Pratt & Whitney PurePower PW1200G engine successfully completes first flight test program

The Pratt & Whitney PurePower® PW1200G engine successfully completed its first flight test program on June 21, following 23 flights and 127 hours on a specially designed stub wing aboard Pratt & Whitney's Boeing 747SP flying test bed. Pratt & Whitney is a United Technologies Corp. company (NYSE: UTX).

The flight test program, which began on April 30, successfully validated the PW1200G engine's in-flight performance, operability and control systems. To date, Pratt & Whitney has completed more the 1,500 hours and nearly 6,000 cycles in testing the PW1200G engine, which will power Mitsubishi Aircraft Corporation's Mitsubishi Regional Jet.

"We're pleased to have successfully completed our PW1200G engine's flight test program," said Bob Saia, vice president, Pratt & Whitney Development Programs. "To date, we have completed more than 3,000 hours and more than 9,000 cycles of full engine testing for the entire PurePower Geared Turbofan™ engine program and we continue to see the geared architecture's benefits in dependability, reduced fuel consumption, lower noise and emissions."

The PurePower engine family uses an advanced gear system allowing the engine's fan to operate at a different speed than the low-pressure compressor and turbine. The combination of the gear system and an all-new advanced core delivers double-digit improvements in fuel efficiency, environmental emissions and noise.

The PurePower engine family also shares common, advanced cores and features flight proven, next-generation technology. The engine core consists of an ultra-efficient high-pressure compressor, a low-emissions combustor, and state of the art high-pressure turbine module.