Austro Engine and Diamond Aircraft Receive EASA Type Certification for Turbo Diesel Airplane Engine
30 January 2009
Austro Engine and Diamond Aircraft Industries have received EASA Type Certification for the Austro E4 turbo-diesel general aviation engine (the AE 300). The AE 300 is an inline four cylinder, 2.0-liter piston engine which uses Jet A1 or diesel fuel to produce 170 hp (127 kW).
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| The AE 300 diesel. Click to enlarge. |
The AE 300 is a liquid-cooled, with a double overhead camshaft (DOHC). Every cylinder has four valves which are actuated by the cam follower. All engine components are controlled by an EEC system.
The engine is equipped with an electrical starter, an alternator, a water pump, an oil pump, a coolant system, an intercooler and an oil cooler. The propeller is driven by a directly integrated gearbox with an integral torsional vibration damper.
The certification process took 42 months at a cost of about €48 million (US$62 million).
The complete program developed into one that was significantly more complex than originally anticipated. Only the full dedication of all participants, specifically the Austrian and European Airworthiness Authorities, MB Tech, Bosch General Aviation Technologies and our employees, enabled the successful conclusion of the certification process.
—Christian Dries, Diamond CEO
There are already 27 Diamond DA42 airplanes with AE 300 engines on the production line, the company said, and type certification for those aircraft is also expected. AE 300 powered versions of the DA40 and the DA50 will follow. Diamond will offer a retrofit solution for the existing diesel-engine-powered Diamond fleet.
Congrads - though no weight, fuel usage figures, etc were provided, this engine seems an accomplishment.
Perhaps the government 42-month, $62 million cost of certification is the anti-accomplishment.
Posted by: kelly | 30 January 2009 at 07:15 AM
Here are the specs... http://www.austroengine.at/cms/upload/AE_300_Technical_Data.pdf
Posted by: Rydogg | 30 January 2009 at 02:14 PM
Here are the specs... http://www.austroengine.at/cms/upload/AE_300_Technical_Data.pdf
Posted by: Rydogg | 30 January 2009 at 02:14 PM
"The complete program developed into one that was significantly more complex than originally anticipated. Only the full dedication of all participants, specifically the Austrian and European Airworthiness Authorities, MB Tech, Bosch General Aviation Technologies and our employees, enabled the successful conclusion of the certification process"
"Perhaps the government 42-month, $62 million cost of certification is the anti-accomplishment."”
Exactly.
If they sell 1000 engines (that's quite a few), they must charge $62,000 extra, just to amortize the Certification.
I don't know what the answer is - but we may no longer be able to afford a zero tolerance attitude toward equipment that can never be perfect, whether they spend $62M for certification or not.
Posted by: ToppaTom | 30 January 2009 at 08:12 PM
I note that Delta Hawk is also moving toward type-certification of an aerodiesel. However, the Delta Hawk is 2-cycle, piston-ported and direct-drive; in other words, much simpler.
Posted by: Engineer-Poet | 30 January 2009 at 09:07 PM
Assumig best specific fuel consumption of 199 g/kW-h, and diesel heating energy of 42,500 kJ/kg, then, the
best mechanical efficiency of this engine is 42.5%.
Posted by: Jorge | 31 January 2009 at 08:47 AM
Assuming a specific fuel consumption of 199 g/kW-h and diesel heating energy of 42,500 kJ/kg, then, the highest mechanical efficiency of this engine is 42.5%, which is
OK for the size of the engine.
Posted by: Jorge | 31 January 2009 at 08:50 AM