FlightGlobal.com
Home
Premium
Archive
Video
Images
Forum
Atlas
Blogs
Jobs
Shop
RSS
Email Newsletters
You are in:
Home
Aviation History
1983
1983 - 0010.PDF
PROPULSION CFM plays another 150-seater card PARIS | CFM has once again modified its proposal for an engine to power the 150-seat Airbus A320. The 22,000-24,0001b thrust CFM56-4, while slightly less economical to own and operate than more advanced developments, will, because of its commonality with the existing CFM56-2, be available two or three years earlier. CFM announced two deriv atives of the current CFM56 series at last year's Farn- borough Air Show, the -2K1 and -2K2, which succeeded the brand new CFM56-2000 suggested in 1981. The -2K1 is derived from the CFM56-2 but it incorporates refine ments built into the newer -3 which, at 20,0001b thrust, will re-engine Boeing 737s, due for service entry in 1984. The -3 benefits from a more efficient fan and low-pressure turbine. Fuel burn is some 2 per cent up on the -2. The -2K2, with re-bladed compressors and better matching between stages, is more advanced and hence offers lower specific fuel burn. But since last summer, Airbus has worked out that, in terms of the reduced direct oper ating cost per passenger afforded by the A320 over the Boeing 727-200, there is very little difference between the new and derived engines. The A320, powered by brand-new engines, would cut DOC per passenger by 21 per cent, while with the -2K2 and -4 the figures are 20 per cent and 19 per cent respectively. With -2K2 development costs ap proaching $600 million, and its later in-service date, Air bus asked CFM to come up with a new proposal. This has now materialised as the CFM56-4,which was proposed to Airbus in November. The airline will offer the combina tion in a major new sales drive early this year (see "A320 tries again", p 4). Fuel burn of the latest en gine is some 3-4 per cent be low that of the -2K2, while 20 The finishing touches are made to a Rolls-Royce RB.211-535C destined for one of Monarch Airlines' three Boeing 757s on order. Aircraft deliveries begin in March. The first airlines to receive the Boeing 757 are Eastern and British Airways per cent of its parts are new compared with 50 per cent for the more advanced engine. This cuts the development cost of the CFM56-4 by around half, enabling Airbus to offer what it calls a "very valid price/performance combination" for the A320. With the CFM56-4, the air craft would be available in 1977. Pratt & Whitney has its own design for an advanced engine to power 150-seaters which it could offer if nego tiations with Rolls-Royce, Japanese Aero Engines, and its PW2037 partners do not bear fruit. Despite the fact that it is at the peak of PW2037 development spend ing and has just announced the PW4000, P&W is willing to spend more money on a 25,0001b engine which is "consistent with the PW2000 series of engines". It believes that the long-term investment will be worthwhile. More news from Turbomeca Turbomeca has commenced testing a new, advanced gas generator as part of a French Government-funded ex ploratory development pro gramme for 1,800 s.h.p. en gines launched in 1980. Called Delta 2, the gas gen erator is currently made up of a three-stage axial com pressor, an annular com bustion chamber and a single- stage high-pressure turbine with cooled blades, operating at higher loads and tem peratures than in current en gines. Turbomeca says that, in parallel to the Delta 2 pro gramme, an RTM322 demon strator will run this year. The gas generator will comprise the Delta 2 compressor, driven by a two-stage turbine designed by Rolls-Royce. For re-fanned Spey, read Tayj Rolls-Royce re-introduces British river names to its j aero-engines with the new 13,0001b Tay. The engine is set to earn $300 million (£187 million) in orders for the Gulf- stream IV. Based around the core of the MK555 Spey, a lighter version of earlier engines de veloped for the Fokker F.28, the Tay has a completely new low-pressure system, with a wide-chord snubberless fan to give it the edge over the com petition. Now in the component de velopment stage, the Tay, will run towards the end of 1983. A 1986 in-service date is planned. Rolls-Royce is said to be close to winning the Gulf- stream order, which would in volve more than 200 engines and keep its factories in Derby and Glasgow busy. Further ahead, it hopes to win orders for a stretched, re-winged Fokker F.28, considerably in creasing its range and bring ing the aircraft within the 1985 Stage 3 noise require ments. Rolls-Royce notes that it has powered all Gulf- streams, and F.28s to-date. Boeing wins Stealth contract Boeing's military aircraft division has been awarded a 28-month US Air Force con tract worth $195,560 (£122,000) to look at engine inlet and nozzle design criteria for advanced subsonic aircraft airframe propulsion systems. The work is likely to result in ideas for Stealth air craft, which need dramatic reductions in the radar cross- section of inlets and nozzles. The three-phase pro gramme is sponsored by the Air Force's Wright Aero nautical Laboratories, and will provide a design tech nology "basket" for future air craft featuring highly inte grated inlets and nozzles systems. Following the development of various configurations, the selected propulsion system concepts will be evaluated in the second phase of the con tract. Finally, design criteria will be developed. 10 FLIGHT International, 1 January 1983
Sign up to
Flight Digital Magazine
Flight Print Magazine
Airline Business Magazine
E-newsletters
RSS
Events
