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Aviation History
1982
1982 - 2746.PDF
PROPULSION Pratt & Whitney announces PW4000 EAST HARTFORD In a surprise move, Pratt & Whitney has announced the "radically new" PW4000 as a JT9D replacement producing from 48,000-60,000'ib thrust. P&W has made the decision despite being heavily com mitted to its other new engine, the PW2037, which will power Boeing 757s from 1984. Pratt & Whitnev says that the PW4000 will be ready for certification in 1986. Tins early date is possible because the new engine will draw on much of the technology that has been introduced in the PW2037. Nevertheless, the programme will cost P&W hundreds of millions of dollars and will have to draw on considerable re sources both within and outside P&W's mother company, United Tech nologies. The PW4000, for which a market of 6,000 units is anticipated, is aimed far and wide in its applica tions. It is designed to fit in to the same nacelle size as required for Pratt & Whitney's latest version of the JT9D, the -7R4, and therefore qualifies for new Boeing 747s and 767s, and Airbus A310s. At its 60,0001b rating it meets General Electric's CF6-80C2 head-on. The latter engine is set for certification in June 1985. With technology somewhat older than that of the PW4000, it might be less attractive to airlines need ing this kind of power. The A300-600 and new versions of the Boeing 747 weighing around 850,0001b are current candidates for 60,0001b thrust. Pratt & Whitney is also eyeing the DC-10 re- engining market, and may offer the PW4000 for future versions of the air craft, should they materi alise. All in all, the company reckons that 1 T • flit* ' ; •*• \J3 RB.199 production is at its peak and over 600 will have been turned out by the end of the year demand for the 48,000-60,000 lb thrust class of engine will double in the next ten years. So what are the selling points of the PW4000? It burns 7 per cent less fuel than the JT9D-7R4, which Pratt & Whitney says will save a four-engined aircraft around $1 million per year. Perhaps more significantly, the PW4000 runs with 54 per cent fewer parts than the engine it will replace. This has been achieved, it is claimed, by continuing down the PW2037 road. The core will operate at higher speeds with fewer blades and full authority digital electronic control will be standard. Fewer parts mean easier management during over haul, reduced time in the shop, and less parts re placement cost, notes P&W. The engine does, however, use many of the same tools and handling equipment as the JT9D. Another feature is that the most commonly purchased replacement parts for the PW4000 will cost 25 per cent less, although there is as yet no word as to how this has been achieved. "The outside looks the same," said P&W's presi dent Richard Coar in an nouncing the engine. "The big changes are on the inside." A new high-pressure compressor rotor has been developed which replaces the bolted together multiple discs and spacers previously used. Pratt & Whitney is not releasing much about the rotor, beyond saying that it is designed so that the individual rotor stages expand automatically, tight ening blade tip and seal clearances. Rolls-Royce is not, as yet, offering a 60,0001b version of its RB.211-524, but is aiming at the "high fifties". The current engine is performing very well on Boeing 747s and more de velopments are on the way, says the company. Pratt & Whitney's news sheds no light on the great 10-tonne engine debate. Discussions on partnership among Rolls-Royce, Ja panese Aero Engines and P&W and its partners in the PW2037 are said to be at a low ebb because of the poor demand for 150-seat aircraft. • Pratt & Whitney's East Hartford facility has nar rowly avoided a major strike with the recent ac ceptance of a new three- year contract. De Havilland checks out PW120 De Havilland has been test running a PW120 turboprop to its full 1,800 s.h.p. take off power in the Dash 8, due to make its first flight next June. Checking out the Pratt & Whitney (Canada) turbo- shaft in its own specially- built test rig at Downsview, Ontario, has enabled de Havilland to resolve minor problems associated with the oil, fuel, and starter system before flight test. This is the first time the company has checked out a new engine destined for its airframes since 1958. The rig has also proved invaluable as a training aid. Experience of propeller per formance and control have led to simplification of the engine nacelle and helped to sort out the test aircraft instrumentation. Testing will continue for two or three years, during which time de Havilland will amass as many test hours as it can to learn the long term performance details the PW120. 7750 FLIGHT International, 18 December 198:
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