Thu, Nov 03, 2011
After some two years of doldrums and disappointment, its nice to
update a story with real promise. At the 2011 NBAA Convention we
sat down (literally) with Alan Klapmeier to find out the latest
goings-on in the arduous process of bringing an innovative new
turboprop to the market.
The last big update on the Kestrel project involved their
selection of the powerplant... The Kestrel team tells ANN that they
went "through a vigorous process to determine which engine would be
best suited to power the current product in development. The
Kestrel mission is to combine high cruise speed and long range,
while carrying large payloads in and out of short runways, with
particular attention to ease and cost of operation." Ultimately
they selected the Honeywell TPE331-14GR, citing that "the power and
efficiency of the -14GR is ideally suited to this mission. The
TPE331-14GR produces 1759 thermodynamic horsepower, but the Kestrel
will flat rate the engine to approximately 1000 shaft horsepower,
to allow for better high altitude, high temperature
performance."
Kestrel Aircraft is led by general aviation entrepreneur, Alan
Klapmeier, the primary vision behind Cirrus Design's SR20 and SR22
(and, unfortunately, their moribund jet program). Based on the
original work done by Farnborough Aircraft, the Kestrel airplane
will offer six to eight seats in an all composite, single-engine
turboprop, boasting a broad performance envelope, and newest
technologies available in personal and business aircraft.
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