Fun in the factory
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Posted Date: 01/03/2008
Issue: Executive & VIP Aviation International March 2008
Publication: Executive & VIP Aviation International
Investing $100 million in a new engine programme is a sober subject; even for expert engineers. At Snecma, this commitment has been taken in the company’s stride. With Silvercrest core engine tests successfully completed, whole engine design is now being purposefully pursued and that all-important fist airframe application eagerly sought.
Silvercrest is a new generation of 10,000lb thrust engine for the super mid-size and large business jet market and potentially future regional aircraft too. Of course new engine design takes time to prove its mettle but indications from the Silvercrest demonstrator programme are positive.
Test campaign objectives undertaken in early 2008 were to validate the new high pressure core architecture and performance, validate the modules performance and integration, measure combustor emissions and check the core’s mechanical behaviour. After 35 hours of testing, Laurence Finet, General Manager, Silvercrest Programme, was delighted to report that the engine core performed in line with expectations and the mechanical behaviour was excellent. “We want this engine to be state of the art but to be robust and reliable,” she says. “We want it to be light and at a good price. We are working in all these areas.”
Of course the timing related to bringing the Silvercrest engine relies on airframer uptake of the engine and, as Finet points out, all the airframers are working to different schedules in developing aircraft to fit this segment of the market. And – let’s face it – these are schedules to which airframers do not necessarily adhere. However, an entry into service date of 2013 is firmly fixed in the minds of the Snecma board. “We will not be the limiting factor in terms of timeframe,” insists Finet. There has been disappointment along the way too but the Snecma team remains undaunted by the decision that Silvercrest will not power Dassault’s new aircraft in this category. Finet comments that the elimination of Silvercrest from the final stages taught the Snecma team valuable lessons about managing such a project.
For Snecma, Silvercrest is part of a much bigger picture. As François Planaud, Executive Vice President, Snecma’s Commercial Engine Division, explains, Silvercrest is all about bringing the commercial engine heritage to the business aviation community. And what a community this is turning out to be. Lo?c Nicolas, General Manager, Business Aviation Market, points out that 2007 orders in this segment were up 120% over 2006 and 2007 deliveries were up 20.9% over 2006. Now, says Nicolas, 50% of orders are outside the US, there is a new generation of buyers and we have an increasingly mature fractional market. No wonder Snecma is so keen to become a key player.
But it would be wrong to assume that all Snecma’s fortunes in the business aviation market depend upon the Silvercrest engine. Nicolas confirms that there about 100 BBJs flying that are powered by the CFM56 engine built by Snecma and its partner in the project, GE. Further, there are around 40 A319 Corporate Jets and A318 Elites powered by CFM56 engines. Of course these large cabin business jets with CFM56 engines benefit from the offer of power by the hour agreements that have been honed for commercial jet applications, albeit that we are talking very low utilisation compared with airline applications. In terms of aftermarket support for Silvercrest, Snecma’s history of aftermarket support gives Finet the confidence to say: “We know we have good and solid foundations and we will grow from there.”
So as aircraft OEMs review their portfolios and address the super midsize category, Snecma is putting itself centre stage in terms of new product design, aftermarket support and environmental responsibility.
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