https://www.engineeringnews.co.za

Airliner manufacturer’s big re-engining programmes advancing

12th June 2015

By: Keith Campbell

Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

  

Font size: - +

Global major airliner manufacturer Airbus has nearly finished the development of the first of its aircraft re-engining programmes. This re-engining is known as neo, for ‘new engine option’. This is for the single-aisle (or narrow-body) A320 family. (The other is for the twin-engined wide-body A330 family. And both programmes involve much more than just the fitting of new engines.)

The A320neo programme was launched in the last quarter of 2010, the concept was completed during the second quarter of 2012, the design was finished by the second quarter of 2013, assembly of the first development aircraft started on the final assembly line during the second quarter of 2014 and this aircraft made its maiden flight during the third quarter of last year. There are currently three development aircraft flying. As of last month, these had accumulated 136 flights, totalling more than 444 flying hours.

Airlines have a choice of two new engines for the A320neo family – the Pratt & Whitney PW1100G-JM and the CFM International LEAP-1A. Two of the development aircraft are fitted with the Pratt & Whitney power plant and these have recently been joined by one aircraft with the CFM engine. “With the Pratt & Whitney [engine] we’re making good progress,” reported Airbus commercial aircraft executive VP and head of programmes Didier Evrard at the company’s recent Innovation Day 2015 media briefing. Some problems have been encountered because of the lack of maturity of the engine, but these are being dealt with by Pratt & Whitney. Flight testing with the LEAP-1A engine has just started. As of last month, there have been six flights, totalling 24 hours, with the Leap-1A.

“We’re going to expedite the last phase of flight testing,” he stated. “A lot of progress has been done. We will not compromise on maturity [of the aircraft as a whole] at all.” Apart from new engines, the A320neo family (A319neo, A320neo and A321neo) also benefits from improved landing gear (increasing the time between overhauls by more than 20%), updated cockpit systems and a new bleed air system, giving greater reliability and reducing maintenance costs (bleed air systems take high-temperature and high-pressure air from the engines and/or auxiliary power units and use this to start engines, pressurise and air-condition the cabin and provide hot air for the de-icing system). There are also aerodynamic improvements, with the fitting of the large winglets Airbus calls ‘sharklets’. The combination of new engines and sharklets reduces fuel expenditure by 15%.

A more efficiently laid-out cabin and improved door exit limits (meaning people can exit the aircraft more rapidly in an emergency) mean that all three members of the A320neo family can carry more passengers. In the case of the A319neo, capacity is increased by four seats to 160, in the A320neo by nine seats to 189 (but the European Aviation Safety Agency has certified the aircraft to 195 seats) and in the A321 by 20 seats to 240. (Note, these improved cabin layouts and increased passenger capacities are also available for current A319, A320 and A321 aircraft.) Even so, the minimum seat width remains 18” between the armrests.

Further, the A321neo can be supplied in a version with a maximum takeoff weight of 97 t (as against 93.5 t for the standard A321neo). This gives this version – designated the A321LR – the increased fuel capacity to achieve a range of 4 000 nautical miles, allowing it to carry out flights across the North Atlantic and positioning it as a replacement for the Boeing 757 (the production of which ended in late 2005).

So far, Airbus has orders for 3 794 A320neos (as well as for 1 350 of the existing A320 family; to date, 6 544 A320 family aircraft have been delivered to customers). In comparison, Boeing’s counterpart, the 737 MAX, has so far gained 2 724 orders. “The market has spoken,” enthused airbus commercial aircraft COO: customers John Leahy. This means that the A320neo family currently has 58% of the market for new-generation-engine single-aisle airliners. Deliveries to customers will start during the last quarter of this year.

The smallest member of the current A320 family, the A318, is not included in the neo programme. It does not have the demand, Leahy explained. “The market trend is for larger, more efficient aircraft.”

South African companies Aerosud and Cobham South Africa are suppliers to the A320 and A320neo programmes, while Daliff Precision Engineering is a subsupplier to Aerosud. •Keith Campbell attended the Innovation Day 2015, in Toulouse, France, as a guest of Airbus.

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

Comments

Latest Multimedia

Magazine video image
Magazine round up | 29 March 2024
Updated 11 minutes ago

Showroom

Stewarts & Lloyds
Stewarts & Lloyds

Stewarts & Lloyds today supplies steel and tube, pipe and fittings, valves, pumps, irrigation, fencing, profiling and roofing products. The cash...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
SABAT
SABAT

From batteries for boats and jet skis, to batteries for cars and quad bikes, SABAT Batteries has positioned itself as the lifestyle battery of...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:0.159 0.215s - 157pq - 2rq
Subscribe Now