PW 150A et dérivés

The PW150 can fit into the nacelles of other PW100 engines, making retrofit of PW150s into PW100-powered aircraft a possibility.

Pratt & Whitney Canada is prepared to launch a next-generation turboprop engine for an aircraft in the 90-seat range next year for EIS in 2016, according to VP-Marketing Richard Dussault. Meanwhile, GE Aviation GM-Regional and Large Business Aviation Chuck Nugent said the company continues to develop the CPX38 turboprop engine, which would be a derivative of the GE38 helicopter turboshaft and could be ready for a 2016 EIS.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday at the Regional Airline Assn. Annual Convention in Nashville, Dussault said P&W Canada has "defined an engine in the 5,000-7,000 shp [shaft horsepower]-class" for a next-generation turboprop. The PW150A powering the Bombardier Q400 offers a maximum 5,071 shp.

The company is aiming for 20% better fuel efficiency compared to the PW100/150 family with an engine that will feature a "brand new core," Dussault explained. In conjunction with Hamilton Sundstrand, P&W Canada is working to develop a "fully integrated propeller system" for the engine, he added.

He noted that P&W Canada plans to test the first components for a next generation turboprop engine this summer. "By the end of next year, we will have run a full core demo," Dussault said. "We're planning to do flight testing as soon as we have a customer."

Nugent said that while there is no formal CPX38 program, the development of the GE38 for Sikorsky Aircraft's CH53K helicopter ordered by the US Marine Corps., which is slated for first flight later this year, would enable GE to quickly transition to launching a next-generation turboprop engine program. "Timing is such that … we could support a 2016 entry into service with our CPX38," he told reporters at the RAA conference.

He added that the CPX38 would deliver "15% lower fuel consumption than [turboprop] aircraft today" and will feature a "completely integrated propulsion system." He noted, "As we talk to airlines around the world, there is a strong interest in turboprops … There is a lot of eagerness on what we can deliver on this product from the airframers also."

Airlines are ready for a stretched turboprop, Dussault asserted: "I think they'd like it tomorrow if they could get it. It's a great way for airlines to reduce their seat mile cost for the aircraft … [With fuel prices rising, it is] increasingly difficult for airlines to earn money on short-haul routes."

ATR CEO Filippo Bagnato recently told ATW, "In the medium term, I’d say five years, there will be an opportunity for an airplane a little bit larger than a 70-seater, and on that we are preparing ourselves to be ready when the requirement will come in a more clear way from the airlines." Bombardier VP-Marketing-Commercial Aircraft Philippe Poutissou has said the manufacturer is "still evaluating the market" for a larger turboprop, but conceded, "The trend with respect to regional aircraft has been to go to larger models and certainly some of our operators would like to see [a stretched Q400] and we’re discussing it with them"(ATW, May 1).

Le moteur PW150C a été choisi l’an dernier pour propulser le MA700, un tout nouveau turbopropulseur régional de 78 à 86 sièges lancé par l’avionneur chinois AVIC Xi’an Aircraft. Mettant à profit les avantages reconnus du moteur PW150A, il offrira une performance et une réserve de puissance accrues grâce à l’ajout d’une turbine motrice à trois étages, d’un réducteur modifié assurant la propulsion des hélices de grand diamètre et d’un compresseur basse pression plus puissant. L’homologation de l’appareil et du moteur est prévue à la fin de 2018.