Snecma (SAFRAN Group) announced today the successful completion of a series of tests of the Silvercrest engine core demonstrator. To date, the core has logged 80 hours of operations, including more than 60 hours ignited, in less than four months. During these tests, the core reached its nominal takeoff speed of 20,300 rpm.

The test campaign started at the end of November 2007 at Snecma's Villaroche plant near Paris, using a test cell specifically designed for core testing, and was completed on March 31, 2008. This series of tests has validated the core architecture, integration and performance. At the same time, these tests confirmed the outstanding level of performance and efficiency of the compressor, combustor and high-pressure turbine, along with the dynamic performance of the entire demonstrator.

"We only needed 26 months to validate the architecture of the Silvercrest core demonstrator," emphasized François Planaud, vice president and general manager of Snecma's commercial engine division. "We met and in most cases exceeded all our performance objectives, so we're very satisfied with the demonstration program, for which the next step will be to analyze the results in detail. Based on these excellent results, we are pursuing our work on the Silvercrest business jet propulsion system project, and are confident that this is the right product for the 9 500 to 12,000 thrust class for business jet applications."

necma is the first engine manufacturer to have validated a new engine concept in the 10,000-pound-thrust class by testing a core demonstrator. The success of this initial series of tests marks a major milestone in the program, leading to an optimized concept for the complete engine.

The Silvercrest engine family, developing 9,500 to 12,000 pounds of thrust, is designed to power super-midsize and large, wide-cabin, long-range business jets. Silvercrest will offer significant improvements over the current generation of business jet engines in terms of performance, reliability and environmental friendliness. The design of these engines also makes them apt for next-generation regional jets in the 40 to 60 seat class, when operators begin to replace their current fleets.