PW127XT-L Engine Approved by Transport Canada
On the occasion of the European Regions Airline Association General Assembly, Pratt & Whitney Canada and ATR jointly announced the certification of the PW127XT-L engine by Transport Canada.
This engine variant offers increased performance to match the requirements of ATR’s future Short Take-Off and Landing (STOL) version, the ATR 42-600S. This certification is a key milestone in the program development, and an important step towards increasing regional connectivity and airport accessibility across the globe.
The ATR 42-600S will reduce take-off and landing distances to eight-hundred meters in standard flight conditions. The high-wing twin-turboprop aircraft will be able to access one-thousand global airports with less-than-ample runways, providing local populations with a greater, more comfortable, alacritous, and low-emission access to the global marketplaces, healthcare, education, and culture, while creating new business opportunities for airlines.
Edward Hoskin, Pratt & Whitney Canada’s Vice President, Engineering said: “The PW127XT-L marks the 200th engine type certification achieved by Pratt & Whitney Canada, and delivers the 20% lower maintenance costs, forty-percent improved time on wing, and three-percent better fuel efficiency and reduced CO2 emissions, which characterize the PW127XT engine series.”
“This certification is a significant milestone for the ATR 42-600S program, as modifications to the engines are part of the major technical changes we are bringing to the aircraft, in addition to the rudder and avionics, with a huge influence on take-off performance” said Daniel Cuchet, ATR’s SVP Engineering.
Mr. Cuchet added: “The PW127XT-L offers the same turbomachinery as the existing PW127XT-M, and the Engine Electronic Control has been adapted to offer better versatility and increased performance. This great achievement comes as a reward after many months of hard work and constant collaboration between the ATR and Pratt & Whitney Canada teams.”
Validation of the engine modification by EASA is scheduled before the end of the year. The integration of the modified engine with the other aircraft systems will become ATR’s main focus moving forward, targeting an entry into service in 2025.
ATR, to date, has received over twenty commitments for the ATR 42-600S and foresees a great deal of potential for the aircraft variant in several regions of the globe, including Europe, with Portugal, Greece, Iceland, Italy and Norway as key areas of interest.