GE is still “leaning” towards placing a centre of excellence to produce the 1,300shp engine selected by Textron Aviation to power a new single-engined turboprop in the Czech capital, says Brad Mottier, vice-president and general manager of the GE business and general aviation unit.
Last January, GE announced that the first in a new family of turboprop engines in the 800shp to 1,600shp thrust class will be produced in Prague, where GE had acquired Walter Engines, which developed the M601 turboprop engine in the late-1960s.
GE is still committed to placing final assembly, testing and delivery of the new turboprop engine family in Europe.
Major components of the new engine are already split between GE-owned facilities in Poland and Italy, both locations belonging to Avio, the Italian engine specialist that GE acquired in 2013.
GE plans to bring the first engine to test in 2017, followed by certification in 2020.
The advanced engine will feature a composite, five-bladed propeller system supplied from McCauley, a subsidiary of Textron.
GE is equipping the engine with electronic controls for thrust, fuel flow and propeller speech and speed, cooled turbine blades and an engine core featuring a 16:1 compressor ratio, which the company claims is the most efficient power system in the industry.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
