine sets covering all the 150 TriStars at present on order. Spare engines and parts are the subject of separate contracts with the individual airline customers. Lockheed has indicated that the recent dollar devaluation would have no significant effect on the RB.211. The company puts its break-even point with the TriStar at between 255 and 265 aircraft. Although it may take time to reach this point, Lockheed has recently re-affirmed its confidence in achieving the necessary sales. Rolls-Royce (1971) has said that development of RB.211 components will be undertaken so that a version of the engine giving 45,0001b, 200kN take-off thrust could enter service late in 1974 if a firm market for such an engine could be established. This would not seem to offer the engine much chance of being available as an alternative powerplant to the CF-6 in the A-300B, where a rating continued overleaf
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