Continental, a subsidiary of Continental Aerospace Technologies Holding Limited, pledged to invest more funding in 2023 to accelerate product research and development. As a result, the global organization promised to increase its research and development investment commitment by 250% compared to previous years. This future funding launches Continental's renewed commitment to fulfilling the company's vision.

“While Continental has made great progress in recent years to continuously innovate our piston engines and engine components, we are ready to accelerate the R&D dedicated to future technological advances in our industry,” said Karen Hong, CEO & President of Continental. “By investing the time and resources now, we are also preparing for the future of general aviation, which could look vastly different from today.”

Continental's investment plans are designed to focus on current AvGas and Jet-A piston engine applications, future engine designs and applications, and sustainable/alternative fuels. “Of course, we cannot share any projects that our airframe partners have not publicly announced, but I assure you that our global engineering teams are dedicated to providing innovative powerplant options that exceed our customers' expectations,” said Dr. David Dörner, Vice President of Global Research and Development.

Even though this renewed financial commitment is for 2023, Continental is already executing the accelerated multi-year R&D approach. For example, Continental announced the Time Between Replacement (TBR) extension for the CD-300 earlier this year. “This was achieved through countless hours of testing and analysis and is one of the types of continuous improvements that customers can expect to see more of from Continental's engineering group that solidifies Continental's position as the first choice in GA power,” said Dörner.