ANDREW DOYLE / SINGAPORE
Meanwhile, rival car manufacturer Toyota studies potential replacement market for older general aviation aircraft in USA
Honda Motor aims to fly a prototype turbofan-powered light aircraft by mid-2003, but is yet to formally commit to entering the aviation market. The Japanese manufacturer is releasing few details of the project other than confirming it will produce the engine and airframe and that the aircraft will seat fewer than 10 people.
"We don't have any concrete plans to bring it to the market," says Honda. "We are continuing our research. It's still at an early stage and it's really unclear whether this will represent a viable business in the future," it adds.
The project is being worked on in the USA by Honda's research and development division.
Honda has been studying a family of small turbofans for several years and benchtested a 1,800lb- thrust (8kN), 220kg (100lb) engine known as the HFX-20 in 1996. It developed the powerplant over a 10-year period before the test phase in conjunction with Mississippi State University. The partners built and flew a small experimental research aircraft called the MH-02, which was a high-wing monoplane with forward-swept wings.
The HFX-20 is equivalent in size to the Williams-Rolls FJ44 turbofan used to power Cessna's Citation CJ1, CJ2 and CJ3 jets.
Rival Japanese car manufacturer Toyota began flight testing in May a proof-of-concept light aircraft built by Scaled Composites (Flight International, 25 June-1 July). Dubbed the Toyota Advanced Aircraft (TAA), the four-seat piston single is a conventional design, with low wing and tail.
Toyota is studying the potential market to replace around 200,000 older general aviation aircraft now flying in the USA but, like Honda, cautions it might not proceed with the project.
Source: Flight International
