Airbus says it has discovered an minor engine damage on one of its A320neo flight test aircraft, during hot weather trials in United Arab E...
Airbus says it has discovered an minor engine damage on one of its A320neo flight test aircraft, during hot weather trials in United Arab Emirates.
The engine damage was detected on the Pratt Whitney PW1100G geared turbofan engine equipped MSN6101 flight test aircraft, which was the first A320neo to be equipped with this engine.
The damage was detected when the engine was undergoing a pre-ferry flight check, for flying back to Toulouse, after completing the trials in UAE.
Airbus says borescope inspections revealed minor rubbing between the high pressure compressor blades and compressor wall.
As a precautionary measure, the engine was decided to be removed and a replacement engine was flown from France onboard a Airbus A400M airlifter.
This will be the second engine incident involving the Pratt & Whitney's new generation geared turbofan engine, after an uncontained failure of PW1500G engine in 2014, that powers the Bombardier CSeries.
The P&W's GTF engines features a complex planetary gear system that allows the fan and low pressure turbine to run at their optimum speeds, which improve fuel efficiency, lower noise and require fewer parts.
The A320neo flight test fleet now consist of five aircraft, with three of them powered by the PW1100G engine and two of them powered by the CFM LEAP engine. The second LEAP powered aircraft completed its maiden flight yesterday.
Despite the setback, Airbus says it is confident of meeting the maiden delivery schedule slated for later this year.
The P&W GTF engine family is key to the impressive fuel efficiency offered by all the new generation airliners slated for entry into service before the end of decade, that include the Bombardier CSeries, A320neo, Irkut MC-21, Embraer E-Jet E2 and Mitsubishi MRJ.
