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Aircraft engines and propulsion systems

121 articles

ACAE CJ-1000A

The ACAE CJ-1000A, Chinese name Changjiang (Yangtze River), is a Chinese high-bypass turbofan built by AECC as a domestic alternative to the LEAP-1C on the COMAC C919, and remains in certification flight testing.

Afterburner

An afterburner, also known as reheat or tailpipe burning, is a combustion system that injects fuel into a jet engine's hot exhaust for a temporary thrust boost, at roughly double the fuel use.

Aircraft engine

An aircraft engine, also called an aero engine, converts fuel energy into thrust or shaft power to propel aircraft; the two families are piston engines and gas turbines.

Aircraft piston engine

An aircraft piston engine is a reciprocating internal combustion engine that burns fuel in cylinders and drives a propeller, built in spark-ignition gasoline and diesel versions and still common in general aviation.

Aircraft piston engines by decade

Aircraft piston engines by decade covers aero piston engine development from WWI rotary engines to 28-cylinder radials of 3,500 hp, before turbines displaced pistons after 1950.

Allison Engine Company

Allison Engine Company was an American aircraft engine manufacturer based in Indianapolis, Indiana, best known for the V-1710, the only U.S. liquid-cooled engine produced during World War II.

Allison Model 250

The Allison Model 250, military designation Allison T63, is a small turboshaft and turboprop engine in production since 1962, powering light helicopters like the Bell 206.

Allison T56

The Allison T56 is a single-shaft military turboprop engine developed for the Lockheed C-130 Hercules in 1954 and still in production after more than 70 years.

Allison V-1710

The Allison V-1710 was a liquid-cooled, 12-cylinder V-type piston aircraft engine built by General Motors in Indianapolis, powering over 60 percent of U.S. Army pursuit aircraft during World War II.

Auxiliary power unit

An auxiliary power unit (APU) is a small gas turbine, usually in an airliner's tail, that supplies power and air when the main engines are off and starts them.

Avio Aero

Avio Aero is an Italian aerospace company founded in Turin in 1908, a subsidiary of GE Aerospace since 2013, making engine components and turboprops for civil and military aviation.

Axial compressor

An axial compressor is a compressor in which air flows parallel to the axis of rotation through alternating rotor and stator blades, used in jet engines.

Bleed air

Bleed air, also called engine bleed air, is compressed air drawn from a jet engine's compressor to power aircraft systems like cabin pressurization, air conditioning, and wing anti-icing.

Bristol Jupiter

The Bristol Jupiter, license-built as the Gnome-Rhône Jupiter and Soviet Shvetsov M-22, was a British nine-cylinder air-cooled radial aero-engine designed by Roy Fedden and powered over 262 aircraft types.

Bristol Mercury

The Bristol Mercury is a British nine-cylinder, air-cooled radial piston aero engine developed by the Bristol Aeroplane Company in 1925, powering fighters including the Gloster Gladiator and Westland Lysander.

Bypass ratio

The bypass ratio of a turbofan engine is the mass of air bypassing the core divided by the mass through it; higher ratios mean better efficiency.

Centrifugal compressor

A centrifugal compressor, also known as a radial compressor, raises gas pressure using a spinning impeller and diffuser, and is widely used in small gas turbines and auxiliary power units.

CFM International CFM56

The CFM International CFM56 (CFM56) is a high-bypass turbofan engine family built by CFM International, a joint venture of GE Aerospace and Safran, powering Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 aircraft.

CFM International LEAP

The CFM International LEAP, also known as the LEAP-X, is a high-bypass turbofan engine family by CFM International that burns about 15% less fuel than the CFM56.

CFM RISE

CFM RISE is a CFM International technology demonstration program launched in 2021 to cut fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by more than 20 percent, centered on an Open Fan architecture.

Clean Aviation

Clean Aviation is the European Union's public-private partnership for sustainable aeronautics, established in 2021 with a €4.1 billion budget to develop climate-neutral aircraft for launch by 2035.

Components of jet engines

The components of jet engines include the inlet, compressor, combustor, turbine, and exhaust nozzle; turbofans add a fan, and afterburners raise thrust by about 40 percent.

Compressor stall

A compressor stall, also known as compressor surge, is a breakdown of airflow in a gas turbine engine's compressor that causes a loud bang and temporary loss of compression.

Contra-rotating propellers

Contra-rotating propellers are a pair of propellers mounted one behind the other on the same axis, turning in opposite directions so the rear one recovers swirl energy as thrust.

Curtiss-Wright

Curtiss-Wright Corporation is an American aerospace and defense manufacturer formed in 1929 by the merger of the Curtiss and Wright companies; once the dominant maker of American aircraft, it exited airframes in 1951.

Dry sump

A dry sump, or dry sump lubrication, is an engine lubrication system storing oil in an external tank, with scavenge pumps keeping the crankcase dry; widely used in aircraft.

Engine Alliance GP7000

The Engine Alliance GP7000 is a high-bypass turbofan developed by a 50/50 joint venture of General Electric and Pratt & Whitney to power the Airbus A380.

Engine configuration

Engine configuration in aviation is the arrangement of an engine's cylinders relative to its crankshaft, described as radial, in-line, V-type, or opposed, along with cooling method.

Eurojet EJ200

The Eurojet EJ200 is a two-shaft afterburning turbofan engine that powers the Eurofighter Typhoon, developed by the four-nation EUROJET consortium and in service since 2003.

Europrop TP400

The Europrop TP400-D6 is a three-shaft turboprop engine developed by the Europrop International consortium to power the Airbus A400M Atlas military transport, producing 11,000 shaft horsepower at sea level.