Showing posts with label geared turbofan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label geared turbofan. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 25, 2013

First Test Flight for Bombardier CS100

After $3.4 billion and 5 years development, The CS100 airliner made it's first test flight.  CS100 is an ordinary looking twin engine jetliner with 110 seats.   That's small, the bread and butter Boeing 737 seats 150 to 170, but it's big enough to be a real inter city airliner, rather than a puddle jumper.  Bombardier has 177 firm orders for it.  Boeing and Airbus have a competitor.  
   It is the first airliner to use Pratt and Whitney geared turbofan engines which promise extra good fuel efficiency.  P&W has great hopes set on the geared turbofan.
   If this works out, it will promote Canada in to the very select club of nations advanced enough to manufacture airliners.  Right now the club consists of the US, the Russians (barely), France and Germany (Airbus).  That's pretty small.  The Chinese have a project going but not going well.