5/16/2012

A new (civil) engine OEM!

And now for something completely different! Well, not completely - at least, it is about aero engines. But smaller ones: Snecma and Cessna announced, that the new "Silvercrest" engine will power the Cessna Citation Longitude, a stretched version of the Latitude (both models share the same fuselage cross section). The Longitude will be the largest Cessna ever build. The choice of the "Silvercrest" comes with a little bit of surprise, as most Cessna models have P&WC engines. Also the shelved Columbus would have been powered by a P&WC engine, the PW810.
So here is Silvercrest - and with that engine (which will also power the next Dassault Falcon, the "SMS", as "rumours" know) we have a new civil engine OEM - until today, Snecma was "just" a military OEM. Of course, Snecma has a vast experience in the civil sector through CFM as a 50% shareholder. But the business aviation sector is a little bit different than the airlines business.
What strikes me is the claim that the engine will burn 15% less fuel than existing engines in the 10-12,000lbs class. I don't know any engine that is in that thrust class today - it is virtually a new thrust class, so the claim is a little bit misleading or at least difficult to understand.
But further looking into the configuration of that engine, I would say it should be a very efficient one: with a BPR of around 6 the propulsive efficiency is way better than engines we typically have in that arena. And with a 4 stage booster behind the fan and a 4 stage axial/1 stage radial  HPC the OPR should be also considerably higher than for a PW300 or HTF7000 or even the higher thrust BR710.
But I doubt that fuel burn is a decisive factor in that segment anyway. If you buy an aircraft for $26 million and spend (typically) some more million $ for the finishing inside, you do not really care about fuel burn. Business aircraft are only flying 400-500 hours a year.
So please welcome Snecma to the world of civil engine OEM's - and wish them good luck with Silvercrest.