Research grants worth $4 million have been awarded by the Czech government to GE Aviation Czech for new turboprop engine technologies.
Using the grant awarded by the Czech Republic's ministry of industry and trade, GE Aviation Czech will work with the Czech Aeronautical Research and Test Institute to incorporate new technology into a derivative of the Walter M601 turboprop engine, the H80.
The new technologies include a more aerodynamic design, new materials, axial compressor blisks, a reduced mass and smaller number of parts.
GE Aviation Czech claims that the H80 engine will deliver more shaft-horsepower than the M601, improved fuel efficiency, increased temperature margin, enhanced hot-day take-off performance and high-altitude cruise speeds and an overhaul interval of 3,600h and 6,600 cycles.
The development work is being performed under GE Aviation Czech's aircraft engine design organisation approval authority issued by the European Aviation Safety Agency. Type certification is expected in early 2010 followed shortly by certification in the USA.
"The confidence and support that the Czech Republic's ministry of industry and trade has bestowed upon GE Aviation Czech further solidifies its commitment to the aviation industry," says GE Aviation Czech president Paul Theofan.
Source: Flight International
