Orenda Recip has completed certification tests on the OE-600 high-power Vee-8 piston engine. Transport Canada's approval was granted at the end of March, climaxing a prolonged development and certification effort, which began in 1994 when the Canadian company acquired the engine programme.
Certification allows OE-600 production to begin, initially for retrofit applications. Orenda has agreements in place to re-engine Beech King Air 90s, de Havilland Beavers and Otters, and Rockwell Aero Commanders. Agreement is also near on a programme to re-engine Air Tractor agricultural aircraft, according to general manager Peter Jackson.
Engines will be produced in a new factory at Debert, Nova Scotia, which will also be the site for a supporting aircraft refurbishment and re-engineing operation. Initial market studies have focused on the Cessna 421 and Piper Navajo piston twins, Jackson says. Other potential applications for the engine include the Mitsubishi Mu-2, he adds.
In the longer term, Orenda Recip wants to supply engines to manufacturers of new aircraft, "but we won't pursue them until we have a type certificate", Jackson says. The company has already supplied an engine to Lancair for its Tigress high-performance kitplane, which was scheduled to fly in late March.
Source: Flight International
