Pratt and Whitney Canada will spend more than $360 million on research and development in the next three years to make engines that are cleaner and leaner. The Quebec government is chipping in $125 million in the form of a repayable loan that the province will recover from royalties on sales. John Sabaas, PW&C’s executive vice president, said R&D is a cornerstone of the engine maker’s success. “Our sustained investments in R&D have allowed us to bring more than 65 new engines to market over the past 15 years, a significant accomplishment,” Sabaas said.
Although modern turbine engines are about 30-percent more efficient than the previous generation, PW&C believes there are ways to squeeze more push from a pound of Jet A with less pollution. It has about 1,500 engineers working on that at R&D facilities in Longueuil, Quebec, and Mississauga, Ontario. It’s latest engine, the geared turbofan 800 series, has been chosen for Cessna’s intercontinental bizjet, the Columbus 850.
