As Bombardier readies to resume flying its CSeries CS100 test aircraft in “the coming weeks,” it remains confident in Pratt & Whitney’s ability to deliver on its commercial promises that the airplane’s PW1500G geared turbofans will perform at the level and with the reliability both companies expected.
Speaking with AIN on the eve of the opening day of the Farnborough International Airshow, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft CEO Mike Arcamone insisted that he harbors no animosity toward P&W, notwithstanding the disruption the May 29 uncontained failure of one of the GTFs on the CSeries’ first flight test vehicle (FTV1) undeniably caused.
“We only have one partner, and we’ve chosen Pratt,” said Arcamone. “So in partnerships you sometimes get these types of issues but you’ve got to behave as a partner. Pratt is being transparent with us. It tests our partnership but I can tell you they’ve been very responsive.”
Arcamone noted that CSeries customers have expressed virtually unanimous support for Bombardier’s choice for the CSeries, and that in no way has the engine incident damaged the credibility of the program.
“When we talked to our customers, the feedback was ‘you’re expected to find issues when you’re doing a flight test’,” claimed Arcamone. “Flight test programs are supposed to find snags. We’re comfortable it has been found and that Pratt is addressing it.”
Although he confirmed that the engine failure caused manageable damage to the fuselage of the airplane, Arcamone declined to specify the precise source of the engine problem or identify a precise timeframe for the airplane’s return to flight testing.
“[Pratt & Whitney] has made a modification; they are validating the modification; so I would leave it up to Pratt to give you the details of what the modification [entails],” said Arcamone. “It’s their engine. I won’t speak on their behalf.”
He continued to insist that the incident will not result in any change to the plan that calls for certification in the second half of 2015.
Russian Concerns
The head of one CSeries customer–Russia’s Ilyushin Finance Company (IFC)–told AIN just before the show that fire broke out after oil supply lines had leaked and that he expected the incident to result in further delays to the program. “I think this mishap will cause postponements of aircraft deliveries,” said IFC general manager Alexander Roubtsov. “At this point it is difficult to predict the exact timing. [However], I believe the postponement will be limited to several months.”
Since launching the program in 2008, Bombardier has announced no fewer than four separate delays to the CSeries, the most recent of which shifted expected certification from September 2014 to the second half of 2015, giving the company a six-month window in which to accomplish its goal. Originally expected to gain certification by the end of last year, the CSeries experienced several delays to first flight before finally taking to the air last September.
Between then and the time of the engine failure four flight test airplanes had flown some 330 hours during about 100 sorties. On June 10 Bombardier confirmed it had re-started ground testing, and said it and Pratt & Whitney had gained a “very good understanding” of the sequence of events that led to the incident.
“Now that we have a good understanding of what happened, a procedure is in place that introduces control measures to avoid such events,” said CSeries program vice president and general manager Rob Dewar. “We are working to get back on track and today have resumed ground engine runs to return the FTVs to flight test program safely…we have also been running stationary tests of other systems such as the APU, electrical systems and avionics with EIS still expected in second half of 2015. As for the aircraft damage on FTV1, it is manageable and our engineering and maintenance teams have commenced repairs.”
During Dewar’s last program update, posted on Bombardier’s CSeries website on July 12, the CSeries chief said the company had just finished electromagnetic interference and lightning tests on the fifth and final flight test vehicle, now scheduled to fly by the end of the year. On FTV7, or the first CS300, Dewar reported that the company completed assembly of the airframe and applied power to its systems several weeks ago in preparation for first flight “later this year.”
During an earlier update, Dewar acknowledged certain “challenges” associated with inclement weather during the winter and spring at Bombardier’s main flight-testing site in Mirabel, Quebec. Still, the company managed to finish STOL testing, which, said Dewar, proved “in line” with predicted results in all configurations and validated takeoff and landing performance. The airplane used for STOL testing, FTV1, had reached the airplane’s maximum altitude of 41,000 feet and maximum speed of Mach .82.
Meanwhile, in April, Bombardier flew FTV2 to Eglin Air Force Base in Florida for hot and cold weather testing on the integrated systems for the first time. Again, said Dewar, the tests yielded “great results.” Dewar also reported steady progress on FTV3, based at Bombardier’s flight test center in Wichita, Kansas, where avionics and electrical testing took place. Finally, FTV4 flew for the first time on May 18. Painted in full Bombardier livery, that airplane started testing airplane performance, including speed, range, drag and airflow characteristics.
