Snecma and NPO Saturn are to invest €18 million ($21 million) to build an open-air testbed for the SM146 turbofan they are jointly developing to power the Russian Regional Jet (RRJ).
The SM146 engine was selected earlier this year to power the family of 60- to 95-seat jets that is being developed by a team led by Sukhoi and involving Illyushin, Yakovlev and Boeing.
The testbed will be built at NPO Saturn's test site near Rybinsk in Russia. It will enable test- ing in three areas: acoustics, performance and certification, including operation in crosswinds, and water and ice ingestion.
Testbed construction will begin immediately as timing on the project is tight, with the SM146 due for certification at the end of 2005 and the RRJ planned to be operational from 2007.
Source: Flight International
