The fly in the ointment for RR remains durability issues affecting some of its engines.
Emirates Airline president Sir Tim Clark publicly scolded RR last year for the durability of the Trent XWB-97 engine, which powers the Airbus A350-1000.
However, it is hoped that a £1bn ($1.3bn) program to improve on-wing time will yield results, with “big improvements” promised for both the Trent XWB-97 and Trent 1000, one of two engine options for the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The Trent XWB-97 will benefit from a new coating for the high-pressure turbine (HPT) blade that is more resilient. That should result in a doubling of the time-on-wing in “non-benign” environments (i.e. the sandy and dusty conditions of Emirates’ Dubai base), and increase this by 50% in “benign” environments.
Finalising work on the project will take two-to-three years before it is then brought to market, but Erginbilgic said he met with Sir Tim last week and that the airline chief was “very happy” with the planned improvements.
RR is also certifying a new Trent 1000 TEN (Thrust, Efficiency and New technology) blade for the 787 program, having already certified the same blade improvement for the Trent 7000,
which powers the Airbus A330neo. RR has retrofitted 20% of that installed fleet.
By Tom Batchelor February 23, 2024, © Leeham News: The turnaround at Rolls Royce is well-underway as the company revealed a more than doubling of its annual profit – ahead of expectations – at its full year 2023... Read More
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