May 2010 covers_Covers.qxd - World Airnews

NEW TURBINE ENGINE
DEVELOPMENT
ADVANCES
EXHIBITING FOR the first time at the
AERO 2010 exhibition held at
Friedrichshafen, Germany, last
month, French-based engine manufacturer,
Price Induction, displayed a model
of its DGEN 380 high bypass ratio turbofan
engine, currently under development.
The DGEN 380 is a two spool, unmixed
flow turbofan jet engine controlled by
FADEC and based on a configuration combining
reduced dimensions, light weight
and an “all electric” system. The weight of
an a fully-equipped dry engine will be
around 77 kg which does not include the
580 mm outer diameter nacelle.
The engine, and a slightly more powerful
“sister” powerplant, the DGEN 390,
have been designed with inherent robustness,
easy integration and maintainability,
low fuel consumption and low level noise
levels (55 dBA) in mind.
The DGEN 380, which produces 575 lbs
of thrust at take-off power, with a by-pass
ratio of 7.6, fits twin-engine aircraft with
a 1 590 kg maximum takeoff weight and a
maximum speed of 240 knots.
The DGEN 390, which produces 740 lbs
of thrust at take-off power with a by-pass
ratio of 6.9, fits twin-engine aircraft with
a 2 000 kg MTOW and a maximum speed
of 280 Knots.
Both powerplants are optimised for a
10 000 ft to 15 000 ft operating altitude,
and a flight ceiling of 25 000 ft.
The DGEN 380 and 390 jet engines are
intended to equip personal light jets (PLJ)
with maximum takeoff weights ranging
from 1 500 to 2 500 kg and accommodating
four to six people.
The first run of the DGEN 380 occurred
at the end of 2006 and Price Induction has
subsequently been working on the testing,
optimisation and production of
demonstration engines.
The engine type was first unveiled at
last year’s Paris Air Show and the experimental
campaign of the DGEN 380 has led
to new architecture of the high pressure
core which has been validated through
more than 50 hours of intensive testing.
That opened the way for the assembly
and testing of the implemented A6 version
of the DGEN 380. To date the engine
type has completed nearly 200 hours of
test running with 2 200 starts. Q
42 WORLD AIRNEWS, MAY 2010.
WAAS/LPV FOR THE
KING AIR C90GTi
HAWKER Beechcraft Services (HBS) has
announced that the certified wide area
augmentation system (WAAS) is now
available on Rockwell Collins Pro Line 21equipped
King Air C90GTi aircraft.
The WAAS installation offers operational
flexibility and cost savings associated
with direct area navigation routes,
which allow for improved access to special
use airspace, high traffic and/or terrain
challenged airports.
Another benefit of the installation is the
DREAMS DO COME TRUE
At left is an example of the DGEN 380 jet
engine and above is an artist’s impression
of the type of aircraft for which it
would be suited.
use of WAAS-enabled localiser performance
with vertical guidance (LPV)
approaches, which are nearly identical to
traditional ILS approaches, and provide
decision heights as low as 200 feet with onehalf
mile visibility, resulting in the reduction
of missed approaches and diversions.
The King Air C90GTi WAAS upgrade follows
the successful launch of Hawker
900XP, 800XP and 750 WAAS installations,
which were introduced last year. Additional
WAAS solutions will be available in
the near future for the remaining Pro Line
21 King Air and Premier models, as well as
Hawker 400XP / Beechjet 400As equipped
with Rockwell Collins AMS-5000. Q
These youngsters, all from the Reach for a Dream foundation which fulfils the dreams
of children between the ages of three and 18 who have been diagnosed as having a
life-threatening illness, had their dreams come true recently when they were all taken
for rides in an NAC Helicopter Division Bell UH-1 “Huey” based at Lanseria Airport.
The “flips” followed a large party with food and other “goodies” sponsored by Spar.