GE Honda Aero Engines (Stand E073) is gearing up for service entry of the 2,095-pound-thrust HF120 engine on the HondaJet and is working simultaneously on applications for other aircraft. Entry into service of the HondaJet is expected this year, and GE Honda has already delivered 34 production engines for the new light jet.
In the meantime, GE Honda Aero’s Burlington, N.C. manufacturing facility is ramping up to produce more than 100 engines this year. The company received an FAA production certificate in March, executive vice president Masahiko Izumi noted yesterday at EBACE.
A dedicated maintenance, repair and overhaul facility adjacent to the factory is now ready, he said. GE Honda is offering a comprehensive engine service program, on a by-the-hour basis, that is called EMC2. Yesterday, UK, Cambridge-based Marshall Aviation Services was named the third European-authorized service center, joiningTAG Aviation in Farnborough and Rheinland Air Service in Mönchengladbach, Germany.
Combining ground and flight testing, “The HF120 will be the most tested new engine to come on market,” said GEHonda president Steven Shaknaitis. The test engines have accumulated 13,000 hours and 23,000 cycles. EASAvalidation of the HF120 certification is said to be on track for the fourth quarter, simultaneously with that from theDGAC Mexico, and followed by anticipated Transport Canada approval in 2016.
Part of the company roadmap is looking at single-engine applications. “We see potential applications and have also talked to Cirrus, offering them to do something with us in future,” Shaknaitis said.
As for twin-engine applications, possibly with a higher thrust level, GE Honda is also talking to other airframers.GE Honda last fall announced a joint project with Sierra Industries, of Uvalde, Texas, to develop an engine retrofit program, dubbed Sapphire, for the Cessna CitationJet, CJ1 and CJ1+. Shaknaitis sees a target population of more than 600 aircraft to re-engine under the Sapphire program.