Flight International – 11 June 2019

AIR TRANSPORT

14 | Flight International | 11-17 June 2019 flightglobal.com

R

olls-Royce is “confident” that

issues with premature blade

deterioration on the Trent 1000

are confined to that engine and

will not be replicated on any of

its other powerplants.

The UK manufacturer has been

dealing with durability issues on

the engine since 2016. These

have caused severe disruption to

operators of the Boeing 787

equipped with the Trent 1000.

Problems initially surfaced on

the Package B model but were

later also detected on the Package

C and TEN variants. But, speaking

to journalists on 30 May, R-R chief

customer officer Dominic Hor-

wood stressed the issue was relat-

ed to the specific geometry and

design of the Trent 1000.

“We are confident that what we

are dealing with on the Trent 1000

are design issues that are unique

to that product and they are relat-

ed to the specific configuration,

the specific design of that engine

at a component level,” he says.

While R-R continuously tests

that assumption, “we are confi-

SCHEDULE

Withdrawal from NMA competition was ‘responsible’ decision

Pulling out of the race to power

Boeing’s proposed New Mid-

market Airplane (NMA) was the

right decision for both parties

given the tight timeframe being

presented, Rolls-Royce insists.

In February, the UK manufac-

turer announced it was withdraw-

ing from the competition on the

grounds that Boeing’s entry-into-

service target did not align with

the development schedule for its

own proposed UltraFan engine.

Dominic Horwood, chief cus-

tomer officer, says R-R aims to

have the new geared-fan engine

ready for deployment during the

second half of the 2020s, whereas

Boeing maintains that the NMA, if

launched, would arrive earlier.

“The timing that they wanted,

which we know is mid-next dec-

ade, just didn’t align with our

view of the UltraFan pro-

gramme,” says Horwood.

Pulling out was a “difficult

decision” but also a “responsi-

ble” one, given the time required

to develop a certifiable and ma-

ture engine “that customers can

rely on”, he argues.

R-R’s move leaves propulsion

for the NMA a two-way contest

between CFM International and

Pratt & Whitney.

While declining to be drawn

on potential future applications

for UltraFan, Horwood is confi-

dent that more will present

themselves. “If your timescale is

the period from 2025 onwards in

the way that we think, we cer-

tainly shouldn’t say that NMA is

the only opportunity and we

shouldn’t necessarily say it’s the

best opportunity.

“It was an opportunity that

came very early in that window

where we have been driving to

go beyond the Trent.”

In parallel with UltraFan

development work, conversa-

tions continue with both the big

two airframers on future

programmes. “We will be ready

for when the aircraft manufactur-

ers decide they are ready for

new technology.”

Horwood points out that

although the benefits of a

geared-fan architecture are

greater on a widebody engine,

UltraFan and the new technolo-

gies in its core are equally appli-

cable to any future single-aisle. ■

See Feature P

Trent 1000-powered 787s are still

“significant” and “totally unac-

ceptable”.

R-R remains hopeful that it

will achieve a “significantly

lower level of fleet disruption” by

year-end, citing “good progress”

made on technical fixes for the

intermediate-pressure compres-

sor on Package C engines. That

adds to the rectification of earlier

problems with the intermediate-

pressure turbine blades and fan

seal on the Package B model.

Assisting airlines with recov-

ery from the disruption remains

the “single most important issue

for us to manage for our custom-

ers today”, he says.

Although its decision was not

directly related to the issues,

Trent 1000 operator Air New Zea-

land recently selected the rival

GE Aviation GEnx engine for its

incoming fleet of 787-10s.

While noting that R-R will con-

tinue to power the majority of the

airline’s Dreamliners, Horwood

says he “respects” Air New Zea-

land’s decision. R-R will, howev-

er, “continue to fight for every

787 opportunity”, he says.

R-R points out that this year it

has won two contests on the 787,

with Air Premia and Lufthansa

both selecting Trent 1000 engines

for their on-order Dreamliners. ■

Rolls-Royce

UK manufacturer’s

turbofan is option

for Dreamliner

PROPULSION DOMINIC PERRY DERBY

Blade crack issue ‘unique’ to Trent 1000

Durability problems affecting engines on certain 787s are specific to that powerplant’s geometry, Rolls-Royce insists

dent that is the case and that is

what we have shared with all cus-

tomers”, he says. “That is being

proven out in service with the per-

formance of the Trent XWB and

the sampling we have been doing

of that fleet,” he adds; no “carry-

over” of the issues has been seen.

“I know that’s easy to say, but

it does come down to the detailed

geometry, the detailed design of

this particular engine.”

The Trent XWB exclusively

powers the Airbus A350, while

the A330neo is equipped with

the Trent 7000 – a derivative of

the Trent 1000 which entered ser-

vice late last year.

Horwood admits that levels of

disruption seen by operators of