2008 product AINsupport survey S I W E L

N H O J

PART 3 I ENGINES Cost 2008of parts: A mixed bag. “Very ex- 1,700 hours of operation,” wrote Per Lan- pensive when out of U.S.” and “Too high! deck, chief pilot for Yates Petroleum. Long-life igniters would be a blessing” “Great little engine” and “No experience of Except for a shuffle of the , this among “good” and “fair.” productservice providers–four years with no prob- AOG response: All favorable, except lems in either engine,” wrote others. year’s engine overall rankings look similar to from Kipping in Austria andsuppo Robert Suggestionsrt included: “Williams and Williams.A Kipping:IN “If and when AOG, Cessna need to find a fix for the P2T2 last year’s, with Williams again claiming the then I believe the aircraft will stand for a heater probe failures and the FADEC channel relatively long time; few service centerssu and,rveyfaults”…“Very good save for FADEC prob- top spot among OEMs. due to our maintenance plan, our engineer- lems”…“After a hot-section inspection, the ing department is not allowed to maintain the N1 fan seized. This is a known issue. Trou- by Nigel Moll engine.” Williams: “Poor when out of U.S.” bleshooting and good response from the Warranty fulfillment: All favorable support hotline solved the problem in two n the jet-engine manufacturer category, ranked Turbomeca made the greatest im- (“Best I have ever seen”…“TAP program hours”…“Good, but there is a software Williams International this year retains provement, however, jumping 22 percent really helps”) except for Robert Williams glitch that approximately every 10 hours the top spot it earned in the 2007 AIN overall to lift itself off the bottom rung. again: “Poor when out of U.S.” results in an engine control unit mainte- survey for the quality of the support it Technical manuals: All positive except nance code that has to be reset within 10 provides. In fact, other than a position WILLIAMS this, from maintenance manager Stefan hours of operation. As there are no conve- Iswap by Pratt & Whitney Canada (moving Williams International bumped Rolls- Wetl: “The technical manual provided on niently close service centers, this has been up to fifth this year) and (mov- Royce from the top spot among jet manu- CD-ROM runs only very poorly on Windows a regular nuisance and expense,” wrote ing down to sixth), all seven manufacturers facturers two years ago and has held onto Vista. Because the CD-ROM uses Internet Robert Long, director of ops and chief ranked the same as last year. In the the number-one position this year too. Explorer as the browser, before opening the pilot for Paragon. segment there was more churn, with a shuf- Authorized service centers: “Very few CD the browser searches endlessly on the fle of all four players that puts Honeywell available in Europe,” said Mischa Kipping Web to find the requested path. Tried to de- ROLLS-ROYCE at the top and Rolls-Royce at the bottom. in Austria, the only non-positive comment. scribe and solve problem with Williams Authorized service centers: All earned We devote the majority of this report to Eddie Yell, aviation department manager phone hotline, but without success.” high grades, with StandardAero consis- the reader comments that add flesh to the for Boyd Aviation, said, “Usually accom- Technical reps: Positive, without excep- tently singled out for particular praise for bare-bones numbers, and care is taken to plished at a Cessna Service Center,” but tion. “Mahyar Heshmat was truly outstand- the AE3007 and Dallas Airmotive listed for spotlight a fair and representative cross Dan Schiebel, chief pilot/v-p for Interstate ing,” noted one chief pilot. Spey work. For the R-R 250 / section of feedback. Terse input such as Warehousing, singled out Duncan Battle Overall engine reliability: Mostly highly turboprop, “the network maintains a high “great”…“no complaints”…“atrocious”… Creek as “outstanding.” positive: “Absolutely no issues in nearly degree of excellence,” according to one or “never again,” while taken into account Factory service centers: All comments at the writing stage to contribute to the were brief but effusive in their praise. overall hue of the picture, adds little to the Parts availability: All positive, except narrative and is left out. “Repairs possible only in authorized Among jet engines, Honeywell’s service centers” (Kipping in Austria, HTF7000 scored the highest overall aver- again) and “Poor when out of U.S.” from age, with readers rating the engine (it pow- Robert Williams. ers the Challenger 300) tops for parts availability, AOG response, technical manu- als, technical reps and overall engine relia- bility. Pratt & Whitney Canada’s PW600 series (Cessna Mustang, Eclipse 500) scored highest for factory service centers; Rolls-Royce Spey authorized service cen- ters scored highest in that category; Williams’ FJ44 earned the best ratings for cost of parts and warranty fulfillment. Among turboprop engines, Honeywell’s TPE331 made a clean sweep by earning the highest score in every single category, improving on its 2007 performance overall Rolls-Royce AE3007 by more than 14 percent. Number-three- Williams FJ44

42aaAviation International News • October 2008 • www.ainonline.com director of aviation. But pilot Roland James was not impressed with the UK facility: “It does not have my recommendation. We now go to Canada for engine work.” Factory service centers: Many positive comments, such as this from ParaffinAir director of maintenance Ken Brickett: “Al- though we had some unfortunate delay is- sues with both engines [Tays] in mid-life last year, it was due to some unforeseen computer software issues that were dif- ficult to avoid. However, Rolls-Royce Canada pulled out all the stops to help us and alleviate a bad situation. I think their work and support is unmatched in the en- gine business, except perhaps by another Rolls-Royce Tay Rolls-Royce 250-C30 Rolls-Royce facility.” Some complaints, specifically: “Engines [Tays] overhauled at Spey: “Manuals well documented but ex- There is no such thing as getting a part over- one-stop shopping”…“Very slow if you R-R Canada were not delivered on time, pensive to maintain”…“Room to improve.” night unless, by some chance, the part is in need help involving Germany”…“Poor if and we were given a runaround when we Tay: “Overly expensive”…“Difficult to Savannah”…“Not enough of the right parts you are not a Corporate Care sub- asked why. Customer service was not very use–worst in the industry.” R-R 250 manu- here in the U.S. Always waiting for some- scriber”… “Marginal at best. Currently the good.”…“Results not adequate or accept- als are “extremely expensive, which I bet thing to come from Germany. Also still system and processes do not work if the able for a factory center” (AE3007 opera- has caused some accidents,” suggested having problems with vendor-supplied aircraft is based in the U.S. We have had tor)…“This is the biggest disappointment: chief pilot Enrique Bougeois, “due to the (Aircell) parts”…“Poor unless you pay several opportunities that required technical there are many R-R-powered aircraft on operator trying to save some money and extra annual fees to belong to Corporate variances to be issued, and it was as if R-R the West Coast yet there is no R-R- not purchasing them.” Care. Then you are allowed to get your Deutschland had never done this be- owned/operated repair station [there] to Technical reps: Generally satisfied. parts quickly from the U.S. If not, you fore”…“You need to push hard.” support the mass quantity of engines,” Mary Cote, Jennifer Laing and Malcolm must wait for them from Europe”…“All Warranty fulfillment: A close to even wrote a Tay operator. Pollack were named “outstanding” or “best warranty parts need to go through tech rep. split between satisfied and not so satisfied. Parts availability: Mostly positive com- in the business” by some Tay and BR710 This has slowed our orders”…“If we didn’t The latter camp had this to say: “When the ments, but readers had suggestions for im- operators. For R-R 250, mostly positive. have to use OMAT, as listed in the EMM, it GV had all the fan disc problems, R-R provement. “Tough to order–no proper Overall engine reliability: Unanimous probably wouldn’t be an issue. Great in Eu- stood behind its product. When it figured channel to order parts [for AE3007]”… praise for AE3007, except for this after a rope but useless when the engine is based out that it was the fan blades that were “Not enough effort is being made by R-R good start: “Great reliability. Requirements in the U.S. We needed some wire for a re- causing the problem, it paid to have the to stock [Tay] parts in the U.S.”…“Some- on the A1E need to be re-evaluated. R-R pair based on a technical variance. It took transition strips installed and it replaced times this has been a problem for R-R Can- has millions of hours of data on this model the better part of six months to determine the fan hub. Now that we’re having annulus ada in the past, but I experienced none of and cannot come up with a solution to the the wire part number and for R-R to obtain filler problems, which it claims have noth- this during my most recent visit (July/ oil debris requirement. Would you buy a the wire. If you need an oil filter, they have ing to do with the aforementioned fixes, August 2007).” For the R-R 250, the com- $25 million+ aircraft with a 70 flight hours that, but anything out of the ordinary ap- Rolls is…making the operators pay for an ments spanned the spectrum. or seven days requirement that has to be pears to be a nightmare”…“Very compli- eddy current inspection of a clearly defec- Cost of parts: The usual preponderance performed by a certified mechanic?” cated procedure to obtain parts.” tive part”…“They are still having problems of “too high” and “expensive” for all mod- Spey/Tay: Unanimous raves–“Legen- Cost of parts: The usual griping, with with the fan and fillers and they expect their els, but for both the Spey and Tay, “Very ex- dary reliability”…“Hey, it’s a Rolls”… this the most expansive, from Michael customers to pay for this”…“Questionable, pensive when they break, but they don’t “Just keep the oil level up where it belongs Magnani, director of maintenance for Cen- [said maintenance chief Alex Goodwins]. I break often.” R-R 250 parts costs are “Ex- and [Tays] will run forever”…“Good, solid, tral Management Services: “Since they believe service bulletins should be covered cessive for an engine series that has been old-school engines”…“Bulletproof, and have no competition on the BR710, the under my Corporate Care agreement, but around since the ark,” wrote Roland James. more economical than we thought”…“Best markup is 30 percent higher than the mar- some are not. They won’t pay to prevent a AOG response: Earned high praise engine manufacturer, hands-down.” Mostly ket is willing to bear.” problem by retrofitting for a known problem except for these from two AE3007 opera- high grades for R-R 250: “Excellent”… AOG response: Satisfied outnumber the part, but instead will wait for that part to fail tors. “I had an AD to complete and had “Legendary”…“Good, but a few niggling others two to one. The others had this to and then, when you miss your flight, they AOG come to do it. I had to order parts ADs and extra limitations/cautions coming say: “Goodrich makes it difficult. R-R will repair the part free of charge!”… “It despite not knowing exactly what I in of late.” should be the point of contact for the seems that Corporate Care is more interested needed. This should have been a function engine so the customer experience is Continues on next page u of AOG, especially since I’m a Corporate ROLLS-ROYCE Care customer. Then I had to get the DEUTSCHLAND parts from Cessna because Rolls did not Authorized service centers: A northeast Engine Manufacturer Rankings have them available,” wrote Larry Global Express operator regards them as Adams, director of maintenance for “more competent than factory service cen- Companies are listed in the order of the highest 2008 rankings Overall Overall HealthSouth Aviation. Greg Hamelink, ters,” which he now refuses to visit “due to Percent Average Average Change manager of for many poor experiences,” but did not iden- 2008 2007 Pfizer, wrote, “Needs work. Too many tify ASC locations. Most respondents satis- Williams 8.23 8.16 0.86% layers to get a decent AOG response fied but in general did not venture more L from R-R; they need dedicated individu- than mentioning facility name, including Rolls-Royce 8.09 8.05 L 0.53% als to handle AOG.” Ruag Oberpfaffenhofen and Jet Aviation. RR-Deutschland 7.97 7.79 L 2.32% Warranty fulfillment: All positive or Factory service centers: “Excellent CFE 7.72 7.77 M-0.64% highly positive. work in Montreal, but back-office adminis- P&WC 7.63 7.53 L 1.35% Technical manuals: Generally positive trative issues are apparent. Layoffs and lots Honeywell 7.61 7.74 M-1.74% or middle of road, but some unhappy. of change in R-R management and an arro- GE 7.51 7.21 L 4.14% AE3007: “Gotten better but still hard to gant attitude by R-R Canada overshadow an navigate”…“With manuals on paper, it’s outstanding engine [BR710] and great serv- Turboprops/ hard to follow numbering system. Software ice center,” wrote one director of aviation. for CD is clunky. Nice to have it on- Otherwise comments positive. Honeywell 7.98 7.15 L11.60% line”…“Way too expensive”…“Very diffi- Parts availability: An even split be- P&WC 7.57 7.58 M-0.11% cult to navigate through CD”…“Process to tween good and otherwise. In the latter Turbomeca 7.30 5.98 L22.12% register online is tedious”…“Ridiculously camp: “The parts are always on the wrong Rolls-Royce 7.17 7.34 M-2.37% expensive compared to other engine manu- side of an international border, it seems. Compiled by Jane Campbell with data provided by Forecast International of Newtown, Conn. facturers in this category.” They’re in either Canada or Germany. Bold type indicates the highest rating in each category.

www.ainonline.com • October 2008 • Aviation International Newsaa43 interior of the engine caused a complete un- ESP Gold plan. A sliding scale of coverage stack of the engine and a big charge to us.” would be good, given the extra costs associ- PW600 factory support was highly ated with shipping and rental coverage. 2008 rated. For PT6 facilities, mostly good What’s the point of being on the top table if grades, although Elliott Moline fan Smith no effort is made to give you any coverage product was not impressed with P&WC Orlando when they (ESP) change the rules? Difficult (“When I got it back I couldn’t even take when you are a single, small, private opera- AINsupport off, the engine rigging was so far out”). tor”…“Terrific warranty! Industry stan- Parts availability: Generally well re- dard,” said one director of maintenance survey garded for JT15D but with a couple of ex- about the PW500 and PW600. Said another ceptions. For PW300, good “as long as it PW500 operator, “Warranty is one of the uContinued from preceding page does not have to come out of Canada” or, best things Pratt does.” PT6 operators were for maintenance scheduler Mike Sleight- almost unanimously satisfied. in arguing every repair than just doing is sometimes poor.” For technical manuals, holme operating in Asia, “parts have to Technical manuals: Generally good what they are supposed to”…“It is not a one operator found the new inspection come from the U.S., so you have at least a grades for all engine models, with some sug- good warranty compared to Honeywell or schedule “very confusing.” one-week wait.” gestions. Of the JT15D, pilot Michel Hebert GE, but Rolls does what it says it will do.” For the PW500, overwhelmingly posi- said, “This pair of engines had some real is- Technical manuals: Comments from PRATT & WHITNEY CANADA tive, although for director of aviation David sues related to tech manuals in the past, but those who like them just say “excellent” or Authorized service centers: JT15D facili-2008Lyall “P&W parts for this engine are ex- Pratt made it right!” The PW300 manuals “very good.” ties named were satisfactory. They included pensive and fuel controls are an issue be- “badly need indices and a label on each However, they were slightly outnum- Dallas Airmotive, Landmark KGSO, At- cause of a lackp of aroductvailability.” PW600 gets chapter saying what each contains. Now, you bered by unhappy operators, who were lantic Aero KGSO, STS Butler and Atlantic high marks. The PT6 earned generally high have to open each file to see what’s in it,” more talkative: “Using the online system to Turbines. Likewise with PW300-series facil-AINgrades, but notsuppo from a couple of overseasrt said maintenance chief Bruce Haugsdal. For gain access to manuals for the BR710 is ities Jet Aviation, GDAS MSP and Dallas operators in Brazil and Australia. the PW500, the manuals are “the weakest worse than unearthing the great tombs of Airmotive, but an operator in Asia noted Cost of parts:suMostlyrvey “too high,” but for part of the program” for David Lyall. “Parts antiquity. Very frustrating. The system there is little or no support available in that one chief pilot “ATI was very reasonable cross-referencing between Cessna and needs a vast overhaul”…“Some of the region. For the PW500, Citation service cen- [for JT15D parts], especially compared with P&WC part numbers can be very confusing poorest and most difficult to use in the ters got high marks, along with Duncan Avi- P&W factory shops.” Mostly “too high” and problematic.” For one director of avia- industry”…“The worst [said Michael Mag- ation, Jet Aviation Dallas and Stevens with PW300, PW500 and PW600, too, with tion also operating PW500s, “P&WC needs nani]. If I could, I’d have rated them minus Aviation. Facilities named for PT6 work: one director of maintenance sounding off to simplify its manuals.” PT6 operators were 10. In the last two weeks, almost unanimously satisfied. I have personally been in- Technical reps: Singled out for com- volved in three interna- mendation were Tim Critchfield with EMS; tional conference calls Jim Robbins, Cleveland; Tracy Gandy and with various managers of Robert Steele; and Francis DeGruchy. tech pubs or Aeroman- Overall, nearly all operators were satisfied ager, and it’s like talking or better, but a few gripes. The loudest: to a brick wall. No one “Some were arrogant, self-serving, patron- can tell me how or when izing and in denial when we met and dis- N

they’re going to make im- O cussed our engine fire!” PT6 operators T P U provements. The text is were unanimously satisfied. M

Pratt & Whitney Canada PW600 I confusing or wrong, and J Overall engine reliability: the hyperlinks may or JT15D: predominantly excellent may not take you where or very good, with exceptions. you need to go. There is “Internal corrosion issues at no such thing as a task CFE738 5,800 hours”…“Premature fail- card that takes you from ure of a certain life-limited part start to finish on a job. I’m always wonder- Dallas Airmotive; Elliott Moline (“by far the caused our engine to be destroyed ing if I have downloaded all the data off ei- best maintenance facility” in chief pilot Ken- but because it was out of war- ther the ’net or the CD-ROM. I’m told by neth Smith’s book); Lider, Brazil; Standard- ranty it became our problem.” R-R that the new BR725 manuals for the Aero; Stevens; Hawker Beech Tampa. PW300: Satisfied operators G650 will be better, but the BR710, which Factory service centers: Operators gen- accounted for about 70 percent looks set to remain in production for many erally happy with service, except one who of responses. Others had their years, will retain the old format manuals. said he was told his JT15D hot sections doubts: “Engine dispatch relia- The key phrases I’ve gotten from many were on their way to the aircraft, “when in bility is good,” said Don conference calls are ‘It’s the best we can actuality all parts had not even been re- Pratt & Whitney Canada PW500 Roller. “The PW305 has nu- do’ or ‘It would take a lot of time and ceived from manufacturer. Calls were merous issues with cracking money to improve the manuals.’ All of us never returned by rep.” blades, corrosion and various customers pay $10,000 per year for our For the PW300 series, Burlington, Vt., thus about the PW500: “Cost of parts re- miscellaneous engineering problems. manual subscription.” “does an outstanding job,” according to placed at overhaul became staggering. As Pratt is reluctant to take responsibility Technical reps: North American reps one chief pilot, and line captain Boyd more of these units are overhauled in the for these problems and seems to take the earned high praise, particularly the afore- Roberts said the Orlando center “is a good fleet, P&WC has to do a better job of keep- stance of ‘close your eyes and hope it mentioned [see R-R entry above] Cote, Pol- place to go.” ing total overhaul cost under $500,000 goes away.’” Said a pilot: “Engine relia- lack and Laing, for the jobs they do despite Among those who expressed an opinion (and under $400,000 would be even bet- bility has been good. However, over the the cross-border obstacles listed above. (rather than just a location) about factory ter).” A $350,000-each second overhaul for past few years we have experienced sev- Overall engine reliability: Operators support for the PW500 series, these com- one chief pilot’s PT6s was “way too high, eral issues, including internal FOD and are generally in awe of the reliability of ments: “As with Cessna, the factory service at Dallas Airmotive.” corrosion of the intermediate case that their BR710s, which means they don’t centers are not as customer service-oriented AOG response: The vast majority of op- we are still dealing with.” Wrote a direc- have to call on R-R support too often. as the authorized centers are”…“Good re- erators rated this as satisfied or better, but tor of aviation: “The engines perform sponse, but the billing process is too the odd “Poor”…“Questionable”…“Slow.” well, with low maintenance [needs]. CFE slow.”…“PW overhaul was a nightmare at The vast majority of PT6 operators were However, did you ever understand how Operators generally satisfied. “Good West Virginia”…“West Virginia and Ver- happy with AOG response. difficult it is to have a P&WC engine quality, but too slow” was the only com- mont are great”…“Orlando service center is Warranty fulfillment: Generally satis- and a Honeywell avionics system, both ment that fell short of satisfaction with both top notch”…“Difficulty with P&WC’s fail- fied, but PW300 operator Sleightholme, in of which talk only in ‘proprietary infor- authorized and factory service centers. ure to assemble the PW545A properly dur- Asia, “not happy. Major issue at the moment mation’? Shame on Dassault for creating For parts availability: “The European ing initial production [said Will Gray] is with the LUI schedule and the inability to such an unworkable albatross of partners pool is managed in Poland, and availability now costing us big bucks. Loose bolts in the obtain inspection cost coverage under our Continues on page 46 u

44aaAviation International News • October 2008 • www.ainonline.com For the TPE331, facilities named in- their exporting procedures.” For TPE331, cluded Dallas Airmotive (“very positive”); unanimously good comments. Duncan (“excellent service”); Intercontinen- Cost of parts: Other than the usual ma- 2008 tal Jet, Tulsa (“great, and can help when jority of comments such as “too high” and Honeywell falls flat”); National Flight, “better have MSP,” one director of mainte- product Toledo; and Tenix Aviation. nance had this to say: “Honeywell appears Factory service centers: Largely good to have a genuine interest in the customer AINsupport grades for TFE731, with a couple of ex- experience and has adjusted prices and ceptions. “Honeywell moves at the speed come up with some creative programs to survey of continental drift”…“Need better super- assist operators.” vision by more knowledgeable managers.” AOG response: Generally good grades uContinued from page 44 Parts availability: Generally good for (“They were able to get us a part from TFE731 (“much improved over years Teterboro to our hangar in Dallas within whose ultimate result is to provide the AOG team”…“Does a better job than Hon- past”), but not without problems. “Hard to six hours.”) but one maintenance chief not user with no performance information eywell”); Duncan Aviation Lincoln and get parts for older engines”…“Always the so sure (“The service centers do a good job for a sophisticated avionics system.” Battle Creek (“Keeps all of our issues re- biggest worry when completing major at this. I don’t think the factory has an PW500: operators are now overwhelm- solved before they ground a flight”…“Al- scheduled events. Always drives the down- AOG response team.”). In regard to the ingly wowed by these engines, except for ways stands behind the great work it time”…“Never have parts needed to com- TPE331, for Pat Cannon, “Honeywell has oil leaks (“a constant battle,” according to does”); Landmark/StandardAero Augusta2008plete a CZI [says Chris Trautman]. The lost the edge on product support except chief of maintenance Kevin Smith) and the (“Can’t be beat”); GDAS (“Always great Honeywell Web site is in need of an over- through its authorized centers.” Remainder dubious claim by chief pilot Robert Whit- for us”); Jet Aviation Basel, Geneva and haul. If partsp are roductnot AOG, you’re sent to of TPE331 comments were all positive. tenburg, who said, “It is my understanding Zurich; but “none in Australia/New India or somewhere you can’t understand Warranty fulfillment: HTF7000 gets that our engine is the only PW535A that Zealand, which is a real pain.” AINthem for help.…Theysuppo need to speedrt up Continues on page 48 u has had a main bearing failure. After being repaired, it is functioning perfectly.” survey PW600: High grades, with aircraft manager Mark Gardner saying, “Excel- lent. P&WC has made a major step for- ward in regards to product support.” This comment from Mike McNamara summed up the consensus for the PT6: “Thank God for those reliable PT6As. I haven’t had any problems in over 30 years and thousands of flying hours.” One mainte- nance controller did complain, however, that “Some continuing problems with PT vane cracking and CT zone deterioration drags down overall reliability.”

HONEYWELL Authorized service centers: The follow- ing came in for special recognition for TFE731 work: Dallas Airmotive (“Gets the Honeywell TPE331 Honeywell HTF7000 whole customer service thing”…“Great

2008 RATINGS Manufacturers are listed in the order of their 2008 overall averages. Overall Average Overall Average Percent Authorized Factory Parts Cost AOG Warranty Technical Technical Overall Product Turbofans 2008 2007 Change Service Centers Service Centers Availability of Parts Response Fulfillment Manuals Reps Reliability

Honeywell (HTF7000) 8.35 8.19 1.98% 7.83 8.14 8.27 7.29 8.31 7.94 8.50 8.72 9.41 Williams (FJ44) 8.23 8.16 0.91% 7.98 8.35 8.19 7.30 8.18 8.42 8.20 8.36 8.94 P&WC (PW600 Series) 8.15 N/A N/A 7.93 8.40 8.06 6.92 7.93 8.29 8.37 7.89 8.96 Rolls-Royce (Spey) 8.14 8.01 1.60% 8.04 7.96 8.24 7.00 7.96 8.13 7.94 8.43 9.19 Rolls-Royce (AE3007) 8.09 8.22 -1.57% 8.00 8.19 8.23 6.96 8.23 8.30 7.55 8.06 9.17 Rolls-Royce (Tay) 8.08 7.99 1.19% 7.94 8.03 8.15 6.65 8.19 8.16 7.66 8.50 9.28 RR-Deutschland (BR710) 7.97 7.79 2.34% 7.88 8.21 7.80 6.56 8.00 8.11 7.35 8.43 9.16 CFE (CFE738) 7.72 7.77 -0.59% 7.79 7.97 7.54 6.32 7.68 8.00 7.58 7.95 8.64 P&WC (PW300 Series) 7.64 N/A N/A 7.43 7.43 7.62 6.65 7.75 7.87 7.32 7.88 8.61 Honeywell (TFE731) 7.63 7.73 -1.39% 7.79 7.61 7.53 6.34 7.62 7.89 7.44 7.76 8.55 P&WC (PW500 Series) 7.62 N/A N/A 7.67 7.92 7.70 6.10 7.59 7.61 7.57 7.50 8.79

GE (CF34) 7.61 7.36 3.46% 7.59 7.81 7.70 6.38 7.54 7.19 7.46 7.48 9.02 P&WC (JT15D) 7.54 7.43 1.48% 7.66 7.70 7.64 6.06 7.22 7.42 7.48 7.75 8.71 Turboprops/Turboshafts Honeywell (TPE331) 8.10 7.09 14.16% 8.47 8.12 8.07 6.61 7.74 7.80 8.33 8.42 9.23 P&WC (PT6) 7.57 7.62 -0.15% 7.61 7.50 7.74 6.06 7.48 7.38 7.62 7.67 8.95 Turbomeca (all models) 7.30 5.98 22.12% 7.20 7.24 6.83 5.67 7.47 7.24 7.53 8.22 8.27 Rolls-Royce (250) 7.17 7.31 -1.84% 7.07 6.79 7.16 5.89 7.20 7.19 7.30 7.43 8.38

Compiled by Jane Campbell with data provided by Forecast International of Newtown, Conn. Bold type indicates the highest rating in each category. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Rating Scale: Inadequate Poor Average Good Excellent

46aaAviation International News • October 2008 • www.ainonline.com and sent mine out for overhaul done in we do is add oil when needed, and they four days. No problems”…“Dallas ar- just keep running”…“Most reliable en- ranged for GE to perform a FOD repair in gine I have ever operated”…“No opera- 2008 2007 [wrote head of aviation operations tional issues in 18 years of running this C. Fortmann] and GE came and made all engine”…“We have had two instances of product the necessary repairs on wing and were broken fire detection loops. Otherwise, an very helpful with explaining details to the extremely reliable engine”…“Overall, AINsupport aircraft salespeople, new owner and the in- great engine and support.” surance company”…However, “paperwork survey for overhauls [at unidentified facility] TURBOMECA is not very accurate,” wrote one mainte- Authorized service centers: A third of uContinued from page 46 nance manager. the respondents were happy (“good”… Parts availability: Generally good. “very helpful to customers”), another good grades. For TFE731, Hormel mainte- post-delivery”…“It’s OK but I’m sur- Negative feedback accounted for only 8 third were not (“poor”…“very expen- nance chief Bruce Haugsdal thinks service prised that on our newest platform (Falcon percent. sive”…“slow”), and the remainder were is “good, but operator should not have to 900EX) with -60 engines we worry more Cost of parts: “Pretty steep”…“The either middle-of-the-road or ambiguous. start paying into MSP until warranty pe- about its reliability and unplanned mainte- costs are high [wrote chief pilot Edward For example, does “Don’t use” mean “We riod is over.” Line captain Hemet Patel nance than we do our other and far older2008Borowy] but the quality and reliability do not use” or “Don’t touch them with a likes the service, calling it “no-questions- models”…“Not good [wrote pilot Mark are superb”…“Normal inspection parts 10-foot pole”? asked warranty.” For the TPE331, “honor- Fraser]”…“Frequent issues with engine prices are good but fuel control prices are Factory service centers: No clear con- able” and “excellent” were the themes of air/oil seals and a handful of other areas in outrageous consideringproduct they get the core sensus, with comments largely mirroring all comments. our last 10 years. Our current three rela- back.” those for the above question. Technical manuals: A mixed bag of tively new -40 engines have low timeA but INAOG response:suppoHighly regarded. rt Parts availability: Operators were largely opinions, ranging from “excellent” to “tech we expect similar results”… Warranty fulfillment: All positive except unimpressed. “Modular concept looks manuals are hard to use; must be checked “One of our new engines didn’t make for one fromsu a chief ofrvey maintenance: “Filed good on paper but getting a module close on the Web site, which is the worst in the the aircraft delivery without a removal one minor claim in three years and was de- to your engine times is impossible”… industry if one can get on it.” For TPE331, and warranty exchange. Of our original nied after prior approval.” “Spares availability is poor.” top marks from all. 15 engines [wrote this director of mainte- Technical manuals: Gen- Technical reps: Those working on the nance], many did not reach the scheduled erally positive reviews, but HTF7000 get high grades. Singled out for MPI or CZI without an earlier removal. chief pilot Edward Borowy their TFE731 expertise were Jack Wolf, MSP is a good thing.” The TPE331 is “ex- is “disappointed that the Andrew Patton and Clark Rogers–“some of cellent when operated carefully and con- paper manuals have been the most knowledgeable people in the in- servatively,” according to pilot Cameron discontinued. Quality and dustry are Honeywell tech reps,” wrote one Heathwood and an opinion shared by all usability of both the digital aviation manager. respondents. For Ken Wolf of Wolf Eye and paper versions remains However, asked one maintenance direc- Associates, “Three canceled trips in 15 among the best”…“Good tor, “Why does my tech rep live in Tucson? years–that speaks for reliability.” and getting better, espe- I’ve got three of his engines on a brand- cially the instant updating new airplane and I’ve never seen him. He GENERAL ELECTRIC (CF34) of revisions over the Inter- rarely even answers the phone. Then when Authorized service centers: Facilities net”…“Could be a little I call the help line, I get sent to India. Are singled out for good service include Duncan more user friendly, but you kidding me?!”…“Do I have one?” Aviation Lincoln, Midcoast, Premier Tur- since [this director of main- asked another maintenance chief. “They bines, StandardAero and Jet Aviation STL. tenance doesn’t] need to dig Turbomeca Arrius change constantly–great supply of business A Challenger operator in the Northeast, into them much, maybe I cards,” wrote another. Despite these, more however, was not so impressed with his need a little more exposure to their way.” Cost of parts: Despite one “remortgage than 80 percent of comments were favor- (unidentified) facility: “Last visit was miser- Technical reps: Readers were split the house!” the percentage of “fair” or able. For TPE331, top marks from all. able. Many service bulletins and main- about evenly here, with a good sampling “good” was higher than usual. Overall engine reliability: “Honeywell tenance inspections scheduled during a of brief but positive opinions: “Very help- AOG response: The satisfied were hit a home run with [the HTF7000]. As paint visit. Engine fuel controls were inad- ful when we call. Don’t ever hear from slightly outnumbered by the unsatisfied. close to trouble-free as you can get,” wrote vertently removed when the tech ‘thought’ them except when the engines are nearing “Great service when parts are available”… maintenance director Stephen Stodolski. we were doing an FCU bulletin that was not hot section or overhaul…Good…Top- “A delay of two to three days”…“Some- And as for the TFE731, the engine once on the workscope. One of the FCUs was notch…Always helpful…” And then the times slow”…“Horrible.” known as the Garrett Grenade, customers subsequently damaged and had to be re- not so fuzzy: “GE seems to be going the Warranty fulfillment: No complaints, are for the most part highly satisfied. To placed. The rigging was so poor that I am way of Honeywell when it comes to sup- with all respondents rating it average wit: “Good motor. Kept my keister safe for surprised it was released from the facility.” port. Dial our 800 number and wait, ’cause or good. many many years”…“Terrific [wrote chief Factory service facilities: GE in Stro- we really don’t want to spend the money to Technical manuals: Majority “good,” but pilot R. Rose]. We have not lost a flight to ther, Lufthansa Bombardier and Bom- support you and the engine is reliable also “Slow to deliver new revisions”…“Very engine problems in six years and over 8,000 bardier Dallas all earned good grades: enough that we don’t have to…Impossible hard to follow”…“Confusing.” flight hours”…“It is hard to fault Honeywell “Bombardier and Lufthansa were incredible to get anyone on site to evaluate a prob- Technical reps: Majority satisfied; re- on this magnificent piece of engineer- when they changed my engines for loaners lem in a timely manner”…“Short on mainder “never see him.” ing”…“Good engine, very reli- FSRs”…“When the tech rep is Overall engine reliability: Impressive able, but reached the limit in out of the office there is no one for most respondents, with some caveats. age and performance”…“This else on site and the question or “It’s very reliable and powerful but engine is bulletproof.” concern will not be addressed we are experiencing degraded perform- But you can’t please them until he returns.” ance on the power checks lately. It all: “They run very good until Overall engine reliability: used to have better performance before they fail [sic]”…“There’s a Admiration for the reliability of 2,000 hours”… reason they put three on this the CF34 was almost unani- “Operational reliability of Arriel is airplane”…“I have experi- mous among the respondents, outstanding in our opinion. On par with enced several failures with with one exception from a di- PT6”…“Poor in the S-76C+”…“Reliable 731s [wrote chief pilot rector of maintenance: “These but expensive to operate”…“Very good William Redick]. It is a good engines are making the news engine but parts hard to get.” J engine but not as reliable as it more frequently than I feel com- could be”…“We have had two fortable with”…“We are just ap- This year’s survey was devised by AIN’s new engines. One ate itself proaching 2,000 hours with zero editors and designed and administered by during pre-delivery testing, complaints”…“So far these en- Newtown, Conn.-based Forecast Interna- General Electric CF34 and one had a major deviation gines have been bulletproof. All tional in collaboration with AIN.

48aaAviation International News • October 2008 • www.ainonline.com