Pratt & Whitney completes ground testing of A320neo’s first test engine

US-based Pratt & Whitney (P&W) has completed ground testing of its PurePower PW1100G-JM test engine, designed to power the Airbus A320neo aeroplane, at the company’s test facility in West Palm Beach, Florida.

The engine completed more than 120 hours of testing, validating overall engine operation and fuel efficiency, the company said.

The PurePower PW1100G-JM will soon undergo flight testing on the company’s experimental 747 aeroplane at the Mirabel Aerospace Centre in Quebec, Canada.

Producing 33,000lb of thrust, the PW1100G-JM is the third variant of the PurePower PW1000G line and is the first engine to power the Airbus A320neo aircraft.

It uses an advanced gear system for the fan, which received validation on A340 flying-testbed aircraft in Toulouse in 2008.

The gear system allows the engine’s fan to work at a variable speed when compared with the low-pressure compressor and turbine. Combined with an advanced core, the engine offers fuel efficiency and environmental benefits.

Two additional engines are under tests as part of the company’s eight engine test programme, while a fourth engine is in the final assembly stage and will begin testing next month, according to Pratt & Whitney.

Pratt & Whitney commercial development programmes vice-president Bob Saia said the company has completed more than 4,500 hours of engine testing to date with its geared turbofan programme family.

"The PW1100G-JM engine testing is going extremely well," he said.

"We have leveraged our product line design strategy, common architecture and scaling to drive early engine maturity.

"Our first PW1100G-JM demonstrated performance better than our pre-test forecast."

Scheduled to enter service in late 2015, Pratt & Whitney’s PurePower PW1100G-JM has been selected by 13 customers and has logged more than 1,400 firm orders so far.

In October 2012, Pratt & Whitney completed assembly of its first engine to test (FETT) for its PurePower PW1100G-JM engine.

Pratt & Whitney, a division of United Technologies, is involved in the design, manufacture and service of aircraft engines, auxiliary and ground power units, small turbojet propulsion products and industrial gas turbines.

---

Image: PW1100G-JM first engine to test (FETT) on the stand. Photo: courtesy of United Technologies Corporation.