Company's Re-engining Programs Will Be Delayed
Clifford Development announced an agreement Friday with
Innovative Solutions & Support, Inc. (IS&S) to provide a
certified Air Data Integration Unit to meet newly defined Federal
Aviation Administration (FAA) certification requirements for all
Williams International FJ44-3A engine installations. Combined with
the new FAA requirement, the IS&S contract will impact
development of the company's Williams re-engining programs for
older Cessna Citations.
The company says the newly instituted FAA requirement mandates a
higher level of safety and reliability than the current
Williams-supplied engine inlet temperature probe can provide. The
newly designed Air Data Integration Unit (ADIU) system supplies
critical temperature readings to the engine’s Full Authority
Digital Engine Control (FADEC) system for automatic engine power
management, as well as other required airframe parameters.
As ANN has reported, Clifford
is working to certify its installations of the Williams
International FJ44-3A engines on the Cessna Citation II and
Citation SII. Supplemental Type Certificates (STCs) were
anticipated in March 2008, but have been delayed five months
pending certification of the IS&S Air Data Integration
Unit.
Under the agreement,
IS&S will provide a TSO certified Air Data Integration Unit
that provides air data, ARINC 429 bus consolidation and triple
redundant Total Air Temperature (TAT) management inputs to the
engine’s FADEC system.
"We are very pleased to have the full support of IS&S in
this important project," said Jim Clifford, chief executive officer
of Clifford Development. "In mid 2007, the FAA reviewed and
mandated stronger requirements for Williams FJ44-3A installations.
Working with the FAA and Williams International, our engineers
identified a certifiable solution and began an engineering effort
to meet the evolving requirements. In September 2007 when our
Citation II first flew, triple redundant temperature probes were
installed on the airplane."
IS&S is the second company to contract with Clifford
Development for the ADIU development effort. The first company
recently withdrew from the project after losing a long-running
intellectual property lawsuit.
Clifford notes its Citation II certification airplane has been
flown extensively. Initial flight test results suggest that the
modified Citation II and Citation SII will likely exceed their
initial performance projections.
"The remaining key item in completing our STCs for the Citation
II and SII is the IS&S unit’s certification. We believe
our solution will be the first one certified for Williams FJ44-3A
installations on any airplane," Clifford noted. "I am pleased that
we were fully engaged with FAA on our programs as these new
requirements emerged. While we regret the delay and the impact on
customers, the end result will be a better, safer airplane."
The Citation II and SII engine conversions are priced at
$2,185,000 and $2,275,000.
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